Stolen car catches fire in police chase, sparking 300-acre blaze, California cops say

Authorities are blaming a new Riverside County wildfire on a stolen car that went up in flames Thursday in a field following a police chase, according to Southern California media reports.

The early morning Jurupa Valley pursuit ended in a vehicle wreck and “sparked a fire in a field that quickly spread to 300 acres, damaging several buildings and forcing evacuations,” The Los Angeles Times reported.

Riverside Police Department spokesman Ryan Railsback said Riverside officers were patrolling just after midnight Thursday when they spotted a stolen car headed north on Van Buren Boulevard and tried to stop the vehicle, which led to the chase, KTLA reported.

The vehicle drove into an empty field, came to a stop and caught fire, KTLA reports.