Brush Fire Near Murrieta Swells To 1,200 Acres, No Containment

Murrieta CA

28 August, 2021

4:54 PM

Description

MURRIETA, CA — Crews will continue battling a wildfire in Tenaja near Murrieta throughout Saturday night and into Sunday, and evacuation orders and warnings will remain in effect overnight, according to a Cal Fire/Riverside County Fire Department official. The blaze, dubbed the Chaparral Fire, had burned 1,200 acres with zero containment, Cal Fire/Riverside County Fire Department reported at 9:10 p.m. The next agency update on acreage, containment and evacuations is expected Sunday morning. The fire was burning near the Santa Rosa Plateau and La Cresta community, at the edge of the Cleveland National Forest in unincorporated Murrieta. The area is near the Tenaja Falls trailhead paved parking lot. The area is sparsely populated but is home to small ranches and estates in Tenaja, La Cresta, Meadow Oaks, La Cresta Highlands, Santa Rosa West, De Luz and others. Video footage from the #ChaparralFIRE pic.twitter.com/dSNq66a8Pj— CAL FIRE/Riverside County Fire Department (@CALFIRERRU) August 29, 2021 At around 3 p.m., Cal Fire/Riverside County Fire Department announced evacuation orders were in place for residents north of Tenaja Truck Road, south of Calle Cielo, east of Calle Collado and west of Calle De Dietel. "Residents must leave now," the agency said via Twitter. Cal Fire/Riverside County Fire Department also said the following area was under an evacuation warning: north of Tenaja Road, west of Calle Pino and Gallop Lane, south of Hombre Lane and west of Cleveland National Forest Road. "Residents should leave," the agency said via Twitter. To check your address or view the evacuation map, click here. The evacuation orders and warnings will remain in effect overnight, according to Cal Fire/Riverside County Fire Department spokesperson Jody Hagemann. Murrieta Valley High School at 42200 Nighthawk Way is open for evacuees. Small animals can be taken to Animal Friends of the Valleys, 33751 Mission Trail in Wildomar. San Jacinto Animal Campus at 581 S. Grand Avenue in San Jacinto can accept large animals. The California Highway Patrol closed Gallop Lane at Avenida La Cresta to through traffic, according to a Patch reporter at the scene. The CHP reported that Tenaja Road was closed at Viejo Road and Avenida Escala was closed at Tenaja Road. Ground and aircrews were responding to the fire, which was reported at 12:38 p.m., according to Cal Fire/Riverside County Fire Department. Two helicopters and four air tankers were summoned, and 150 firefighters were on scene, according to Cal Fire/Riverside County Fire Department. Most of Cal Fire's aircraft are not used at night for safety reasons. #ChaparralFIRE Fire conditions earlier this afternoon captured by @FirePhoto101 pic.twitter.com/pUU6ePbnDM— CAL FIRE/Riverside County Fire Department (@CALFIRERRU) August 29, 2021 A Cal Fire helicopter on the ground in the 36000 block of Avenida La Cresta in La Cresta caught the attention of neighbors and passersby. According to fire crew members, the empty lot was being used as a chopper refueling area. The North County Fire Protection District confirmed that the fire was not burning on the Camp Pendleton military base. The agency, which has jurisdiction in northern San Diego County, asked people to avoid Tenaja Truck Trail in De Luz because it was being used as an evacuation route for people living near the fire. The blaze extended into the Cleveland National Forest, but acreage burned on the federal land was not immediately available, Hagemann said late Saturday night. Cleveland National Forest crews were on scene in a coordinated effort with Cal Fire/Riverside County Fire Department, according to Hagemann. Fire danger in the area Saturday was listed as "high," according to the U.S. Forest Service, with temperatures forecast to reach the low 100s. The same conditions are predicted Sunday, according to the National Weather Service. #ChaparralFIRE credit Mike Nelson pic.twitter.com/LcUwTDarV6— CAL FIRE/Riverside County Fire Department (@CALFIRERRU) August 28, 2021 The vegetation fire sent large smoke plumes into the air and shrouded the region, prompting South Coast Air Quality Management officials to issue a smoke advisory across a large swath of western Riverside County that extends through at least Sunday. Because of the fire's location, smoke could be seen across three counties: Riverside, San Diego and Orange. Residents on the Santa Rosa Plateau were experiencing heavy smoke and ash. There were no reports of injuries and Santa Rosa Plateau neighbors worked together to evacuate large animals, mostly horses. There was no word on what sparked the blaze. As of 6 p.m., Cal Fire/Riverside County Fire Department had not reported any structure loss. NOTE: Want to stay abreast of information pertaining to emergencies in Riverside County? Alert RivCo allows emergency managers and public safety first responders to rapidly alert and warn the public in the event of emergencies such as earthquakes, wildfires, and floods. Sign up for free here. This is a developing news story, please refresh the page for updates.