Evacuation orders lifted as fire crews begin to tame Bunnie fire in San Diego County

Thousands of San Diego County residents were ordered to evacuate their homes Wednesday amid a raging brush fire that had the potential to spread to several hundred acres, officials said.

The Bunnie fire ignited around 11:20 a.m. in the unincorporated community of Ramona, near San Vicente and Chuck Wagon roads, reaching 183 acres by 1:47 p.m. , according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.

Fire crews seemed to gain the upper hand on the blaze throughout the day — by 7 p.m., the fire was 184 acres in size and 20% contained, Cal Fire said.

At the outset, however, the fire had a “dangerous rate of spread,” said Cal Fire Capt. Mike Cornette. He added that heat and winds in the rolling hills had contributed to “a lot of fast-moving fire.” At one point, hundreds of firefighters were attacking the fire on the ground as well as by air.

A spokesperson for the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department said Wednesday afternoon that at least 2,000 homes were ordered to evacuate, and residents in an additional couple of thousand homes were under an evacuation warning.

By 8:20 p.m., the evacuation order and warning were lifted, according to the Sheriff’s Department.

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July 29, 2021

No injuries or structural damage were reported, Cornette said.

Less than two hours north of the Bunnie fire area, crews in Riverside County were battling another blaze that broke out Wednesday.

The Rock fire was reported just after 2:30 p.m. in the Lake Perris State Recreation area. By 6 p.m., the blaze was 150 acres in size.

Footage posted to X by Cal Fire showed helicopters making water drops on flames eating through grassy hillsides.