Officials Say 'Recreational Shooting' Cause of General Fire

A fire that broke out southeast of Julian Sunday and burned nearly 1,000 acres was started by recreational shooting, investigators said Tuesday.

Hundreds of firefighters worked to quell the firearm-sparked brush fire in the Banner Grade area, south of state Route 78 and east of SR-79. Cal Fire reported the fire to be 70 percent contained Tuesday morning. Full containment is expected Wednesday, the state agency reported.

One crew member suffered a minor injury while working to subdue the roughly 980-acre fire, which has caused no known structural damage.

It was not immediately clear if any suspects had been identified, cited or arrested.

The blazed—dubbed the General Fire due to its proximity to a landmark general store in the area—burned several miles from the site of the nearly 2,800-acre San Felipe Fire. That conflagration broke out in desert territory north of Scissors Crossing on Thursday afternoon, when a Cal Fire prescribed burn that was supposed to clear brush from about 100 acres began spreading out of control due to unexpected wind shifts.

—City News Service contributed to this story