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We’re in downtown Oceanside, west of the 5. Some smoke in the south end of town, probably coming west on Hwy 78 corridor from San Marcos fire.
Massive Evacuation Ordered West Of I-15
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Qualcomm Stadium Opened For Evacuees
LIVE COVERAGE
Monday Morning Fire BriefingRB Homes Burn"This is the worst fire this county has ever seen -- worse than the Cedar Fire [of 2003]," Sheriff Bill Kolender said.
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At a news conference shortly after 6 a.m., officials said fires had spread dramatically overnight, whipped by fierce Santa Ana winds. They said fire had jumped Interstate 15 at Lake Hodges and was burning in parts of Rancho Bernardo. Because of the explosive and unpredictable nature of the blazes, all residents living between Interstate 15 and Interstate 5 from Del Dios Highway in the north to Highway 56 in the south were told to begin evacuating.
"This fire is moving very quickly," San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders said. "Watch TV, listen to the radio and have your car prepared to leave."
Among the communities in the evacuation area are Rancho Sante Fe, Carmel Highlands, Rancho Bernardo, Del Mar Heights and Fairbanks Ranch and parts of Rancho Penasquitos.
Officials have opened Qualcomm Stadium in Mission Valley to handle the large number of evacuees.
Sanders asked everyone in San Diego County to minimize the use of cell phones to leave the airways free for the use of emergency personnel.
The Witch Fire spread into Ramona overnight, Metcalf said. It now has two fronts: one in the San Pasqual Valley and a southern front that is threatening the Barona Indian Reservation and Lakeside, he said. In San Pasqual Valley, it has combined with a smaller fire called the Guajito Fire, which is threatening the San Diego Wild Animal Park, he said. The fire crossed Interstate 15 early Monday morning at Lake Hodges and is burning in parts of Rancho Bernardo, he said.
The Harris Fire, which is burning near the San Diego-Mexico border, spread dramatically to the west overnight, Metcalf said. A significant number of structures have burned in Tecate, Barrett Junction and Dulzura, he said. That fire is moving toward the Otay Lakes area.
A smaller fire is burning in San Marcos, Metcalf said. The Coronado Hills Fire has burned up to 300 acres, but firefighters are battling it with limited resources and have no containment yet.
A fire is buring in Rice Canyon, east of Interstate 15 near the Pala Indian Reservation. Officials had little information about its size or the conditions in the area.
'It's been a long night, a very dangerous night," Metcalf said. "Everyone in the fire community is putting out 100 percent and more to deal with the situation."
All available resources in the county have been committed to fight the fires, Metcalf said. But many firefighters are occupied with rescuing people who ignored evacuation orders. "Those folks are stripping resources from fighting the fire," Metcalf said.
Metcalf said people should leave when asked to evacuate.
"This is an extraordinarily serious fire event, an extraordinarily dangerous fire event," he said.
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Thank you for the ping, Ernest. Some SD FReepers have evacuated, others at the ready to do so.