Cooler Temperatures, Higher Humidity Help Firefighters Battle Holy Fire

TRABUCO CANYON (CBSLA) — Lower temperatures and higher humidity over the weekend helped firefighters gain ground on the week-old Holy Fire burning in the Cleveland National Forest.

Since the wildfire broke out last Monday in Orange County, it has scorched 22,714 acres and is 52 percent contained as of Monday morning.

Evacuations were lifted for Glen Eden and Lake Elsinore in Riverside County, but residents in Trilogy Glen Ivy were warned to leave, according to Cleveland National Forest fire commanders.

Life is slowly getting back to normal in communities that have been affected by the fire and the smoke it has been sending up in to the air. Menifee Unified School District schools will be open Monday, five days after their school years was supposed to begin, but the Lake Elsinore Unified School District and the Corona-Norco Unified School District pushed its first day of school until next Monday.

In Orange County, Trabuco and Holy Jim canyons remained under mandatory evacuation orders, and all campgrounds in the Trabuco Ranger District were closed. Back country fire roads were closed to hiking and bicycling, including Trabuco Creek, Maple Springs, North Main Divide, Bedford and Indian Truck Trail.

Ortega (74) Highway remained closed due to firefighting efforts.

Forrest Gordon Clark, 51, remained jailed in Santa Ana in lieu of $1 million bail. His arraignment on several counts of arson and resisting arrest was delayed until Aug 17.

Clark faces 10 years to life in prison if convicted as charged.

(© Copyright 2018 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. City News Service contributed to this report.)