A brush fire broke out in the University District on Thursday afternoon, rapidly growing and threatening structures in the area, prompting evacuations.

The brush fire flared up around 1:30 p.m. on the south side of Montezuma Road, an area filled with old, dead palm trees, and quickly jumped onto the road and began spreading uphill, according to San Diego Fire Rescue spokeswoman Monica Munoz.

“This looks like a war zone,” said one resident who was evacuated on foot along Montezuma Road. “I’ve never seen anything like this before. I could see very dark smoke and some flames from SDSU, but I didn’t realize how catastrophic it was.”

Fire crews from multiple agencies responded quickly after the fire created a cloud of smoke throughout University Area and San Diego. A large number of aerial fire crews arrived at the scene and deployed retardant drops to prevent the flames from spreading further.

By 2:45 p.m., the fire had reached 37 acres and evacuations were underway, but firefighters appeared to be gaining the upper hand in the battle.

“I feel like we got this done,” Munoz said around 3:15 p.m. “I can’t tell you exactly when it will come out, but I’m confident.”

Munoz said the main areas of concern for firefighters are the Talmadge area and Alverado Estates. Both neighborhoods are located on hills, and fires tend to move quickly up hillsides.

There was some damage to the porch of at least one home, but a full estimate of how much destruction the 27-acre fire left behind was not yet known.

The crew was expected to remain on scene throughout the night, with new crews arriving periodically to provide assistance.

Evacuations

San Diego police were evacuating homes near the canyon on Montezuma Road, which was closed in both directions.

An evacuation point has also been established at Allied Gardens Recreation Center (5155 Greenbrier Ave, SD, 92120).

Areas under mandatory evacuation orders include:

• South of Alvarado Canyon Road
• West of Hewlett, Dr.
• north of Monroe Boulevard
• east of Montezuma
• If you are in this area bordering these streets, please evacuate.

Hardy Elementary School, 5420 Montezuma Rd. He was also under evacuation. While students were being taken to Viejas Arena, parents going to pick up their children were asked to stay away from College Avenue.

Shortly after the fire broke out, SDPD said it went door to door on Lucille, Lila and 49th streets, warning people they needed to leave.

A resident who was not evacuated and lives across the street from Lucille told NBC 7 she saw the fire coming.

“Folks know what to do here because it’s an ever-present danger,” the resident said. “They knew they had to go next door and get their neighbors out. We have a lot of elderly people here, we have a lot of pets, so we took the elderly out, we took the pets out, we moved them to a safe area.”

“You live in a canyon, you take that risk and you know there’s always danger.”

Munoz said anyone who feels unwell, whether the weather is under a mandatory evacuation or not, should not hesitate to go to the Allied Gardens Recreation Center evacuation point.

The San Diego Police Department is currently fighting a large and growing fire in the College area

Areas in pink on the map above are currently under evacuation orders.

evacuation point

Allied Gardens Recreation center (5155 Greenbrier Ave, SD, 92120) pic.twitter.com/fgqOkmFxv0

— San Diego Police Department (@SanDiegoPD) 31 October 2024

closed roads

Many roads in the area are closed and authorities are urging people to avoid the area.

Northbound Fairmount Boulevard and eastbound Montezuma were closed, according to San Diego police. Montezuma Road was closed in both directions.

Other closed roads are as follows:

• Collwood between Monroe and Montezuma.
• Montezuma is between Fairmont and 55th Street.
• Fairmont from I-8 to Aldine.
• Camino Del Rio south of Fairmont.
• Eastbound 8th at the Fairmont exit.

San Diego State University told students there was no threat to the campus or their community, but traffic delays were to be expected. The university said evacuation orders may be affecting surrounding areas but not the campus, which is still open and where classes are held.

Traffic was especially heavy along Interstate 8, prompting a SigAlert for the eastbound lanes.

How did the fire start?

SDPD tells NBC 7 the fire is believed to have started in a palm tree, but the cause is not yet known.

The fire started in a short time following another afternoon fire in Spring Valley. This led to some evacuations.

Resources from many different agencies responded to help fight the fire, including Lakeside, Santee, Miramar and Cal Fire fire departments.

“That’s what we do, we help each other,” Munoz said. “We have a very strong relationship between our fire departments in this county. We never have to worry about someone else not being able to help us.”

How does weather affect fire?

NBC 7 Meteorologist Francella Perez said the fire created its own wind, especially as it climbed into the canyon.

Wind speeds favored firefighters, reaching only about 5 mph, and there were no Santa Ana winds to contend with, Perez said. But humidity was very low at 20 to 30 percent.

Munoz said that although the wind speed was low, it quickly changed direction, making it difficult to extinguish the fire.

Check back here for details on this breaking news —Ed.