BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KBAK/KBFX) — If you see or smell smoke near Bear Mountain Boulevard and Highway 58, don’t be alarmed. The Kern County Fire Department plans on conducting a public safety burn on Wednesday.
The White Wolf Public Safety Burn is scheduled for the afternoon and evening of Wednesday, May 27, 2026.
“As always, completion of this prescribed burn will depend on weather conditions and emergency activity levels in Kern County,” said in a release. “The roadway will be closed during this time, and motorists are advised to use an alternate route.”
The fire department said a prescribed burn, sometimes called a controlled burn or public safety burn, is a planned treatment used to reduce vegetation and improve public safety.
The White Wolf Public Safety Burn is scheduled for the afternoon and evening of Wednesday, May 27, 2026. PHOTO: KCFD
Public safety burns help prevent fires from spreading from the roadway into surrounding wildlands. “This helps protect the landscape and habitat from destructive wildland fires. Additionally, this burn will reduce the likelihood that the communities of Bear Valley Springs and Stallion Springs will be exposed to dangerous wildfire conditions. It will also diminish the threat of fire to the landscape and local habitat along the Tejon Ranch frontier,” said in the release.