A brush fire that erupted Friday on the north end of Anza — less than a mile from where another blaze broke out a day prior — scorched an acre and destroyed an outbuilding before crews stopped it.
The non-injury blaze was reported at 11:07 a.m. in the area of Cave Rock Road and Windy Hill Lane, just east of the Cahuilla Indian Reservation, according to the Riverside County Fire Department.
The agency said multiple crews were pulled away from the 32-acre “Howard Fire” burning to the northeast to battle the new brusher, which was initially moving at a moderate rate to the north amid 10 mph winds.
An outbuilding, possibly functioning as an indoor marijuana grow, was consumed before firefighters could deploy to establish a defensive perimeter, according to reports from the scene.
Two Cal Fire air tankers and two water-dropping helicopters initiated a series of runs on the blaze about 11:35 a.m., preventing it from jumping roads and enabling firefighters to begin digging containment lines.
The fire’s forward rate of spread was stopped at 12:30 p.m., and all air operations ceased as crews fortified containment lines. Several engines were sent back to the Howard Fire, which was nearly three-quarters contained by early Friday afternoon.
Crews were expected to continue mopping up until 4 p.m.
The cause of the fire was under investigation.
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