The wildfire that has scorched about 10 square miles of remote terrain in the far southern reaches of the San Diego County area near the Mexico border is now fully contained, and evacuation orders were lifted Thursday morning for Otay Mountain-area neighborhoods.
As of Thursday, firefighters had the footprint of the 6,625-acre blaze, dubbed the Border 2 Fire, 100% surrounded, according to Cal Fire.
The San Diego County Sheriff’s Office, citing improvements in containment, lifted mandatory evacuation orders Thursday for the Otay Mountain communities affected the by the fire.
“The Border 2 Fire is 100 percent contained. No fire activity was observed yesterday or overnight and none is expected,” said Cal Fire in a status update.
“Crews will spend the day patrolling the fire area, collecting hose left on the fire line, and completing all fire suppression repair needs.
“At 7:00 this morning, the San Diego County Sheriff’s Office lifted the final evacuation orders, and all roads are open. The remaining resources on scene are in the process of being released from the fire.”
The cause of the blaze — which erupted early Thursday afternoon amid dry and gusty Santa Ana conditions just west of Doghouse Junction in Otay Mountain Wilderness Area — remains under investigation.
This story was updated with details on full containment on Thurs. Jan. 30 at 9:35 a.m. City News Service contributed to this report.
