Home Care In San Diego, CA

As fire crews continued to battle a brush fire near Lakeside for a third day, a second blaze erupted a short distance away on Thursday afternoon, forcing first responders to divide their efforts.

Some helicopters that had been fighting the Monte fire were diverted to the second blaze, which is being called the Hawick fire. It was first reported around 2:45 p.m., east of Hawick Drive, said Cal Fire Capt. Robert Johnson. The Hawick fire is about 8 miles southeast from the edge of the Monte fire.

By 6 p.m., the fire had charred about 51 acres and was 10% contained. The fire was burning in open space, in medium brush and grass, and was heading in a northeast direction.

As of about 4:30 p.m., the fire agency said on social media that the Hawick fire’s forward progress had been stopped.

“There are homes nearby but not right at the fire’s edge that I can see,” Johnson said, after he relocated to the new fire.

The county’s emergency services map initially indicated evacuation orders and warnings in nearby neighborhoods, but those were all lifted by 6 p.m.

The county map can be found here.

The Monte fire was first reported about 3 p.m. on Tuesday off El Monte Road near Yucca Road, west of El Monte County Park and quickly prompted evacuations. By Thursday morning, it had grown to 975 acres, moving in a northeast direction, and was reported to be 25% contained.

The fire had charred 1,040 acres by Thursday afternoon, with the containment remaining about the same. The fire is largely set in a remote location, with crews being taken by helicopter to fight the fire in rocky, steep terrain.

“The crews are seeing favorable conditions. The fire activity has reduced, and they are continuing to make progress,” Cal Fire Capt. Robert Johnson said Thursday afternoon.

More than 430 personnel have been assigned to the incident, although some are on rest periods and not on the fire at the same time, Johnson said. Officials called in 28 engines, four water tenders, six helicopters and two bulldozers. Fifteen hand crews also are working the fire.

Residents who had been evacuated were allowed to return to their homes around 10 p.m. Wednesday. Evacuation orders and warnings remain in place but the fire is in an area with no homes, Johnson said. No homes have been lost and none are threatened.

The biggest challenge with the Monte fire is the terrain, which is why helicopters are being used to move personnel closer to the flames. “They are going to be focusing on flying in hand crews to continue to build on those containment lines,” he said.

Engine crews also working in areas that are more accessible.

Three firefighters suffered minor injuries on the first day of the fire and were treated and released. Johnson said there’s no estimate as to when it will be extinguished.

Staff writers Caleb Lunetta and Teri Figueroa contributed to this report.

SAN DIEGO, Calif. (KESQ)- This past Monday, U.S. Border Patrol agents and Homeland Security discovered the origin point of a sophisticated drug smuggling tunnel connecting Tijuana to the San Diego area.

In early April, U.S Border Patrol agents from the San Diego Sector Tunnel team uncovered a drug-smuggling tunnel that was actively under construction. They report that the tunnel was equipped with electrical wiring, lighting, ventilation systems and a running track that seems to be designed to transport large amounts of contraband.

This tunnel is said to have been incomplete but spanned over 1,000 feet into the U.S. with an exit that was projected to connect to a commercial warehouse space based on the initial evidence.

The tunnel itself was measured by authorities and spans 2,918 feet in total and about 50 feet underground at its deepest point. Border Patrol, along with Homeland Security and the Government of Mexico, located the origin point of the tunnel to a residence in Nueva Tijuana. Following a warrant served by the Mexican authorities, it was revealed that the entry point had been freshly tiled over.

This was not the first obstacle that the agents faced. Upon their initial entry into the tunnel they were met with haphazardly placed barriers that were said to be placed in attempts to impede their progress.

“As we continue to strengthen the nation’s air and maritime border security, it’s not surprising that foreign terrorist organizations would resort to underground routes,” said Jeffrey D. Stalnaker, Acting Chief Patrol Agent of the San Diego Sector. “Disruption of narcotics smuggling tunnels is critical to protecting American lives. I’m grateful for the exceptional work of the Tunnel Team agents who placed themselves in danger, as well as the cooperation of our Mexican law enforcement partners.”

This tunnel is set to be filled with thousands of gallons of concrete to prevent the tunnel from use by Foreign Terrorist Organizations.

Since 1993, over 95 different tunnels have been uncovered and remediated in the San Diego area alone. In hopes of preventing the smuggling of human, drugs and other contraband the U.S Border Patrol is maintaining high vigilance along pathways away from the U.S border.

With constant water drops and fire retardant, crews got a handle on the quick moving fire.

Hawick fire forward rate stopped at 51 acres

and last updated 30 minutes ago

UNINCORPORATED EL CAJON, Calif. (KGTV) — The Hawick Fire burned in unincorporated El Cajon. The fire has burned 51 acres and is 50% contained according to Cal Fire.

WATCH: ABC 10News reporter Ava Kershner live at the scene of the Hawick Fire

Watch Duty first reported the fire just before 3 p.m. Thursday afternoon, saying it was burning at the base of an avocado grove.

They're reporting that the fire is 51 acres and that forward progress has stopped, according to incident command.

When it first broke out, even those in non-evacuation zones were prepared to leave.

"We just started staging everything to evacuate, grabbing mementos, clothes. We have pets, animals. Make sure that they're OK and just kind of quickly forming a plan to go," said Aron Sacks, a former firefighter who lives right next to the charred hilltop.

5 additional type 3 engines have been requested by incident command.

Cal Fire says that additional resources have been requested and that some have been switched off the Monte Fire to help with the Hawick Fire.

Multiple local agencies are assisting alongside San Diego Cal Fire and U.S. Forest Service.

Evacuation warnings and orders have been lifted.

"Obviously they've had a lot of fire crews, fire helicopters, planes dropped. They have the land on the hill. They just attacked it all over. Thank God for the firefighters here at in California," said Sacks.

This is a developing story, and this article will be updated.

Copyright 2025 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Surging Southern California rent inflation, while national price hikes decline, suggests January’s Los Angeles wildfires may be costing local tenants.

My trusty spreadsheet looked at rent costs as tracked by three local Consumer Price Indexes – Los Angeles and Orange counties, the Inland Empire and San Diego County – and compared that to nationwide patterns. The CPI follows rents by surveying tenants to learn what they are paying for all types of housing of varying sizes. Other rent metrics typically track what major landlords are charging tenants for new leases at large apartment complexes.

Locally, May’s 5.1% average rent hike across Southern California was well above December’s 3.8% – 2024’s low. Meanwhile, tenants across the nation saw 3.8% rent inflation in May – the lowest rate since December 2021..

Ponder the sharply turning gap between local and national rents. In May, Southern California’s rent inflation was 1.3 percentage points faster than the U.S. – the most extensive spread since February 2019.

Yet national rent inflation was outpacing the local average as recently as December. That’s just before firestorms destroyed 12,000-plus structures around Altadena and Pacific Palisades. Hard to ignore such a twist.

Oddly, rent inflation in the L.A.-O.C. metro area – where the fires occurred – has been flat in early 2025. Rents rose 4.5% in the year ended May, the same pace as 2024’s low in November.

Perhaps demand for rentals may have moved inland and south. Inland Empire rent inflation was 5.1% in May, far faster than 2024’s low of 2.4% in October. And San Diego’s 5.8% rate in May was up from 2024’s bottom at 4.3% in December.

Look, wildfires are likely not the only reason for this rent-hike gap. For example, an apartment construction rush outside of Southern California has forced many U.S. landlords to offer discounts to fill up the newly created supply of rentals.

Plus, Southern California wages, as measured by one federal index, rose 4.4% in the year ended in March vs. 3.4% nationally. Significant raises can put upward pressure on housing costs.

Jonathan Lansner is the business columnist for the Southern California News Group. He can be reached at [email protected]

The Hawick Fire was reported around 3 p.m. on Thursday near Interstate 8 and Lake Jennings Park Rd.

SAN DIEGO COUNTY, Calif. — Firefighters are battling a brush fire in Lakeside in East San Diego County near the Interstate 8 and Lake Jennings Park Road exit on Thursday afternoon, that is sending large plumes of smoke into the air that can be seen miles away.

CAL FIRE crews are on the scene of the fire that has burned approximately 51 acres and is 50% contained (as of 9:36 p.m.).

According to CAL FIRE San Diego on X, air and ground resources were able to stop the forward rate of spread of the fire in an update sent at 4:30 p.m. Crews are expected to remain on scene overnight to ensure the hot spots are extinguished.

The San Diego Sheriff's Department lifted all evacuation orders and warnings, due to the improved containment, the agency said in a post on X around 7 p.m. The temporary evacuation point at the Walmart Supercenter at 13487 Camino Canada in El Cajon was also closed.

Credit: CBS 8

CalFire has built a list of things to have ready in case you and your family are evacuated during any wildfire or disaster.

Ensure your wildfire ‘Go Bag’ includes:

Always have sturdy shoes and a flashlight near your bed, ready for sudden night evacuations.

If time allows, consider adding:

WATCH RELATED: How to know when it's time to go during a wildfire:

What factors contribute to high fire danger in Southern California?

Santa Ana Winds occur when air from the desert region blows westward toward the California coast. This results in dry air that flows east to west over the mountains and towards the valleys and coast of Southern California. Santa Ana winds typically feel warm because as the cool desert air moves down the side of the mountain, it is compressed, which causes the temperature of the air to rise. We tend to see relative humidity plummet and temperatures soar during offshore wind events like this.

These winds create high fire conditions not only for a fire to start, but offshore, Santa Ana winds are the perfect fan needed to allow a fire to explode in size once it starts.

The water year restarts every year on October 1 and measures the rain totals for the season through the following September. When rain totals are below average, the vegetation that was once green turns brown and dry and can serve as fuel for wildfires. The saturated ground can help mitigate fire risk substantially, but the opposite tends to elevate our fire risk. The sooner and more frequently we see substantial rainfall, the lower our risk of a wildfire starting and spreading rapidly.

When a region is in critical fire danger, power companies tend to shut off power in pre-planned ways in order to prevent electrical equipment from sparking or starting fires. It is also because electric consumption tends to climb with warmer temperatures (usually thanks to A/C needs) and can lead to overall stress on the power grid. When you combine the risk of fire with planned power shut-offs, many school districts will close. Schools can also be used as monitoring sites for fire crews in the event of a fire starting.