Update 10:45 p.m.:
Caltrans says all roadways are now back open.
Update 7:15 p.m.:
Eastbound lanes of State Route 60 are now open to connect Moreno Valley to Beaumont after a fire forced their earlier closure, according to the Riverside County Fire Department.
Westbound lanes remain closed, according to the California Highway Patrol.
More than 100 firefighters on scene have stopped the forward spread of flames, and now estimate the size at 15 acres, according to Fire Department Spokeswoman Jody Hagemann.
Crews are expected to be on scene for another 4-5 hours for mop-up efforts, she said.
Original story published July 19, 2013 at 06:15 p.m.:
A fire fast-spreading wildfire in the Badlands area of the 60 Freeway between Beaumont and Moreno Valley has forced the closure of the major thoroughfare, fire and CHP officials are reporting.
The incident was reported at 5:31 p.m. on the westbound side of the freeway after a vehicle fire spread to the nearby brush, according to Jody Hagemann of the Riverside County Fire Department.
"The fire is estimated at 20 acres, burning at a rapid rate," Hagemann said.
A California Highway Patrol dispatcher told Patch at 6:10 p.m. that both directions of the 60, east and west, were initially closed, but crews were going to allow eastbound traffic to pass. However, as of 6:20 p.m., witnesses on scene tell Patch the roadway is still closed in both directions.
The closure is between Gilman Springs Road in Moreno Valley and Jack Rabbit Trail in Beaumont, according to the CHP.
They will soon extend that closure to I-10, according to CHP logs.
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