A wildfire erupted Friday on a hillside adjacent to a park just northeast of Murrieta, quickly scorching 20 acres and threatening a roadway, where Cal Fire aircraft initiated runs to slow the brusher down.
The non-injury Alamos Fire was reported at 3:22 p.m. on the north side of Los Alamos Hills Sports Park, near the intersection of Los Alamos Road and Ruth Ellen Way, according to the Riverside County Fire Department.
The agency said multiple engine and hand crews from the county and Murrieta Fire and Rescue were sent to the location and encountered flames burning up and over the hills fronting the park.
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The flames were moving at a dangerous rate of spread toward Whitewood Road and the backside of Vista Murrieta High School which was not in session Friday, officials said.
Sheriff's deputies and Murrieta police officers began shutting down Whitewood at 3:55 p.m. for public safety. Four Cal Fire air tankers and a water-dropping helicopter initiated runs on the brusher at 3:45 p.m.
The head of the fire was pointed toward a construction area, which was surrounded by open space, and officials at the scene anticipated the flames might lose momentum within the construction zone.
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#alamosfire FIRE UPDATE:
— City of Murrieta (@CityOfMurrieta) August 2, 2024
72 Acres moving northeast
Structures threatened
Care and Reception and Murrieta Community Center
Evac information: https://t.co/MPL4mypWTy
Evacuation warnings were expected. There was no immediate word regarding how the fire might have started.
