A brush fire that erupted Thursday in a homeless encampment on the north side of the Santa Ana River bottom in Jurupa Valley scorched just under a quarter-acre before transients managed to contain it, leaving only remnants for firefighters to mop up.
The non-injury blaze was reported about 3:20 p.m. Thursday in the area of Fleetwood Drive and Wilson Street, according to the Riverside County Fire Department.
Multiple engine crews from the county and Riverside Fire Department went to the location and encountered itinerants knocking down the spot fire, according to reports from the scene.
Only a small number of firefighters were needed to extinguish hot spots and ensure there was no further threat to the surrounding vegetation.
There was no word on the exact source of the blaze, but cooking, warming debris and similar fires are common throughout the river bottom, which is replete with transient encampments, year-round.