What happened in Bakersfield overnight: Sunday, September 20, 2026

What Happened Overnight in Bakersfield & Kern County

A growing brush fire on the hillside north of Lake Ming pulled the biggest response of the night, with aircraft, water tenders and multiple engine and battalion assignments working the foothills before dawn. Fire crews also ran on a backyard fire that came within a few feet of a house, an eighth-acre burn in the river bottom and two reports of illegal or suspicious burning, while the roads produced a pedestrian reported down in a lane on the east side and a driver who hit a pole. Here is what came over the scanner.

The big one

Haven Fire, foothills north of Lake Ming

Just after 3 a.m. crews went out on a single report of a large brush fire burning on the hillside north of Lake Ming that was growing. The call went out as a full response, with a helicopter, air attack, water tenders, air-to-ground coordination and several engine, patrol and battalion assignments on the county fire channels. Crews designated the incident the Haven Fire, and units were directed onto side roads looking for access to the top of the hill as the fire worked its way up the slope.

Around the county

Pedestrian down in the roadway

Late in the evening a caller reported a man lying in the roadway who was not moving, and units were sent to the 200 block of Baker Street. Officers on the call were asked to confirm whether the man had told them he had been hit by a vehicle.

Car into a pole

Rescue, engine and truck crews went out with CHP on a report of a possible vehicle versus a pole on a county highway, and one person was already out of the vehicle when the first crews got there.

Backyard fire threatens a home

Engines and a battalion were sent for a fire burning in a backyard, two to three feet from a house and threatening the structure.

Brush fire in the river bottom

A fire was reported on the south side of the river in an area of about an eighth of an acre, and a crew reported it was making access through a gate on the Chevron lease. A second unit committed to the same fire a minute later.

The log

• 10:11 p.m. Illegal burning, Highway 119 west of Bakersfield. A unit was sent for a report of illegal burning along the highway.
• 10:23 p.m. Shots heard, 3600 block of Hale Street, Bakersfield. A caller reported gunshots in a field area where people have been living and drinking.
• 12:05 a.m. Street racing, Cottonwood Road at Kennelly Road, Bakersfield. Units reported they were breaking up a group of racers in the area.
• 12:39 a.m. Gas leak, Bakersfield. One engine reported it could handle the call and the rest of the assignment was cancelled.
• 12:42 a.m. Disturbance, 700 block of South Tulare Street, Bakersfield. Officers were sent with several people yelling in the background.
• 2:15 a.m. Impaired driver report, northbound Interstate 5, Kern County. A tan pickup was reported swerving and running at fluctuating speeds.
• 3:44 a.m. Impaired driver report, northbound Interstate 5 south of Highway 138, Kern County. A white sedan was reported moving in and out of its lane.
• 4:07 a.m. Domestic call, 400 block of Irene Street, Bakersfield. The next available unit was sent, with the caller reporting three children were home alone.

Night notes

Bakersfield bottoms out near 66 degrees overnight and warms to a high near 91 today under mostly sunny skies with a light southwest wind. The state's biggest fires are still burning well outside Kern County, where the Timber Fire on the Monterey County coast is the largest at more than 25,000 acres and 59 percent containment. Calls ran steady from late Saturday evening through about 4 a.m., with the heaviest work in the foothills north of Lake Ming and in the river bottom.