12:24 p.m. October 22, 2007
SAN DIEGO – The Witch fire, pushed by strong Santa Ana winds, roared west Monday morning across northern San Diego County, forcing an estimated quarter-million people to flee their homes.
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It's one of seven fires raging across north and East County, according to Cal Fire officials. By 8 a.m., the Witch fire alone had grown to 10,000 acres.
“It's going to get worse. It's probably the worst fire this county has ever had, well worse than the Cedar fire,” said Sheriff Bill Kolender.
If those winds continue to propel the flames westward, fire officials warned, the Pacific Ocean may be the only thing that can stop it.
County Supervisor Ron Roberts put the number of evacuees at 250,000 people.
“I think there's a very good possibility it will reach the coast before it's finished,” said Bill Metcalf, chief of the North County Fire Protection District.
In all, the fires have killed one person and injured at least 20 others as of midday Monday, authorities said.
The county Medical Examiner's Office identified the dead man as Thomas Varshock, 52, of Potrero. His body was found shortly after 2 p.m. Sunday.
Officials at UCSD Medical Center confirmed that it also was treating Varshock's 15-year-old son, who suffered burns on more than 50 percent of his body.
UCSD also is handling 12 other fire-related patients:
four firefighters – three in critical condition and one in fair condition
eight civilians – four in critical condition, four in fair condition and one in good condition
The patients suffered burns and/or respiratory problems due to smoke inhalation.
Among the few pieces of good news was that the military was joining the firefighting effort.
The Navy authorized two of its SH-60 Seahawk helicopters from North Island Naval Air Station to join the seven firefighting helicopters already making water drops on the fire, Cal Fire officials said.
By mid-morning, flames from the Witch fire had destroyed dozens of homes in Rancho Bernardo, jumped Interstate 15 and burned residences in the 4S Ranch area before taking aim at Rancho Santa Fe.
The fire was burning on the eastern shore and slope of Lake Hodges. Shifting winds first drove the fire westward, down the west slope of the lake, then shifted once again, sending flames back towards Escondido.
By mid-morning, the blaze had destroyed hundreds of structures, forcing thousands of people from their homes as it followed the same path taken by the disastrous Cedar fire four years earlier.
Seven firefighting helicopters were making water drops on the fire. Fixed-wing air tankers, grounded for a second straight day due to high winds and poor visibility, may be able to join the fight later today.
Authorities issued a mandatory evacuation order for Rancho Santa Fe after the fire jumped I-15, burned past Lake Hodges at its northern and southern ends, then jumped Del Dios Highway near the Lake Hodges dam and continued west.
There have been structure losses in northern Poway, overlooking Lake Hodges. Homes also have been lost in Rancho Bernardo and Escondido, Cal Fire battalion chief Kelly Zombro said.
The south end of the fire is in the Barona area.
Residents from Ramona all the way to North County's coastline were forced to flee. There were reports in Rancho Bernardo of people trapped in their homes or cars, said San Diego Fire-Rescue Department spokesman Maurice Luque.
With the situation changing from minute to minute, exact casualty figures, acreage burned and numbers of structures destroyed and damage were hard to obtain.
Firefighters were often frustrated by residents who ignored evacuation orders, forcing them to double back into areas ordered evacuated to make sure everyone was safely out – and pulling them away from fighting the fire.
“If you are notified to go out of your home. . . do it. Do not waste time,” Kolender said. “Your life is more important than your property.”
The two fires roared through much of Sunday. Strong, gusting winds reaching 69 mph kept firefighters rushing from one fire to another to keep up with new blazes.
Qualcomm Stadium was opened as an evacuation center Monday morning and officials opened the Del Mar Fairgrounds as an evacuation point.
At the stadium, city officials put out a call for volunteers, water, blankets and food as workers prepared to receive as many as 100,000 evacuees.
The Witch fire merged overnight with another blaze that broke out when a transformer exploded near state Route 78 and Bandy Canyon Road, four miles east of Wild Animal Park.
Flames 30 to 40 feet high tore through the area overnight and burned their way into Rancho Bernardo by 3:30 a.m., Luque said. As dawn broke, authorities ordered evacuations from Del Dios highway south to state Route 56 and from I-15 west to Interstate 5.
Interstate 15 has been closed between state Routes 78 and 56. With highways already clogged with evacuees and emergency vehicles, authorities asked residents to avoid all non-essential trips, and to stay home from work if possible.
Authorities have ordered evacuations in Rancho Bernardo and Poway as the fires surged west.
San Diego Unified School District schools will be closed on Tuesday, and parents are welcome to pick up their children early on Monday, according to Jack Brandais, a district spokesman.
In Poway, Palomar-Pomerado Hospital was being evacuated. Westview High School, which had been opened as an evacuation center for area residents, was forced to close by the approaching flames, and the evacuees there were sent to Qualcomm.
Elsewhere, the Witch fire had pushed into the northeast section of Poway.
Residents are being notified by telephone through the reverse-911 system.
The city of Poway has declared a local emergency and activated the local Emergency Operations Center. Emergency information is available online at poway.org.
An emergency shelter has been established at the Poway Community Center at 13094 Civic Center Drive. Large animals can be brought to the Poway Valley Riders Association Arena, also known as the Poway Rodeo Grounds, at the corner of Tierra Bonita Road and Poway Valley Road.
At the Wild Animal Park, a spokesman said some animals were being moved overnight into the park's hospital for their protection.
Just to the north of the park, six homes in southern Escondido have been destroyed, two more damaged and still more remain threatened, said Escondido Fire Department spokeswoman Carol Rea.
By 3 a.m., new fires had popped up near Cal State University, San Marcos, in Fallbrook, Descanso Valley and in the Cleveland National Forest near Eagle Peak.
MiraCosta College closed all three of its campuses in Oceanside and Encinitas in a bid to help lighten the traffic burden on local highways, said college spokeswoman Bonnie Hall.
People aren't the only creatures affected.
The Helen Woodward Animal Center, which has both an animal hospital and a popular pet boarding center, evacuated all its animals as well as staff and volunteers.
Residents in the Discovery Hills area were notified to evacuate immediately, but that order was withdrawn a few hours later.
The blaze, dubbed the Coronado Hills fire, burned more than 200 acres and several structures, said officials in the county's Office of Emergency Services. Evacuees were sent to Escondido High School.
Meanwhile, the Harris fire in East County had scorched another 14,000 acres and is still out of control, burning toward Honey Springs Road. No firm estimates were available, but a Cal Fire dispatcher said 1,500 homes were considered threatened.
The Descanso fire which broke out near I-8 also burned about 200 acres, according to officials at 3 a.m.
As firefighters grappled to keep up with these blazes, another fire broke near Eagle Peak. That blaze has charred about 60 acres and is burning in a remote area in the forest.
Residents of the Barona Indian reservation have been advised to leave if they wish, though it's not a mandatory evacuation, said Sheilla Alvarez, a spokeswoman for the tribe.
Flames have not reached the reservation north of Lakeside, but are nearby in the San Diego Country Estates, and are threatening a nearby property where tribal officials are building new homes.
The casino remains open, though officials have shut down Wildcat Canyon Road heading north into the casino. Some employees were able to make it to work for the morning shift, Alvarez said.
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