BlockBefore

Garnet, California

39 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1901 and the latest in 1984. It stands in the Desert Hot Springs census division. It lies in ZIP code area 92258. It stands on Garnet Wash. The Survey maps it on the Desert Hot Springs quadrangle.

Garnet within Riverside County

Then and now

1901 to 1984

The same ground, surveyed 83 years apart. Drag the handle to wipe between them. Both sheets are United States Geological Survey originals; neither has been altered.

Topographic sheet of Garnet, surveyed 1984
Topographic sheet of Garnet, surveyed 1901

Compare 1901 against another survey:

Topographic sheets covering this place

14 surveys from 39 printed sheets

Matched by testing this settlement's coordinate against the published boundary of every sheet in the United States Geological Survey's historical collection. Each opens the scanned sheet at the Survey.

Fires near this place

595 since 1992

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 595 fires within 5 miles of Garnet between 1992 and 2020, burning about 2,095 acres in total. 4 started naturally. 34 were recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Reported cause Fires
Missing data/not specified/undetermined342
Equipment and vehicle use81
Smoking55
Misuse of fire by a minor38
Arson/incendiarism34
Debris and open burning17
Power generation/transmission/distribution13
Recreation and ceremony8
Natural4
Fireworks2
Other causes1

The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.

DateCause SizeReported by Name on the report
9 September 2006Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreCalifornia Department of Forestry & Fire Protectionnot named
8 September 2007Smoking1.0 acresCalifornia Desert DistrictUNNAMED FIRE 3130
8 September 2005Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreRiverside UnitLOCAL
8 September 2003Smokingunder an acreCalifornia Desert DistrictLOCAL
8 September 1996Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreRiverside UnitPEREZ
7 September 1993Missing data/not specified/undetermined1.0 acresSan Bernardino National Forestnot named
6 September 2019Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreRiverside UnitIRONWOOD DR / MESQUITE AV
6 September 2011Recreation and ceremonyunder an acreSan Bernardino National ForestWINDY

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Riverside County

Mines and quarries near this place

3 within 5 miles

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 3 workings within 5 miles of Garnet: 1 past producer, 1 occurrence, 1 prospect. None of them still produces. What was taken out: Sand and Gravel, Construction, Limestone, General, Gold. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Where SiteCommodity StatusRecorded
Chino Canyon DepositsLimestone, GeneralOccurrence
Frances GroupGoldProspect
Massey Indian AvenueSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer

Every working recorded in Riverside County

Storms near this place

6 since 2009

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Garnet in 6 storm reports between 2009 and 2025: 4 flood, 2 flash flood. No death or injury is recorded in these reports. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.

WhenEvent Place namedHarm What the report says
December 2009Flash FloodGarnet$100,000Excessive runoff from the heavy rain in the San Bernardino Mountains produced strong currents in the Whitewater River wash, which caused an earthen berm at a percolation basin in Palm Springs to collapse. The water then continued to flow through the wash and across several streets, bringing large amounts of mud and debris with it. Indian Canyon Road, Gene Autry Road, and Vista Chino road, all of which lie across the wash's natural path, were closed due to flooding. Three cars were swept off the road during the flood - two on Indian Canyon Drive and one on Vista Chino. One of the percolation ponds also sustained damage.
December 2025FloodGarnet-Multiple road closures in northern Palm Springs on low water crossings of drainage out of the San Bernardino Mts. Indian Canyon Dr, N Gene Autry Trail, and E Vista Chino all experienced road closures. Whitewater River Headwaters station upstream in the San Bernardino Mountains got 3.25 inches in under 3 hours.
March 2020FloodGarnet-Indian Canyon Road just south of I-10 was closed for 3 hours due to roadway flooding. This was caused by runoff from the Whitewater Channel due to heavy rainfall in the San Bernardino Mountains.
April 2020FloodGarnet-Indian Canyon Drive temporarily closed at the Whitewater Wash due to flooding (1-5 inches of water over the road) caused from rain runoff down the mountains.
September 2019Flash FloodGarnet-North Indian Canyon Drive was closed on the morning of 9/2 due to water over the roadway. Media reports that the road was still closed monday evening.
December 2014FloodGarnet-The Desert Sun reports that Gene Autry trail...Indian Canyon Drive...Araby Drive...and Vista Chino were closed due to flooding from water rushing down the Whitewater basin from heavy rains over Yucaipa. At the Snow Creek stream gage in Whitewater at 1830 PST the 2nd, the flow peaked at 157 cfs.

Every storm recorded in Riverside County

Nearest settlements

The eight closest, with where each one stands in the county. Distances are straight-line, computed from the Geographic Names Information System coordinates.

Map PlaceDistance Sheets
North Palm Springs1.4 miles39
Dos Palmas Corners2.8 miles39
Salvia3.1 miles43
Desert Hot Springs4.7 miles39
Palm Springs4.9 miles43
White Water5.2 miles40
Desert Edge5.7 miles22
Bonnie Bell6.1 miles40

Provenance

This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 252894. The sheet list is computed by point-in-boundary test against the United States Geological Survey's historical topographic inventory. Both are works of the United States government and carry no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.

Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.

Mines and quarries. USGS Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS) https://mrdata.usgs.gov/mrds/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.

Storms. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/stormevents/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105. Narratives are quoted verbatim from the National Weather Service report and are not edited or summarised.