Firefighters Corral San Diego Blaze To 80%

Escondido CA

22 May, 2021

6:25 PM

Description

SAN DIEGO, CA — A brush fire northwest of Escondido was 80 percent contained Sunday after shutting down the southbound Interstate 15 freeway, officials said. The blaze sparked around 11:30 a.m. on Saturday near I-15 and Deer Springs Road, the California Highway Patrol reported. There was an early report that the fire was holding at 25 acres from Southern California Air Operations, but Cal Fire San Diego spokesman Thomas Shoots said the correct acreage burned was seven acres, not 25. Fire investigators found debris from a faulty catalytic converter in the area, which is suspected to be the cause of the fire, Shoots said. "Overnight, crews were able to increase containment to 80%. We will remain at scene today to continue mopping-up and containing the fire," Cal Fire San Diego tweeted at 8 a.m. Sunday. At least four North County firefighting agencies and one from Riverside County joined Cal Fire to fight the fire, including the Escondido, San Marcos and North County fire departments, San Diego Fire-Rescue Department and Pechenga Fire Department from Riverside County. A SigAlert was issued on Saturday, closing and all southbound lanes of the I-15. As of 2:51 p.m., the #1 and #2 lanes were being reopened, but traffic was backed up to Temecula. "Air Attack 504 advising the fire is holding at 25 acres, air tankers have been released. Ground resources also being released and will be transitioning to patrol status this evening. One copter continues to assist ground crews with hot spots," Southern California Air Operations tweeted around 2:30 p.m. on Saturday #DeerFire [update] 2 lanes of SB I-15 have been reopened in the area of the fire. Please keep responder safety in mind and drive with caution when in the area. pic.twitter.com/DhrXs6Fumf— CAL FIRE/SAN DIEGO COUNTY FIRE (@CALFIRESANDIEGO) May 22, 2021 At 1:44 p.m., Cal Fire reported that the fire had grown to seven acres and crews were expecting to stay on the scene well into the evening. There was no immediate threat to structures, according to the San Marcos Fire Department. The City News Service contributed to this report.