UPDATED: Half of Highway 74 Closed near Mountain Center Due to Storm Damage

MOUNTAIN CENTER (CNS) – An 11-mile stretch of eastbound Highway 74 in the San Bernardino National Forest was shut down Wednesday because of storm-related obstructions and damage.

The closure went into effect shortly before 8 a.m. between Bee Canyon Truck Trail and Mountain Center, according to Caltrans District 8.

“There is debris flow from the Fairview Fire burn scar that has come onto the highway — rock, mud, bushes, etc.,” agency spokeswoman Emily Leinen told City News Service. “Crews are working in the area to clear it as quickly as possible and will hopefully have more progress made later this (Wednesday) afternoon.”

The 28,000-acre Fairview Fire erupted last Sept. 5 southeast of Hemet, possibly because of downed electrical lines. The blaze lasted nearly three weeks, consuming mostly uninhabited space, including a large section of the San Bernardino National Forest above Highway 74.

Riverside County sheriff’s deputies and California Highway Patrol officers were enforcing the eastbound closure. The westbound side of the highway was open, the CHP said.

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