(Yucaipa, CA) – A wildfire started on September 5, 2020 near Benchmark’s primary residential treatment homes in Yucaipa, CA. The fire, now dubbed the “El Dorado Fire”, has  burned over 11,000 acres of wilderness and damaged structures in the Yucaipa, Oak Glen, Cherry Valley neighborhoods and surrounding areas of San Bernardino and Riverside Counties.

Benchmark Transitions’ Panorama Ridge program was evacuated on Saturday, with clients and staff relocating to the Wildwood Canyon home. The following day, the Wildwood Canyon 52-acre ranch went into mandatory evacuation status. The Panorama Ridge home was cleared so that clients and staff could re-locate to that home. Wildwood Canyon is still under mandatory evacuation at this time. Clients, staff, and animals have been relocated for safety. 

“Benchmark is ensuring that all clients, staff, and animals are as safe as possible,” assured Shelley Skaggs, Chief Marketing Officer for Benchmark Transitions. “We are working closely with local fire and first responders and have offered our ranch as a staging location, should firefighters need to access that backside of the range. We are also in daily communications with our colleagues at the California Department of Health Care Services (DHCS.) They have been extremely supportive throughout this process,” concluded Skaggs. 

The El Dorado fire is reported to have been started by attendees of a gender-reveal gathering, using a device that sparked the fire. 

About Benchmark

Benchmark Transitions is a comprehensive, multi-disciplinary approach to residential treatment and supportive transitional living for young adults, ages 18-28. Benchmark provides treatment for mental health and co-occurring substance use disorders, community-based supportive transitional living, education and career development and independent living life skills. Benchmark is known as the longest-running young adult-specific treatment, celebrating 27 years in business, having been founded on September 9, 1993 by Jayne Longecker-Harper, M.Ed. Benchmark has had great success treating complex mental health and substance use co-occurring disorders, including anxiety, bipolar, depression, ADHD, attachment and trauma, eating disordered behaviors, psychosis, mild autism spectrum (ASD), executive functioning and learning differences. 

Benchmark accepts most PPO insurance plans and is in network with Aetna, Anthem Blue Cross (accepting most BCBS Blue Card members), First Health, Kaiser Permanente of Southern California, MHN, Tri-Care West and Quantum Health. Contact admissions at 800-474-4848 x1 or email at admissions@benchmarkyas.com