A controlled burn on 92 acres in San Timoteo Canyon that was planned by Cal Fire to take place today, Thursday May 16, has been cancelled.
The project, described as "broadcast burning" near San Timoteo Canyon Road and El Casco Creek, east of Redlands, was called off but a Cal Fire spokeswoman said she was not sure why.
"It could have been the weather, or a myriad of other factors," Melody Hendrickson of Cal Fire-Riverside County said in a phone interview before noon Thursday.
There was an unplanned fire Wednesday afternoon in San Timoteo Canyon north of San Timoteo Canyon Road, north of the railroad tracks used by freight trains and Amtrak, and a bit west of Fisherman's Retreat.
Firefighters contained that blaze to three acres, Hendrickson said. The cause of the fire was being investigated.
The three-acre fire in San Timoteo Canyon was the second fire near railroad tracks on Wednesday. Earlier in the day, a third Cajon Pass fire in five days snarled freeway traffic and delayed at least one freight train at the Interstate 15-215 junction in Glen Helen and Devore.
On Friday, Cal Fire and other agencies met in Redlands to remind residents the fire season so far this year has been hot, dry and dangerous.
Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.