By Mike Kinney
A wind-driven vegetation fire burned up about 2 acres between Hilltop Drive and eastbound Interstate 80 Monday night and took firefighters about 30 minutes to contain, fire officials said.
Richmond Interim Fire Chief Michael Smith said the blaze, reported about 9:50 p.m., jumped from Hilltop Road over to Rolling Hills Memorial Park, where there were a couple of spot fires. No injuries or damages to structures were reported.
Chief Smith said the fire may have originated from a homeless encampment on I-80, although the cause remains under investigation.
About 50 fire personnel from the Richmond Fire Department, Contra Costa County Fire Protection District, El Cerrito Fire Department and the County Task Force responded to the scene.
Chief Smith noted the fire occurred amid a red flag fire warning and that the wind had caused several vegetation fires. Winds, combined with low humidity and dry fuels, have resulted in critical fire weather conditions.
“In spite of the high fire conditions and the issues with wind, the firefighters and fire control workers did an outstanding job of controlling and extinguishing the fire,” Chief Smith said.
