Palomar Mountain to have controlled burns next three weeks

RIVERSIDE - Smoke is expected to be visible on Palomar Mountain, southeast of Temecula, during the next three weeks as Cal Fire crews burn piles of dead vegetation to reduce the danger of wild fires.

The prescribed burns near the Palomar Observatory will begin Tuesday and run weekdays only through March 7, Cal Fire Battalion Chief Nick Schuler said.

He said the brush piles, soaked by recent rains and snow, likely will produce lots of smoke that will be visible for miles.