Fire at Benton Hot Springs - April 2024

[ski3pin]

Here's some sad news -

Benton's website notice

Mammoth Fire Department page

 

[Vic Harder]

whew! Seems like best practices averted a major disaster for them.... or was site #6 your fave?

 

[Casa Escarlata Robles Too]

That's a real bummer.Is that the site you use?
Frank

 

[CraggyMan]

Sounds like they are working hard to get the site restored and maintain privacy. That would have been a real scary situation for them.
Seems like we have mostly used #s 7&8.

 

[ski3pin]

Last May there was a similar fire near tub 9, not as much damage, it burned sage to the east. I wish they would ban campfires completely.

Tub #6 was surrounded by non native salt cedar with not much of a view. Too bad they are hoping for it to re-sprout and missing an opportunity to work on the landscaping.

 

[craig333]

Banning campfires wouldn't bother me. Sorry to hear this happened.

 

[rubberlegs]

Fortunately, the damage was contained and all the sites are still usable. It could have been a lot worse. Thanks for the update, Monte.

 

[teledork]

Even if they banned campfires they would still need to actually enforce it. Fires have been banned in some of the extreme dry years but you wouldn't have known it. I remember some fire bugs in #2 tearing up brush and creating - I am not kidding - 10 foot flames. Then their generator ran off and on all night. With no cell service you have to go to the office to use the radio and while the offending camper is fined I'll bet Jimmy doesn't care much for being called in the middle of the night and I'm not foolish enough to try and speak to anyone on my own these days. Maybe this fire will spark a little more concern but fending off the rampant stupidity and entitlement is like trying to hold back a flood with a broom. I quit going to Benton several years ago.