Fire Along Interstate 8 Threatens Homes : Seven Acres of Brush Burned; High Humidity Helps Limit Damage

A canyonside brush fire along Interstate 8 at Fairmount Avenue came within a few feet of seven canyon-rim homes Thursday, damaged a fence in front of a private tennis court and briefly raised the specter of another Normal Heights blaze.

The three-alarm fire began at 11:45 a.m. and burned about seven acres of brush on the southeastern corner of Fairmount and the freeway, San Diego Fire Department spokeswoman Ida Cheney said.

‘Moving Up the Hill’

“Firefighters at the scene reported that the fire was moving up the hill and that there were homes threatened,” Cheney said.

About 100 firefighters and two California Department of Forestry helicopters extinguished the fire in about 90 minutes, authorities said.

Comparing this fire to the one that destroyed 69 homes in Normal Heights two years ago, Battalion Chief Art Robertson said it was “exactly the same situation, except the weather’s different today than it was then.”

High humidity Thursday made it easier to contain the fire, Robertson said. In the Normal Heights blaze, the humidity was extremely low.

Robertson said that many homeowners in the area have taken precautions against fire by clearing brush from near their homes but that one house that almost caught fire was surrounded by brush.

‘Example of What Not to Do’

“The house is a classic example of what not to do,” Robertson said. The homeowner “lets nature take its course. He’s taking a chance, but I’m pretty sure he’s aware of it.”

The two water-dropping helicopters were joined by a spotter plane to help keep the fire from reaching homes at the top of the steep canyon. After the 1985 Normal Heights fire, in which 33 other homes were damaged, there were allegations that the San Diego Fire Department failed to formally summon air support to put out the fire.

Betty Mabee, whose home was near the Thursday fire but was never seriously threatened, said she rushed home when she heard about the fire on the radio. “When I first heard, it was at the corner of Palo Verde and Yerba Santa--that’s me.”

Another area resident, Ella Mae Wright, joined Mabee behind police lines after she learned of the fire.

“I think anyone that lives on the canyon always has to be nervous about this,” she said.