Brush Fire East of Del Mar Is Doused; Houses Spared

A seven-alarm brush fire threatened expensive hilltop homes in the North City West community east of Del Mar and brought traffic on Interstate 5 to a standstill at midday Saturday, but it did little damage.

The blaze was started by heated exhaust spewing from a 1950s truck that ignited weeds and brush for three-quarters of a mile along the northbound lanes of Interstate 5, a San Diego Fire Department spokeswoman said.

Brisk onshore winds pushed the fire into heavy brush and spread it swiftly up the bluffs toward hilltop homes. No homes were damaged by the fire, and no injuries were reported, the spokeswoman said.

More than 200 firefighters and 50 pieces of fire equipment from San Diego, the state Department of Forestry and from departments throughout the county assembled a protective line around the new housing tracts in the Del Mar Highlands sector of the master-planned community about 20 miles north of downtown San Diego. Two air tankers also made several drops of fire-retardant chemicals on the burning brush.

The stubborn blaze burned for more than three hours while property owners stood guard, checking the steep slopes below their backyards for a flare-up of the wind-whipped fire.

Control of the fire was achieved about 3 p.m., when a brush firefighting crew managed to bulldoze a fire line around the burning area.

The fire broke out shortly after noon on steep bluffs immediately east of Interstate 5 north of Del Mar Heights Road. Orange flames and billows of black smoke obscured visibility for some northbound motorists.

Firefighters, unable to reach the fire on the steep hillsides, waited atop the bluffs for the fire to come to them.

The white stucco homes have tiled roofs, which the firefighters said prevented wind-driven sparks from spreading to the housing.

One area along the bluff rim contained about 40 unfinished homes with tar-paper roof coverings. Trucks and men were stationed around the area to prevent the combustible materials from catching fire.

Northbound freeway traffic, normally busy as 25,000 or more racing fans head for the race track two miles away, came to a standstill, and traffic was backed up for nearly four miles. San Diego police closed off-ramps and on-ramps at Del Mar Heights Road to keep the area clear for emergency vehicles.

The California Highway Patrol called a “SIG-alert” on Interstate 5 because of the congestion caused by the fire and the race track traffic but reported no accidents in the area.

San Diego Fire Department spokeswoman Ida Cheney said arson investigators had ruled that the fire was accidental but were attempting to locate the driver of the truck that caused the blaze.

She said several other drivers who witnessed the start of the fire said the truck was a silver-gray International, apparently a construction-site water truck of late 1950s or early 1960s vintage.