The massive Rice Canyon fire in North San Diego County is still south of the Riverside County line, according to fire officials.

That blaze, which has charred at least 7,500 acres in the Fallbrook area, is still a threat to the De Luz area of Riverside County as firefighters are working to hold it at the county line.

Using air tankers and crews on the ground, firefighters "have diligently worked all day at the county line," said Capt. Fernando Herrera of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.

"That's where they want to hold the fire," Herrera said of the crews heading up the fire fight in San Diego County.

Herrera said there are fire personnel on the Riverside County side scouting the area, keeping an eye on the county line to knock down any flames that may make their way over.

He did not know how far from the county line the blaze was at 4 p.m., but several hours earlier said it was at least three or four miles away.

The Rosa fire in De Luz has stopped burning and is expected to be surrounded by a fire line at 6 p.m., he said.

Wildomar success story

A fire that broke out in Wildomar before 1 p.m. near Grand Avenue and Wesley Street charred 20 acres but was extinguished relatively quickly. An air tanker was overhead not long after the fire started and helped to knock the flames down.

4:15 p.m. update

2-acre brush fire reported near Wildomar

WILDOMAR - A new fire is reported burning in the hills west of this unincorporated community. As of 1 p.m. the fire had consumed about 2 acres of brush near the intersection of Grand Avenue and Wesley Street. No structures are currently threatened said a spokeswoman for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.

A tree was on fire near Washington and Nutmeg in Murrieta. If we don't hear more about this one consider that good news. With all that's working we may not be able to update this if it turns out to be nothing.

Smoke has been spotted in the Menifee area. Firefighters are heading out to investigate. If this turns into a working fire we'll be updating you on it.

-- John Hall, Lauri Lockwood - Staff Writers

1:15 p.m. update

Rosa Fire

There is no actual fire burning in De Luz at the Rosa fire, which has stayed at 411 acres charred for about 24 hours, fire officials said this afternoon.

The fire is also still 85 percent surrounded with fire crews actively mopping up the damage already done, Riverside County fire Capt. Fernando Herrera said. Officials are working to get crews to the remaining 15 percent and expect to have it completely surrounded by 6 p.m., he said.

There is concern involving the Rice Canyon fire, which is burning nearly out of control to the south in San Diego County.

That fire is still about three or four miles from the Riverside County line, Herrera said.

- John Hall - Staff Writer, 1:00 p.m.

No evacuations mandated

DE LUZ - The Rosa fire burning west of Temecula is 85 percent surrounded this morning.

While evacuations are again under way on the San Diego County side, there are no evacuations mandated, authorities said.

Local fire officials are keeping a close eye on the Rice Canyon fire that has burned 7,500 acres in Fallbrook, said Cheri Patterson, spokeswoman for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.

That fire, which is roughly 10 percent surrounded, is still in San Diego County but is burning toward the Riverside County Line.

"It's still about five to seven miles away," Patterson said.

If necessary, officials will use their reverse 911 system to notify Riverside County De Luz residents to evacuate.

The reverse 911 system however, only works with home phones, not cell phones or voice over data lines, Patterson said.

The primary evacuation route would be down Rancho California Road and into Temecula.

"Now is the time to think about preparedness," Patterson said. "It's a good time to gather your important papers, pictures, medications and anything else that might be needed."

County fire officials are also watching the Poomacha fire burning south of Temecula near Palomar Mountain.

That fire, which is still about 12 miles south of the Riverside County line, has burned about 20,000 acres on the La Jolla Indian Reservation, Patterson said.

1:00 p.m. Wednesday

De Luz fire: 9:30 a.m. update

By: JOHN HUNNEMAN -- staff writer

DE LUZ - The Rosa fire burning west of Temecula is 85 percent surrounded this morning.

While evacuations are again under way on the San Diego County side, there are no evacuations mandated, authorities said.

Local fire officials are keeping a close eye on the Rice Canyon fire that has burned 7,500 acres in Fallbrook, said Cheri Patterson, spokeswoman for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.

That fire, which is roughly 10 percent surrounded, is still in San Diego County but is burning toward the Riverside County Line.

"It's still about five to seven miles away," Patterson said.

If necessary, officials will use their reverse 911 system to notify Riverside County De Luz residents to evacuate.

The reverse 911 system however, only works with home phones, not cell phones or voice over data lines, Patterson said.

The primary evacuation route would be down Rancho California Road and into Temecula.

"Now is the time to think about preparedness," Patterson said. "It's a good time to gather your important papers, pictures, medications and anything else that might be needed."

County fire officials are also watching the Poomacha fire burning south of Temecula near Palomar Mountain.

That fire, which is still about 12 miles south of the Riverside County line, has burned about 20,000 acres on the La Jolla Indian Reservation, Patterson said.

Firefighters encircle most of De Luz blaze

DE LUZ - Ground crews and a helicopter launched a full-scale assault on the Rosa fire Tuesday in an attempt to surround the blaze, keep it away from homes and stop its march toward the San Diego County line and the Rice Canyon fire battering Fallbrook.

The effort paid off as the men and machine power, aided by a lessening of powerful Santa Ana winds, enabled firefighters to get a line around 70 percent of the blaze Tuesday afternoon, officials said. Officials estimated the blaze would be fully encircled Tuesday night.

Full control of the fire, which blackened a total of 411 acres, is expected Wednesday afternoon.

Tuesday evening, authorities with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection confirmed that they believe the blaze was started by an arsonist.

Fire crews from as far away as Nevada and the Coachella Valley arrived Tuesday morning on the hilly terrain - home to avocado groves and stately mansions - west of Temecula to fight the fire that began late Monday.

The blaze started as three separate fires about a mile apart, fire officials said. Crews were able to extinguish one of the fires early Tuesday morning, holding it to about 2 acres.

However, the other two fires, both burning along Via Vaquero, just south of Via Santa Rosa, flared Tuesday as Santa Ana winds rose up after daybreak.

Gusts of up to 35 miles per hour hampered efforts early in the day and officials dropped their overnight estimate of 70 percent surrounded to 50 percent.

On Tuesday, fire equipment lined the narrow roads and parked in driveways of homes tucked away in nearby canyons to offer structure protection.

Firefighters and inmate crews numbering about 200 battled the blaze, which burned mostly in the deep interior of avocado groves.

Above, a California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection attack helicopter began making water drops on both locations of the fire about 10:30 a.m.

"If we can hold what we've got now we'll be in good shape," said Division Chief Mike Ritchey, who parked his vehicle on Via Vaquero and was monitoring the air and ground attack. "There's a lot of potential here for these two fires to get big."

Looming in the distance to the south was the huge fire burning in and around Fallbrook that sent clouds of thick smoke hundreds of feet into the air, smoke easily visible from De Luz and, increasingly throughout the day, from Temecula Valley.

"We're trying to keep our fire from joining the one in San Diego," Ritchey said.

That effort succeeded. However by late afternoon, even with the Rosa fire almost surrounded, fire officials sought to assure nervous Southwest County residents that the smoke wafting over the valley was coming from the blaze in Fallbrook, not a rekindling of the De Luz fire.

"There is not a puff of smoke coming from the Rosa incident," said CDF spokesman Capt. Fernando Herrera about 3 p.m.

De Luz residents, who had left their homes Monday when voluntary evacuations had been called, would be allowed to return home Tuesday evening, Herrera said.

No structures were damaged and no injuries reported, Herrera said.

Contact staff writer John Hunneman at (951) 676-4315, Ext. 2603, or hunneman@californian.com.