Sept. 11 (UPI) — Authorities in California have arrested a 34-year-old man accused of starting the Line Fire last week that has scorched tens of thousands of acres in San Bernardino County.
Justin Wayne Halstenberg was arrested Tuesday at 7 p.m. local time at 6th Street and Sierra Avenue, in Norco, Calif., according to jail records. He has been charged with three arson-related charges and is being held in lieu of $80,000 bail.
His first court date is scheduled for Thursday at 12:30 p.m.
Little information about the arrest or charges has been released to the public, aside from the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department saying in a statement that Halstenberg had been identified by detectives as a suspect who started the Line Fire on Sept. 5 in the area of Baseline Road and Alpin Street in the city of Highland, which is located about 65 miles east of Los Angeles.
Since igniting, the Line Fire has exploded to nearly 34,300 acres as of Tuesday night with only 14% contained, Cal Fire said in an update.
Some 65,600 structures are currently threatened by the blaze, including 13,300 that are within the borders of evacuation orders, while another 52,300 are under evacuations warnings.
Three of the 2,684 fire fighters battling the blaze have been confirmed injured, though the extent to which was unknown.
Along with the army of fire fighters, nearly 300 engines, 52 crews, 47 dozers and 22 helicopters have been deployed in the effort.
Cal Fire warns that the blaze is still growing in steep, difficult access terrain.
“Tonight, stronger winds are predicted, which could lead to drops in relative humidity and greater fire spread,” it said in an update. “Toward the end of the week, cooler weather may moderate fire activity. Public safety power shutoffs are anticipated for parts of the Big Bear and Bear Valley areas. This may impact potential evacuation zones.”
There are several wildfires burning in Southern California, including the Bridge Fire of Los Angeles and San Bernardino counties.
According to Cal Fire, it was started Sunday and was nearly 47,000 acres by Tuesday night.
The California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services said on X late Tuesday that it was requesting a Federal Management Assistance Grant from FEMA to “secure vital resources to suppress the #BridgeFire.”