Firefighters in San Bernardino County were called to the scene of a huge fire on Saturday evening at a pallet yard in Fontana, according to officials. Crews observed that a significant amount of pallets, vehicles, trucks, and trailers were ablaze, making up roughly a quarter-acre of fire at the commercial structure, as first reported by KTLA. San Bernardino County Fire Department authorities declared the incident a four-alarm fire, leading to a cooperative response from an array of neighboring agencies.

With the blaze rapidly intensifying Edison was called to manage three power poles that were involved in the fire. One firefighter was hospitalized with minor burns, while no civilian injuries were reported so far, "a firefighter was injured while putting out a massive pallet yard fire in San Bernardino County," per the KTLA article. Due to the thick smoke from the fire, some residents were told to stay indoors and to avoid the area because of road closures and concerns for air quality.

The effort to extinguish the fire was extensive, requiring approximately 85 firefighters from various departments. This collective push included 18 engines, 5 trucks, and various other resources stated by Jeremy Kern, Captain and Public Information Officer, in a Facebook post by the San Bernardino County Fire Department. The Fontana Water Department was also requested to increase water pressure to assist the teams actively fighting the blaze. The fire was reported to be under control about two hours later.

The origin of the fire is still under investigation, with officials working to ascertain what caused the stacked pallets to ignite. The investigation will determine not only the cause but also any potential lapses in safety protocols that could have prevented the occurrence of such an event. No evacuations have been ordered as of the latest reports, but continued smoke may affect the surrounding areas for some time according to a statement on X by the firefighting team, found in their coverage of the event by CBS News Los Angeles.

San Bernardino County Fire acknowledges the support from the Rancho Cucamonga Fire District, Rialto Fire Department, and Colton Fire Department in controlling the fire. This collaborative effort helped save a tow yard, located to the north, with multiple vehicles and buildings, as well as preventing the fire from spreading to an adjacent business to the east. The determination and coordinated actions of the firefighters and responding agencies managed to mitigate what could have been a more disastrous event.