California woman arrested who claimed fake firefighter husband to solicit donations

She is accused of defrauding individuals who believed they were donating to benefit firefighters working on the Holy Fire

Above: An S-2T air tanker comes past the smoke to drop retardant near the communication towers on Santiago Peak August 8, 2018 as the Holy Fire approaches. HPWREN image.

While the Holy Fire was burning last August in Orange and Riverside Counties in Southern California, a woman posted requests for donations on several social media sites. Ashley Bemis was arrested this week on multiple felony counts for collecting thousands of dollars worth of cash, food, and equipment that she said was going to be used to help firefighters working on the fire.

Ms. Bemis, 28, of San Juan Capistrano, posted pictures of herself and her fictitious firefighter husband asking for donations. She asked for items she claimed would benefit the firefighters working alongside her husband battling the blaze that ultimately burned more than 23,000 acres in the Cleveland National Forest and destroyed 18 structures.

Ashley Bemis. Orange Co. Sheriff’s Office

After the social media posts, multiple individuals and companies in San Clemente and the surrounding area contacted Ms. Bemis to donate. She is suspected of collecting more than $2,000 in donations, both cash and items like socks, sports drinks, water, and camping equipment, from individuals, stores and companies.

A captain with a local fire agency became suspicious of the requests and contacted the Orange County Sheriff’s Department to investigate. Investigators interviewed victims and obtained search warrants for Ms. Bemis’ vehicle, residence and garages.

San Clemente Police Services investigators also became aware, through additional social media posts from members of the community, of past fraudulent activity by Ms. Bemis, including multiple prior faked pregnancies in an attempt to illegally obtain money from unsuspecting victims.

She is being held on $50,000 bail.

Dozer rollover on Holy Fire in SoCal

The operator was wearing a seat belt and was not injured. It happened August 12, 2018.

Dozer rollover, Holy Fire, 8-12-2018
Dozer rollover, Holy Fire, 8-12-2018.

A dozer rolled over while constructing fireline on the Holy Fire in Southern California on August 12, 2018. Below is the text from the Rapid Lesson Sharing report:


Narrative
This day, August 12, was hot. I was part way through my shift as a dozer operator. My assignment for the day was putting in another blade of dozer line across the ridge and along the black in my Division. This was my second day working this piece of the line.

The terrain was rocky and steep. I was using the dozer to sidehill along the black. Due to dusty conditions working the dozer, visibility was marginal.

Around noon, I was working on a section of line that had a brush pile I was clearing out. The brush was pretty thick. I therefore didn’t realize that I was about to roll up onto a large boulder that was hidden under the brush pile.

Rolling up on this boulder made the dozer tip over on its side. It all seemed to happen in slow motion. There was no violent bounce. I was wearing my seatbelt which kept me in the cab during the rollover. I was able to remove myself from the cab. I realized that I had no injuries from this incident.

A Dozer Strike Team was able to upright my dozer back onto its track. Ground Support inspected the dozer and found no damage.

Lessons

  • Use a swamper to scout for possible hazards ahead of dozer line construction.
  • When operating a dozer, don’t feel pressured to stay directly against the black when a “safer line” may pull away from the black for a little ways.

Holy Fire spots across fireline in Southern California

(Originally published at 1:09 p.m. PDT August 27, 2018)

Holy Fire Santiago Peak California
Flare up on the Holy Fire at Santiago Peak in Southern California, August 27, 2018. Image from KWAVE camera. Click to enlarge.

The Holy Fire has been relatively quiet for the last 12 days, with the reported size of 22,986 acres remaining the same since August 15.

But that changed today when a spot fire ignited across the fireline and once again threatened the numerous electronic sites at Santiago Peak. Those facilities supply many of the television, radio, and communications links for the greater Los Angeles area, along with other sites in the area.

The fire originally started August 6 near Holy Jim Canyon in the Santa Ana Mountains southeast of Los Angeles.

The fire was burning quiet well, as you can see in these photos, but by noon or 12:30 p.m. local time the intensity had decreased, due in part to drops by air tankers and helicopters.

These images were captured from live cameras on Santiago Peak, HPWREN and KWAVE.

(To see all of the articles on Wildfire Today about the Holy Fire, including the most recent, click HERE.)

S-2T air tanker Holy Fire Santiago Peak California
An S-2T air tanker makes a drop on the Holy Fire at Santiago Peak in Southern California, August 27, 2018. Image from HPWREN camera. Click to enlarge.

S-2T air tanker Holy Fire Santiago Peak California
An S-2T air tanker makes a drop on the Holy Fire at Santiago Peak in Southern California, August 27, 2018. The image is from a HPWREN camera that has droplets of fire retardant on the lens. Click to enlarge.

BAe-146 air tanker Holy Fire Santiago Peak California
An RJ85 or BAe-146 on final to drop on the Holy Fire at Santiago Peak in Southern California, August 27, 2018. Image from HPWREN camera. Click to enlarge.

S-2T air tanker Holy Fire Santiago Peak California
An S-2T air tanker makes a drop on the Holy Fire at Santiago Peak in Southern California, at about 1 p.m. PDT August 27, 2018. Image from HPWREN camera. Click to enlarge.

Firefighters battle Holy Fire as it approaches structures

The fire has burned over 18,000 acres northwest of Lake Elsinore, California

(Originally published at 9:01 a.m. PDT August 10, 2018)

Thursday afternoon and evening the Holy Fire northwest of Lake Elsinore in Southern California bumped up against homes on the southeast and east sides of the fire. Firefighters on the ground and in the air battled the flames very close to homes along McVicker Canyon Park Road and near the intersection of Grand Avenue and Lake Street.

A spokesperson for the incident management team said the fire grew close to El Cariso Village up on the hill above Lake Elsinore but it had not crossed the Ortega Highway, SR 74.

map Holy Fire California
In this map of the Holy Fire, the red line was the perimeter at 9:45 p.m. PDT August 8, 2018. The red dots represent heat detected by a satellite 200 miles overhead at 2:54 a.m. PDT August 10, 2018. The accuracy of those heat sources is not guaranteed, and should be taken with a grain of salt. They may or may not be real. Click to enlarge.

Satellite heat sensing data shows that the fire spread significantly to the north and also on the south side, approaching the Ortega Highway.

(To see all of the articles on Wildfire Today about the Holy Fire, including the most recent, click HERE.)

The team has not confirmed that any structures have been destroyed since day one of the fire on August 6 when approximately 12 structures in Trabuco Canyon were destroyed. It was not specified if the structures were outbuildings, such as sheds, or residences. A damage assessment team will be deployed Friday to determine if any homes were destroyed on the Riverside County side of the fire Thursday.

Fire officials said Friday morning the fire has burned approximately 18,137 acres, an increase of more than 8,000 acres in the last 24 hours.

Information released by the Cleveland National Forest, which is where the fire is burning, indicates that in addition to the weather, steep terrain, and limited access, another reason they are losing ground is they are not able to obtain all the firefighting resources they have requested. This is a result of many large fires currently burning in the Western United States — all competing for ground and air resources. Today over 29,000 personnel are assigned to wildland fires across the country.

Suspect arrested, suspected of starting the Holy Fire

There are reports that the suspect sent an email to the local fire chief saying “this place will burn”.

Forrest Gordon Clark
Forrest Gordon Clark. Credit: Orange County Sheriff’s Department.

Forrest Gordon Clark, 51, was arrested Wednesday, suspected of starting the Holy Fire which has burned 9,614 acres in Orange and Riverside Counties in Southern California. Officials said that on Thursday he will be charged with felony arson, felony threat to terrorize, and misdemeanor resisting arrest.

Mr. Clark owns one of 14 cabins in an area of Trabuco Canyon in the general area where the fire started. All of the cabins in the area burned except for his, according to Newsmax.

The Orange County Register reports that at one point on Tuesday Mr. Clark took off all his clothes while Deputies were questioning him. Newsmax wrote that other residents said he threatened firefighters with a sword while they were fighting the fire.

The video below is an interview with Mr. Clark conducted by OnsceneTV before he was arrested.

Below is unedited footage shot by OnsceneTV that appears to be in Trabuco Canyon on the west side of the Holy Fire. Mr. Clark can be seen several times as Deputies talked with him.

Holy Fire burns closer to subdivisions in Riverside, County California

The fire has grown to within two tenths of a mile of homes north of Lake Elsinore

Above: An S-2T air tanker comes past the smoke to drop retardant near the communication towers on Santiago Peak August 8, 2018 as the Holy Fire approaches. HPWREN image. (See other photos of air tankers dropping at Santiago Peak)

(UPDATED at 7:12 p.m. PDT August 9 2018)

News footage shot Thursday afternoon at the Holy Fire showed flames moving into a housing development north of Lake Elsinore in Southern California. Firefighters were scrambling to extinguish the numerous spot fires at the Rice Canyon Elementary School and close to homes near Lincoln Street and West Wind Drive. ABC7 video showed very intense fire, sometimes with 10 t0 20-foot flame lengths, burning adjacent to homes as air tankers dropped retardant. The video showed one actively burning spot fire in the neighborhood that had no firefighters working on it.

The reporter said many homes had been saved and none had been destroyed.

The incident management team, which releases very infrequent updates, has not changed the estimated size of the fire since earlier Thursday morning when they said it had burned 9,658 acres. The fire is probably significantly larger after the additional growth Thursday afternoon.

This video shot Thursday evening of the fire approaching hundreds of homes is impressive.

Holy Fire
Photo from the east facing HPWREN camera on Santiago Peak at 6:19 p.m. PDT August 9, 2018.


(Originally published at 8:15 a.m. PDT August 9, 2018)

Information from an overnight mapping flight showed that at 9:45 p.m. PDT August 8 the Holy Fire had worked its way down the steep Santa Ana Mountain slopes to within two tenths of a mile of McVickers Canyon Park Road in a densely packed subdivision north of Lake Elsinore, California. It was about a mile from the community of El Cariso and two miles from Interstate 15. The incident management team reports that 12 structures have been destroyed; that number could include outbuildings as well as residences.

(To see all of the articles on Wildfire Today about the Holy Fire, including the most recent, click HERE.)

On Wednesday the incident management team said the fire had burned 6,200 acres. Thursday morning it had increased to 9,614 acres.

map holy fire
A 3-D map of the Holy Fire, looking west, based on mapping data collected at 9:45 p.m. PDT August 8, 2018. The white line was the perimeter about 20 hours before. Click to enlarge.

On the extremely rugged terrain in Horse Thief Canyon there is little firefighters can do other than wait for the blaze to come within striking distance of the hundreds of residences at the base of the slopes so they can beat back the flames as best they can. Numerous helicopters and air tankers, including three Very Large Air Tankers, two DC-10’s and one 747, have been dropping water and retardant at the base of the mountain near the structures and around the hoard of communication towers up above at Santiago Peak. Firefighters are patrolling in the subdivisions and making plans for how they can keep the residences from burning, and are talking with the diehards that are still in their homes in spite of the evacuation orders.

The areas under mandatory evacuation orders include McVicker Canyon, Rice Canyon, Horsethief Canyon, El Cariso, Rancho Capistrano, Blue Jay, Indian Canyon, Glen Eden, Sycamore Creek and Mayhew Canyon. The Ortega Highway 74 eastbound is closed.

Forrest Gordon Clark, 51, has been arrested and is expected to be charged with arson for starting the fire.

Forrest Gordon Clark
Forrest Gordon Clark. Credit: Orange County Sheriff’s Department.