Pair of brush fires burn along I-15 in northern San Diego County; some evacuation orders issued
Firefighters are working to contain a pair of brush fires that broke out along the I-15 Freeway in northern San Diego County early Tuesday morning.
The first, called the Pala Fire, was reported at around 12:30 a.m. near the junction of I-15 and SR-76, according to the Cal Fire/San Diego County Fire Department.
"The fire is approximately 5 acres in size with a rapid rate of spread and structures threatened," firefighters said in a post on X a little before 1 a.m. An hour later, crews indicated that it had grown to 30 acres but that the rate of spread had slowed. Then the North County Fire Protection District later said in a post on X that its "forward rate of speed" had been stopped.
Some evacuation orders were initially issued for SDC-0147. Those orders have since been lifted, according to the North County Fire Protection District.
"If you had to leave, it is now safe to go back home," officials said.
That blaze has been 100% contained as of Tuesday afternoon, at which point they changed the total area burned to 17 acres.
Lilac Fire
About 30 minutes later, in a separate post, a second fire was reported. That one was farther south on I-15, near Old Highway 395 and Lilac Road in the Bonsall area.
That fire, which has been dubbed the Lilac Fire, was said to be about 85 acres in size and burning at a "moderate rate of speed" with additional structures threatened, according to Cal Fire.
As of 6 p.m. on Wednesday, crews reported that the blaze was 95% contained.
Cal Fire/San Diego County Fire said night-flying aircraft responded to the blaze. Ground crews are working on life safety and structure defense.
Evacuation orders have been issued for the second fire, impacting people living in the SDC-0235, SDC-0236, SDC-0288 and SDC-0289 zones. More information can be found here. Warnings were also issued for several other residential zones.
All orders and warnings have since been lifted.
An evacuation reception center was established at the Castle Creek Country Club on 8797 Circle R Drive in Escondido, according to the San Diego County Sheriff's Department. Large animals could be taken to the CRS Ranch on 43101 Anza Road in Temecula.
The California Highway Patrol Oceanside Area posted on X and told drivers to expect delays on the I-15 from Mission Road to Old Highway 395 for the multiple brush fires. There are no lane closures as of 5 a.m. Tuesday but people should use caution.
The cause of the fires is not yet known, but most of Southern California remains under red flag warnings due to extremely strong winds and an excessively dry climate, which National Weather Service officials say increased the risk for fire danger.
