A brush fire that erupted Tuesday at the foot of a hill in French Valley charred roughly 10 acres and briefly threatened a ranch property before it was stopped.
The non-injury blaze was reported at 1:20 p.m. Tuesday near Clinton Keith Road and Trois Valley Street, less than a mile north of French Valley Airport, according to the Riverside County Fire Department.
The agency said multiple engine crews from the county and Murrieta Fire & Rescue were sent to the location and encountered flames moving at a moderate rate into a riparian area at the bottom of a hill.
Structures around one ranch home were briefly threatened, and sheriff’s deputies were requested to stand by for evacuations. However, two Cal Fire air tankers initiated runs on the brusher 20 minutes later, halting its forward rate of spread by 1:55 p.m., according to reports from the scene.
Full containment was expected by 4 p.m.
The cause of the fire was under investigation.