What to Know: Border 21 Fire
- Where: In Mexico, between Marron Valley and Tecate
- Acres: 4 in the U.S. with the potential for 2,000. The fire has burned 2,000 acres in Mexico
- An evacuation warning was in place but has since been lifted
A brush fire on the Mexico side of the southern border near Tecate, California scorched at least 2,000 acres of land and had briefly made its way into the U.S., threatening some structures and prompting an evacuation warning before Cal Fire San Diego halted its spread.
The fire has been burning between Marron Valley and Tecate since Wednesday and has scorched 2,000 acres in Mexico, according to Enrique Garcia, director of Tecate Fire and Civil Protection.
On Thursday, the blaze entered into the U.S. and burned four acres but was halted from spreading further north by Cal Fire crews who made fire retardant drops by plane. As the wildfire spread into the U.S., there were about four structures threatened in the area of Tecate Mission Road, which prompted an evacuation order that has since been lifted.
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The fire still has the capacity to spread further into U.S. territory, Cal Fire said while reassuring residents crews were at the ready to handle the threat.
Garcia says the blaze started at a ranch along the Tijuana-Tecate Highway and that the cause may have been people clearing brush from the land with fire.
Local
No homes or ranches are threatened in Mexico as of Thursday night, Garcia said.
An evacuation order was issued for a small number of homes on the U.S. side. The sheriff’s department released a map of the zone Thursday night and set up a temporary evacuation point at Steele Canyon High School in Spring Valley, the San Diego Sheriff's Department said in a post on the X platform, formerly known as Twitter.
A smoke advisory was issued for Dulzura and Potrero as "overnight winds will become light and begin blowing the smoke toward the northwest into San Diego County." The advisory was lifted on Thursday.
In areas where you smell smoke, it is advised that you limit physical/outdoor activity. If possible, stay indoors to limit your exposure to fine particulate matter and ozone, especially those residents with respiratory or heart disease, the elderly, and children, officials advised.
This is a developing story. We will update as soon as new details become available.
