WARNER SPRINGS (CNS) - A fire that has scorched 255 acres of brush in the rugged northeastern reaches of San Diego County is 85 percent contained today, authorities said.
The blaze, dubbed the "Lost Fire," ignited Saturday afternoon in the vicinity of state Route 79 and Lost Valley Road north of Warner Springs, fire officials said. It spread quickly at first, blackening more than 100 acres in less than two hours, but a full wildland response from Cal Fire San Diego helped slow the spread of flames.
More than 400 firefighters from Cal Fire and the U.S. Forest Service were assigned to the fire, and crews had to deal with "steep terrain, access problems and high temperatures," according to Cal Fire Capt. Kendal Bortisser.
But crews battling the blaze on the ground and in the air throughout the weekend got extra help Monday morning from a rainstorm.
The fire prompted an evacuation warning Saturday night for some residents in nearby Chihuahua Valley, but the warning, which was not a mandatory evacuation order, was lifted Sunday night, according to Cal Fire.
Several small, rural roads in the area were also closed out of precaution.
Firefighters had the blaze 10 percent contained Saturday night, about six hours after it was first reported. It was 40 percent contained late Sunday and 60 percent contained Monday.
