4S Ranch brush fire blackens five acres

UPDATED at 11:45 a.m. Friday - The cause of the fire has been listed as welders working in the area.

4S RANCH (CNS) - A brush fire in a creek bed adjacent to Black Mountain Open Space Park blackened about five open acres Thursday afternoon, prompting evacuations of some nearby homes while crews doused the flames by ground and air.

The blaze erupted for unknown reasons shortly before 3 p.m. off the 15000 block of Dove Creek Road in 4S Ranch.

Administrators at Oak Valley Middle School had students and staffers remain indoors as the flames spread through thick vegetation in undeveloped ravines and wetland areas a short distance away.

Authorities directed residents of homes along Palomino Valley Road to evacuate as a precaution, said Julie Taber, spokeswoman for the Rancho Santa Fe Fire Protection District. Firefighters surrounded and hosed down the blaze on foot while a helicopter crew used a nearby pond to get water to drop from above.

As of 5:15 p.m., the personnel had the burn area fully contained, Taber said. Evacuated residents were then allowed back into their homes.

There were no reports of injuries or structural damage.

The cause of the fire was under investigation.