Evacuation warnings lifted after brush fire breaks out in Spring Valley

Evacuation warnings were lifted after firefighters stopped the forward progress of a blaze that broke out Friday afternoon behind a Spring Valley mobile home park, Cal Fire officials said.

The blaze, called the Lodge fire, was first reported around 2 p.m. in the hills that border the San Diego National Wildlife Refuge near Jamacha Boulevard and Sweetwater Springs Boulevard, said Cal Fire Capt. Robert Johnson.

Residents were seen in the initial minutes of the fire watering their roofs and vegetation around their homes as the smoke plume grew in the distance.

However, within two hours, firefighting aircraft and ground crews had some containment and stopped the blaze from spreading beyond 75 acres, Johnson said. The blaze was 10% contained by 5:30 pm.

Evacuation warnings were initially put into effect for homes north of Via Lampara Road to south of Jamacha Boulevard at Trace Road, to east of Jamacha Boulevard at 10th Street and west of Wagon Wheel Court, according to online Genasys Protect mapping.

Those warnings were lifted around 4 p.m.

“We’re going to be on scene for a little bit longer just to ensure that the fire is under control,” Johnson said around 4:20 p.m. “Firefighters are going to continue to focus on building containment lines around the fire as well as extinguishing hot spots within the perimeter.”

No structures were damaged, and no injuries were reported.

Staff photojournalist Ana Ramirez contributed to this report.