A fast-moving brush fire burned 131 acres in Los Peñasquitos Canyon Preserve on Sunday, Aug. 16, forcing evacuation warnings for eight residential areas bordering the canyon before firefighters halted the blaze's advance by early evening.

No injuries or structure damage were reported.

The fire started at about 1:30 p.m. near Sorrento Valley Boulevard and Vista Sorrento Parkway and was just 1 to 2 acres when crews arrived, the San Diego Union-Tribune reported. Within two hours it had exploded to roughly 130 acres, racing eastward through thick, dry grass in the canyon.

San Diego Fire-Rescue Deputy Chief Dan Eddy said the remote terrain forced firefighters to hike about 20 minutes into the canyon before they could engage the flames.

"The thing that concerns me is that we have homes on both sides of the canyon," Eddy told reporters at a Sunday afternoon news conference.

At its peak, 200 firefighters battled the blaze alongside 10 aircraft, including six helicopters and three air tankers. One tanker was capable of dropping 4,000 gallons of fire retardant per pass, Cal Fire Capt. Josh Cormode said. Two Cal Fire bulldozers and two hand crews also assisted. Helicopters scooped water from ponds on a nearby golf course while tankers flew back and forth to bases in Hemet and Ramona.

Evacuation zones

The canyon preserve itself was placed under a mandatory evacuation order. Eight surrounding residential areas received evacuation warnings, including neighborhoods north of the preserve up to state Route 56 and Carmel Mountain Road, areas east of Interstate 805, and homes south of Sorrento Valley Boulevard.

A temporary evacuation point was set up at Mandell Weiss Eastgate Park, 4161 Eastgate Mall, Times of San Diego reported. San Diego police closed roads at 10800 Vista Sorrento Parkway and at Sorrento Valley Boulevard and Jasmine Crest Lane.

Shortly after 6:30 p.m., officials announced they had stopped the fire's forward spread at about 15 percent containment. All evacuation warnings were lifted shortly after 7 p.m.

Second fire in same area this summer

The blaze ignited near the same stretch of canyon where a June 8 brush fire charred 90 acres and triggered mandatory evacuation orders for more than 2,200 homes and businesses. Cormode referred to the location as the "old Sorrento burn area."

National Weather Service meteorologist Sam Zuber said north-northwest winds of about 10 mph, slightly stronger than usual, pushed the flames Sunday. Winds were expected to ease to around 5 mph by sunset.

Eddy said he saw no personal drones flying in the fire area Sunday, a contrast to the June 8 fire when a drone grounded all aircraft for about 30 minutes. Some people were spotted trying to hike into the canyon to photograph the blaze and were turned back by firefighters and police.

Two hundred firefighters planned to work through the night. The cause remains under investigation.

Residents can check their evacuation zone at AlertSanDiego.org and sign up for emergency alerts there or through the SD Emergency app. San Diego Fire-Rescue also offers Home Risk Assessments for $163 to help property owners evaluate defensible space; requests can be submitted at sandiego.gov/fire.

As we reported Friday, La Jolla recently formed a Fire Safe Council to address wildfire risk and insurance losses in the community.