Palm Springs Aerial Tramway Reopens

PALM SPRINGS, CA —The Palm Springs Aerial Tramway reopened this morning after a brush fire forced its closure Wednesday evening.

"The Tramway is open today at 8 a.m. The fire is contained in the canyon and we are working diligently to restore services to our phones and website," tramway officials said in a tweet.

The 20-acre brush fire broke out at about 7 p.m. Wednesday west of Tram Road in the Chino Canyon area, forcing some 40 people to evacuate from Mount San Jacinto State Park, including visitors and employees of the tramway, according to the Palm Springs Fire Department.

Fire crews were still in the area Friday mopping up and extinguishing any remaining hot spots.

The fire forced the tramway to close through Thanksgiving, one of the attraction's busiest days of the year. It reopened Friday, with the first tram making its way up the mountain at 8 a.m. and the last one scheduled to depart at 8 p.m.

Firefighters from the Riverside County Fire Department, the U.S. Forest Service, and the Bureau of Land Management worked the blaze alongside the PSFD.

No injuries were reported and the cause of the fire was under investigation.

— By City News Service / Image via Shutterstock