Cause of destructive fire still unknown

The cause of a fire that a path of destruction along the 215 Freeway on Monday remains a mystery, although firefighters have considered several possibilities.

"It's difficult for the investigators to nail down one specific thing," said San Bernardino City fire spokesman Steve Tracy.

Tracy said there's a chance investigators may never determine the cause of the blaze. They have narrowed the site where the fire started to vegetation around the Base Line Road overpass.
Investigators suspect some potential causes of the blaze could be burning embers from palm trees, hot exhaust components from vehicles on the freeway or cigarettes tossed from vehicles, fire officials said.

The earlier freeway fire was determined to be caused by a homeless man tossing a cigarette into dry brush behind a recycling plant on H Street. Brenton Marvin Jacques was charged with recklessly causing a fire of a structure or forest and pleaded not guilty to the charge Wednesday in San Bernardino Superior Court.

-melissa.pinion-whitt@inlandnewspapers.com