Brush Fire Between Temecula, Palm Desert Halted

ANZA, CA — A brush fire that erupted Thursday south of Highway 371 in Anza charred roughly 12 acres and prompted a closure of the highway before forward progress of the blaze was stopped.

The non-injury fire was reported at 10:07 a.m. Thursday in the area of Burnt Valley and Kirby roads, according to the Riverside County Fire Department.

The agency said multiple engine and hand crews were sent to the location and encountered flames moving at a moderate rate to the northwest directly toward the 371.

Four Cal Fire air tankers and three water-dropping helicopters initiated runs on the brusher at 10:35 a.m. The image below captures the moment of red phoscheck being unloaded on the blaze.

The forward rate of spread was halted by 11:45 a.m., and crews had established hose lays around most of the brusher a short time later. Full containment was expected by mid-afternoon Thursday.

No homes or other structures were threatened in the sparsely populated area.

Shortly before 11 a.m., the flames jumped the two-lane highway, prompting California Highway Patrol officers to shut down both sides of the corridor between Kirby and Terwilliger roads for public safety.

The fire that made it across the 371 was quickly stopped in a dry wash adjacent to a solar farm, where several helicopters and bulldozer crews went to work on it.

The hard closure of the 371 was expected to be lifted early Thursday afternoon.

The cause of the fire was under investigation. The Anza Valley has been ground zero for unexplained wildfires every summer for the last decade.