2,000-Acre Fire Chases 200 From Homes Near Hemet

Riverside County firefighters battled a 2,000-acre brush fire that threatened numerous homes Friday near Hemet and prompted the evacuation of more than 200 people, according to authorities.

The fire began about 2:30 p.m. and was 25% contained by evening. Authorities said they hoped to have the blaze surrounded by midnight.

No structures were damaged Friday evening, but one of more than 450 firefighters involved in the effort suffered minor injuries, said Riverside County Fire Capt. Rick Vogt.

Between 25 and 30 homes along Scorpion Canyon Drive and Chameleon Road were evacuated, and a Red Cross shelter was established at a local school.

The cause of the fire is still under investigation, but the blaze appears to have begun in an area of tall, dry grass near Stage and Barranca roads. Fanned by 12 mph winds, it tripled in size in about an hour as it moved east.

Firefighters battled the flames on foot as well as with helicopters, bulldozers and 41 fire engines. Many of the firefighters were already in the area after containing an 850-acre brush fire in the Lake Elsinore area late Thursday.

Two firefighters suffered minor burns in that blaze, which destroyed a church that was under construction.