Brush Fire off Banner Grade Has Grown to 1,200 Acres

Updated at 6:30 p.m. May 24, 2012

A brush fire in the Cigarette Hill area off Banner Grade, east of Julian, has grown to 1,200 acres and is 5 percent contained, authorities said Thursday. One hundred homes in the Shelter Valley area have been evacuated and the Red Cross has established an evacuation center at Borrego Springs High School.

Cal Fire reports the fire continues to move rapidly to the east and has the potential to be large. San Diego Sheriff's Department is handling evacuations and Animal Control is being contacted for animal evacuations.

Road closures include:

San Felipe Road from Montezuma Valley Rd to SR-78

SR-78 about 2.5 miles east and west of S2 (Great Southern Overland Stage Route) 

S2 (Great Southern Overland Stage Route) from SR-78 to south of Shelter Valley

Cigarette Hill is located at these coordinates: Thomas Brothers Map 1136 E6.

The area is under a wind warning, issued by the National Weather Service and is under a high wind warning for Friday morning until 4 a.m. Saturday. Wind from the west is pushing the fire east into the Granite Peak area and scorching brush in the area of last year's , according to Cal Fire.

There have been no reports of injuries or damage to structures.

Borrego Springs High School is at 2281 Diegueno Drive. The call center for the fire is 619-590-3160. Residents are urged to call 2-1-1 for all non-emergency calls and visit www.sdcountyemergency.com for updates online.

The brush fire began spreading about 2:15 p.m., according to Cal Fire. Within two hours, the burn area had grown to about 1,000 acres, said Nick Schuler, a battalion chief with the state agency.

As of 5:40 p.m., there were six air tankers, one air attack, six helicopters, 40 engines, eight crews, four water tenders and give bulldozers fighting the blaze.

Patch will continue to update this story.