JULIAN FIRE HALTED AT 20 ACRES

By Nadin Abbott

September 21, 2012 (Julian) -- Firefighters from across the region converged on Farmer’s Road, a narrow country lane on the north side of Julian to fight a brush fire that has been contained at 20 acres.

Camp Stevens, as well as the residents of Farmer Road were evacuated as a precaution, however no structures burned.

The fire was started by a motorcycle that went down about 1:30 p.m. The rider was not injured. Flames quickly expanded to the brush and made its way up the hill at a rapid rate of speed, fueled by the wind.

According to Cal Fire Battalion Chief Daryl Pina, “This was light brush, but the concern was the heavy fuels in the area.”

CAL-Fire was assisted by units from San Diego, as well as Heartland and the U.S. Forest Service. As Chief Pina said, it was a good thing that it was humid, and the temperatures were fairly low. If it had been dry and during Santa Ana winds, the blaze could have been far worse.

The road closures at Highway 78 were lifted by the time I left the scene at 5:00 in the afternoon. Officials expected to keep Farmer closed longer due to the heavy fire equipment. Battalion Chief Pina said that crews would remain on mop up all night and into tomorrow.

Among the resources present were four air tankers released by 5 p.m. and four helicopters that would continue to drop water until the sun goes down. Among them was the Air Crane that SDG&E has facilitated for the County.

According to Battalion Chief Pina, one firefighter was injured by multiple bee stings.