Bear Fire

Wildfire in San Bernardino County, November 1970

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Printed October 28, 2026 from www.firezones.info/fire/2614/bear-fire-1970

Key facts

Started November 11, 1970
Contained November 19, 1970, after 8 days
Burned 51,655 acres
3rd largest fire of 1970
Cause Campfire
Open map

Where it burned

County

  1. San Bernardino County 51,651 acres

Communities

  1. Running Springs 373 acres
  2. San Bernardino 286 acres
  3. Highland 57 acres

Acres are the land the fire burned in each county and community, and places where it burned less than an acre are not listed. Communities are cities, towns and the unincorporated places the Census Bureau names, so land outside any of them is counted only in its county.

The same land, other fires

Burned before

  1. 1908 Unnamed fire 1,360 acres shared
  2. 1922 Unnamed fire 19,326 acres in total 2,601 acres shared
  3. 1927 Unnamed fire 9,517 acres in total 8,611 acres shared
  4. 1928 Unnamed fire 6,114 acres in total 5,940 acres shared
  5. 1929 Unnamed fire 4,956 acres in total 4,899 acres shared
  6. 1941 Unnamed fire 2,178 acres in total 1,855 acres shared
  7. 1945 Unnamed fire 5,033 acres in total 910 acres shared
  8. 1955 Smiley Fire 1,051 acres shared
  9. 1956 East Highland Fire 14,444 acres in total 7,804 acres shared
  10. 1960 Mckinley Fire 1,781 acres in total 1,115 acres shared

Burned again

  1. 1979 Unnamed fire 2,536 acres in total 2,302 acres shared
  2. 1979 Shadow Fire 2,601 acres in total · Cause: Equipment use 1,999 acres shared
  3. 1980 Sycamore Fire 3,479 acres in total 1,738 acres shared
  4. 1997 Hemlock - July Fire 3,947 acres in total · Cause: Playing with fire 2,424 acres shared
  5. 1997 Mill Fire 1,326 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 1,238 acres shared
  6. 2001 Hemlock Fire Cause: Miscellaneous 1,071 acres shared
  7. 2003 Bridge Fire 1,157 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 1,059 acres shared
  8. 2003 Old Fire 91,428 acres in total · Cause: Arson 13,925 acres shared
  9. 2007 Slide Fire 12,769 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 2,427 acres shared
  10. 2024 Line Fire 43,976 acres in total 35,861 acres shared

And 60 more fires that burned less of the same land. Acres are the land each fire shares with the Bear Fire, and fires that shared less than an acre are not counted. Some older or smaller fires may be missing, and a fire perimeter can include unburned patches. How to read fire history

Sources

Fire history
CAL FIRE Fire and Resource Assessment Program
Published 28 July 2026
Building damage
CAL FIRE Damage Inspection
Updated 19 October 2026

This site is independent and not affiliated with CAL FIRE or the CPUC, so for an official determination, check with the agency or your city or county. How we read the data