The San Diego Fire Rescue department’s Metro Arson Strike Team (MAST) is still investigating the fires’ causes and notes someone starting one for warmth or to cook is not necessarily criminal, reports NBC 7’s Shandel Menezes.
Three fires that broke out in San Diego last week started in homeless encampments, the San Diego Metro Arson Strike Team (MAST) confirmed to NBC 7 on Thursday.
Those fires were the Friars Fire in Mission Valley, the Center Fire in Rancho Bernardo and the Gilman Fire in La Jolla, according to MAST Capt. Pat Buckley.
Friars Fire
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On Jan. 21, a brush fire on a hillside across from Fashion Valley Mall in Mission Valley threatened structures and prompted evacuation orders.
The blaze, dubbed the Friars Fire, was reported just after noon on the 7000 block of Friars Road, a densely populated area of Mission Valley that includes the popular shopping destination where Nordstrom is located.
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The first crews arrived within six minutes, according to San Diego Fire-Rescue, whose spokesman, Jose Ysea, told NBC 7 later in the afternoon that the flames had charred 15-20 acres by the time firefighters had put it out.
Two people — one a resident and the other a firefighter — suffered minor injuries in the fire, according to Ysea, and both were brought to the hospital for treatment.
Flames shown by SkyRanger 7 in the moments after the fire started were racing up a hillside toward the 7000 block of Camino Degrazia in a housing complex called Fashion Hills. The plume of smoke from the fire was visible from Interstate 15 at one point.
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At least one apartment was damaged in the fire, according to Dan Eddy, SDFD assistant chief of emergency operations.
The San Diego County Office of Education's Linda Vista campus and Linda Vista Innovation Center were evacuated and closed for the rest of the day.
Nearly 100 firefighters with various agencies, including the city of Poway, responded with 15 fire engines, three brush rigs and three firefighting helicopters.
The Fashion Valley Mall was not impacted by the fire, according to management.
Center Fire
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On Jan. 22, firefighters responded to a brush fire on a mountainside in Rancho Bernardo that threatened homes and injured one person, according to the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department.
The so-called Center Fire, which was also referred to as the Bernardo Fire, started around 8:55 a.m. near Bernardo Center Drive and Camino del Norte.
By 11 a.m., the fire had grown to 7 acres with no containment, but fire crews appeared to have an upper hand on the blaze, and some resources were being dispersed. By 1 p.m., containment was at 50%. All evacuation orders and warnings were lifted a little more than two hours later, San Diego police said.
The fire was burning near schools. RB Kinder Care was evacuated, and Turtleback Elementary School had students sheltering in place. The Poway Unified School District evacuated students from Rolling Hills Elementary and said they kept students at other campuses indoors as a precaution.
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One person suffered burn injuries in the fire and was transported to a nearby hospital, the fire department said. It was not clear how the person was injured.
About 175 firefighters responded from agencies including Rancho Santa Fe Fire Protection District, Cal Fire San Diego, Poway Fire and others. Several brush rigs and fire engines, as well as three firefighting helicopters were assigned to the scene.
Gilman Fire
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On Jan. 23, a brush fire was burning close to homes and quickly prompted evacuations in La Jolla.
The so-called Gilman Fire sparked around 2:30 p.m. near Gilman Drive and Via Alicante, not far from Interstate 5 and UC San Diego.
About 3 acres were burned before crews stopped the fire's forward progress around 4 p.m., according to the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department.
Before the more than 175 responding firefighters got a hold on the situation, officials issued evacuation orders and warnings for the areas near the Gilman Fire shortly before 3 p.m. Nearly an hour later, authorities said those orders and warnings had been lifted.
Roads stayed closed for a few hours as crews cleared brush and made sure there were no hotspots or embers that could carry flames further down the canyon, SDFD Assistant Chief Dan Eddy told NBC 7.