Evacuation orders lifted for brush fire east of Ramona
Dante Ulanday - News Moderator 
A brush fire caused by a traffic accident spread east of Ramona Thursday, prompting evacuations before crews stopped its forward rate of spread.
Just after 4 p.m. Cal Fire San Diego reported the progress after the fire had grown to 105 acres. The containment area held at 15%; 90 minutes earlier, the blaze had charred 50 acres, officials said.
The fire caused no injuries or structural damage.
The blaze erupted in the early afternoon off state Route 78, near Casner Road in the Ballena area, Cal Fire said.
Within an hour, it had spread over two to five open acres, posing threats to structures, said Robert Johnson, a CalFire captain.
Officials directed residents living in two zones north of SR-78 to leave their neighborhoods. The area included Whale and Creek mountains, Hatfield Creek, Rancho Ballena Road, Slaughterhouse Road, Witch Creek Mountain Road and Flying T Ranch Airport.
By 4:40 p.m., the evacuation orders – residents had been sent to the Ramona Rodeo – had been lifted, along with warnings that been in place farther north of the burn area.
Air tankers and water-dropping helicopters, meanwhile, joined ground crews to battle the brush fire as authorities limited access to the area.
#UPDATE @SDSheriff has expanded the EVACUATION ORDER and EVACUATION WARNING for the #RanchoFire near Ramona.
An EVACUATION ORDER is in place for the shaded areas in red shown in the maps below. It means everyone in the impacted areas must leave immediately.
An EVACUATION… pic.twitter.com/NLfPVXR7HN— San Diego Sheriff (@SDSheriff) October 9, 2025
Westbound traffic on SR-78 is closed at Old Julian Highway, with eastbound traffic shut down at Rancho Santa Teresa, according to the California Highway Patrol.
The fire started when a vehicle veered off SR-78 and overturned, officials said. Flames then ignited, spreading to roadside vegetation. An occupant of the truck suffered moderately serious injuries in the accident.
It’s the second brush fire in North County in three days, with the Sandia Fire west of Interstate 15 100% contained as of Thursday.
City News Service contributed to this report.
Updated 5:10 p.m. Oct. 9, 2025
