LUCERNE, Calif. – A Wednesday afternoon fire scorched several acres on a Lucerne hillside, not far from numerous residences.
The fire, first reported in the 4000 block of Foothill Drive, was dispatched at 1:19 p.m. Wednesday.
Northshore Fire, Lakeport Fire, US Forest Service and Cal Fire all responded to the fire, according to Northshore Fire Deputy Pat Brown.
Brown said the fire ran from Foothill Drive across Robinson Road, and then went another 100 yards above Robinson Road.
As the fire crested a hill above several homes, high winds hit the flames, causing them to briefly double in size.
Nearby homeowners began wetting down their roofs and yards as they watched the flames start to come down the hillside.
Cal Fire’s Copter 104 responded, making several water drops on the fire and keeping it from advancing further toward nearby homes.
A total of seven engines, two crews, a dozer, two fixed-wing aircraft and a copter came from Cal Fire, and US Forest Service sent one engine and one water tender, while Brown said Northshore sent four engines, a water tender and three chiefs, and Lakeport sent one engine.
Radio reports indicated that forward progression on the fire was stopped at about 1:48 p.m.
Cal Fire and Northshore had joint command on the incident, with Cal Fire taking over full control of the incident shortly before 2:30 p.m., Brown said.
He said there was not yet a determination made about the cause.
Cal Fire’s estimate of the fire’s size was between five and seven acres, according to the Cal Fire Incident Command Center.
Hand crews continued to work on the hillside after the fire was contained, using chainsaws and hand tools to mop up the fire area.
Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.