ESCONDIDO — The cause of a fire that charred approximately 10 acres east of the boat dock at Lake Hodges is still unknown.
According to Cal Fire Battalion Chief Nick Schuler the investigation is ongoing.
The vegetation fire, which started on July 25, was contained in 45 minutes, said Escondido Fire Battalion Chief Ken Slaven.
“It’s forward progress got stopped about 20 or 25 minutes after the initial dispatch,” he added.
Rancho Santa Fe Fire units were the first to respond to the dispatched call at approximately 4:30 p.m.; they were assisted by Escondido and San Marcos fire units and Cal Fire.
According to Slaven, the Lake Hodges area is served by four fire agencies, of Rancho Santa Fe, Cal Fire, Escondido and the San Diego County Fire Authority.
Residents near the area received a reverse 911 call. “Basically the (fire) got put out pretty quickly. It really only immediately threatened two homes, and the aircraft did a good job keeping it away from them,” Slaven said.
Two helicopters from the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department dropped water on the fire, as well as two Cal Fire fixed-wing air tankers from the Ramona airbase.
Slaven described the conditions at Hodges as being “extremely dry.”
“The burning conditions are very dry and fires are burning with a lot of intensity for this time of the year,” he added.
