Some Alpine fire evacuations lifted; residents find homes in ruins

July 08--The true toll of the wind-driven blaze that tore through Alpine a day earlier was beginning to take shape Saturday, as damage assessment teams moved through charred neighborhoods and some residents returned to the burn zone to survey what was left.

The West fire, which struck pockets of the rural East County community, was holding Saturday at 500 acres and was 81 percent contained as of 7 p.m., according to Cal Fire.

According to early estimates, 18 structures have been destroyed and eight more damaged.

But Kimberly Page of the County Fire Authority, who walked neighborhoods assessing the damage with a partner, said the number of homes lost will definitely increase. The homes they were looking at Saturday morning haven't been added to the figures released at the beginning of the day, she said.

By 2 p.m., authorities had lifted evacuation orders in several areas, including the Palo Verde Ranch and Rancho Palo Verde communities and areas west of South Grade Road.

However, many areas remained off-limits likely through the night, including Suncrest Vista Lane, Highlands View Road, Manzanita View Road, Olive View Road, Scenic View Road, Scenic View Place, Pine View Road, Viejas View Place, Sage View Drive, Oak View Road, Verde View Road, Calle Caleta Viejas and Via La Mancha.

Other road closures: Alpine Boulevard eastbound from South Grade Road and westbound from West Willows Road, as well as Honey Hill Ranch Road southbound at Suncrest Vista Lane.

"They're working to get this stuff done so we can get people back to their homes," said Cal Fire Capt. Kendall Bortisser.

Some residents returned to find nothing left.

A little after 9 a.m., a couple with their teenage son pulled up to their lot on Olive View Road. The husband and wife stood at the base of their 75-foot driveway, hugging and looking at the smoldering ruins that had been their home of 17 years.

A member of law enforcement, the homeowner had been allowed past roadblocks. They weren't really surprised at what they found.

"I was out of town and saw my house burning from the airplane (window)," said the owner, who asked that his identity not be disclosed because of his line of work.

His wife and two children had safely evacuated at beginning of fire, he said.

"The important things survived," he said.

His wife walked up to the home and retrieved a keepsake, a square garden stepping stone.

Their neighborhood, nestled in a canyon, was especially hard hit by the flames. Several homes appeared to have been destroyed on their street, as well as Pine View Road and Scenic View roads.

At the Alpine Oaks Estates, near where the fire began Friday off Willows Road and Interstate 8, at least 10 mobile homes burned.

Late Saturday morning, two of the homeowners aimed cellphone cameras at the destruction to record video for their insurance companies.

One woman was in tears and declined to speak to a reporter.

Claudette Sanders, who had lived in the mobile home park for two years with her husband, Gary, said everything happened quickly Friday.

"(A sheriff's deputy) came to my door and told me to get out," she said. "I didn't even know there was a fire. When I opened the back door, all the trees were on fire."

She said there was no time to grab anything other than a laptop computer.

"He said 'Now,' and when I saw the fire in back, I said 'Yes, it is now.'"

She, her husband and their grandson -- who had come to visit just the day before -- fled.

What Sanders said she will miss most of all is the furniture she'd purchased when they moved in. She also pointed to what had been a new $2,800 fence that had been installed last month but was now a melted, twisted pile of plastic.

About 20 people who had been evacuated from the Alpine area stayed overnight at a Red Cross shelter at Los Coches Creek Middle School in El Cajon, a Red Cross spokeswoman said.

The shelter would stay open as long as needed, she said.

The county will open a Local Assistance Center at the Alpine Branch Library starting Monday to aid displaced residents with the recovery and rebuilding process. Residents can also call the county hotline at (858) 495-5200 or send questions to [email protected].

The West fire was the largest of several brush fires that broke out during a record-breaking heat wave Friday.

The Building fire burned about 10 acres and at least one large structure in Dulzura in East County. It was 100 percent contained.

Two others were burning Saturday on Camp Pendleton in North County -- one fire was at 1,200 acres and 30 percent contained, while another was at 560 acres and 70 percent contained, according to Marine base fire officials. De Luz Road remained closed.

On Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, a fire that scorched about 100 acres of open terrain was fully contained.

Temperatures were soaring again Saturday, with Alpine reaching a record-breaking high of 104. However, fire crews got a little respite when a rain shower passed over the area around lunchtime.

Thunderstorms were continuing to develop across the East County and farther north Saturday afternoon.

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Twitter: @kristinadavis

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