Forest Service Closes Blue Cut Fire Area to Public Use

Release Date: Sep 2, 2016

SAN BERNARDINO, California, September 2, 2016 – To address public safety concerns, the San Bernardino National Forest issued today an Area Closure for the Blue Cut Fire effective Saturday, September 3, 2016.

The area closure is intended to keep the public safe from post-fire hazards such as falling snags, rolling debris and water run-off. Simply being in the area where these types of hazards exist possess a significant risk to the public.

“Wildfires on our public lands often leave fragile and very unsafe conditions on the landscape that can be dangerous to forest visitors,” said Elrand Denson, Deputy Forest Supervisor of the San Bernardino National Forest. “To ensure the public’s safety, a large area of forest that was affected by the Blue Cut Fire has been closed to all public use.”

The Blue Cut Fire area closure specifically prohibits:

• Going into or being upon National Forest System lands within the Blue Cut Fire Closure Area
• Being on any National Forest System trail within the Blue Cut Fire Closure Area, except for the Pacific Crest Trail
• Being on any National Forest System road within the Blue Cut Fire Closure Area

The areas subject to the closure are commonly referred to as the following:

• Upper Lytle Creek Divide Area
• Stockton Flats Area
• Baldy Mesa OHV Staging/Area
• Lost Lake Area
• Applewhite Campground
• Applewhite Truck Trail
• Sheep Canyon Area
• Cajon Wash Area
• Cajon Pass

Forest users are encouraged to contact the Mill Creek Visitor Center at 909 382 2882, prior to visiting the forest if they have specific questions on which roads and trails are closed.

The full text of the order and maps can be found on the San Bernardino National Forest website.

About the U.S. Forest Service:

The mission of the U.S. Forest Service, part of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, is to sustain the health, diversity and productivity of the nation's forests and grasslands to meet the needs of present and future generations. The agency manages 193 million acres of public land, provides assistance to state and private landowners, and maintains the largest forestry research organization in the world. Public lands the Forest Service manages contribute more than $13 billion to the economy each year through visitor spending alone. Those same lands provide 20 percent of the nation's clean water supply, a value estimated at $7.2 billion per year. The agency has either a direct or indirect role in stewardship of about 80 percent of the 850 million forested acres within the U.S., of which 100 million acres are urban forests where most Americans live.

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