A brush fire sparked suddenly in San Diego's East County Thursday, threatening homes with flames towering 30 to 40 feet in the air according to residents.
The 10-acre Lyons Fire started at 11:30 a.m. on Lyons Creek Lane. Cal Fire officials said the fire was threatening structures along Skyline Truck Trail and burning at a moderate rate of spread.
As of about 5:30 p.m., Cal Fire San Diego said the fire was 9.4 acres and 60 percent contained.
Shawn Rhoads just bought a home in the neighborhood a few months ago. When he heard the first chopper go overhead, he jumped in his vehicle and drove up to see the progress of the fire.
Flames “were huge, over 30-40 feet high and really blowing up the canyon,” he added. “The wind was just blowing it up the side of the mountain.”
The location was north of Lyons Valley Road and south of Skyline Truck Trail, east of State Route 94.
No injuries or evacuations were reported.
Local
The San Diego County Sheriff's Department sent an advisory to residents in the area, telling them there was a concern the fire may spread to homes.
"Be prepared to evacuate if a notification is made in your area," SDSO said in its alert.
People living in the area told NBC 7 they were grateful for Cal Fire's quick response. They also attribute the crews' success to the fast response of aircraft.
Tim Graves lives in a nearby RV park and he has been evacuated several times in the past.
“We've been through a few fires out here,” Graves said “Our family lost our house at Lake Cuyamaca in a fire so it always gets emotional when it when the fires come.”
“It just all comes back on you. So anybody that's been through it, even when you see on TV you know somewhere else that people are losing their houses,” he said. “You can relate to it and you just feel so bad for them.”
NBC 7's Whitney Southwick said the current temperature in the area of the brush fire is 83 degrees, just shy of today's expected high of 86.
Winds are light, Southwick added, peaking mid-afternoon around 10 mph out of the west.
Hilltops and valleys could see higher gusts at times.
Humidity was 60 percent.
Approximately 5,000 people live in Jamul and its communities of Steel Canyon, Dulzura, and Barrett Junction.
California Highway Patrol officers redirected vehicles from traveling along Skyline Truck Trail and rerouting them back to SR-94.
No other information was immediately available.
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