Harris Fire
2007 wildfire in Southern California
title: "Harris Fire" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["2007-california-wildfires", "organized-events-in-san-diego-county,-california", "wildfires-in-san-diego-county,-california"] description: "2007 wildfire in Southern California" topic_path: "general/2007-california-wildfires" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harris_Fire" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0
::summary 2007 wildfire in Southern California ::
::data[format=table title="Infobox wildfire"]
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| title | Harris Fire |
| partof | the October 2007 California wildfires |
| image | Aerial View of Harris Fire 10-23-07 1 pm.jpg |
| caption | Aerial view of the Harris Fire on October 23, 2007, at 12:05 p.m. PDT |
| location | Potrero, San Diego, California |
| date | |
| area | 90,440 acre |
| cause | Unknown |
| cost | $21 million (2007 USD) |
| buildings | |
| fatalities | 8 civilians |
| injuries | 21 civilians |
| 40 firefighters | |
| :: |
| title = Harris Fire | partof = the October 2007 California wildfires | image = Aerial View of Harris Fire 10-23-07 1 pm.jpg | caption = Aerial view of the Harris Fire on October 23, 2007, at 12:05 p.m. PDT | location = Potrero, San Diego, California | date = | area = 90,440 acre | cause = Unknown | cost = $21 million (2007 USD) | landuse = | buildings = | fatalities = 8 civilians | injuries = 21 civilians 40 firefighters
The Harris Fire was a major wildfire in southern San Diego County, California, that began on October 21, 2007, which burned 90,440 acre before it was contained on November 5. Hotspots persisted until the fire was extinguished on November 16, making the Harris Fire the last of the October 2007 California wildfires to be extinguished. As the Harris Fire burned, it traveled in a northwest direction from its starting point at Harris Ranch Road in the town of Potrero, located in the far south of San Diego County, near Tecate, Mexico. The wildfire was the second-largest one of the October 2007 California wildfires, behind only the Witch Fire. The cause of the Harris Fire is unknown. The Harris Fire was the deadliest one of the October 2007 wildfires, killing eight people.
The fire
::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b9/Harris_fire_Mount_Miguel.jpg" caption="Mount San Miguel]], on the morning of October 23, 2007"] ::
At 9:23 AM PDT on October 21, 2007, the Harris Fire ignited in Potrero, southeastern San Diego County, near the Mexican border.
On October 23, the fire approached eastern Chula Vista.
The fire resulted in the evacuation of some nearby communities, with evacuation centers set up at a nearby high school and a community center.
Thomas James Varshock, 52, of Potrero, died on his property during the Harris Fire on Sunday. His teenage son suffered burn injuries, along with four firefighters of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, who had attempted to rescue them. The fire may also have led to the deaths of four illegal migrants near the U.S.–Mexico border. An estimated 1,210 firefighters battled this fire.
The Harris Fire also burned into northern Mexico, near the city of Tecate.
On November 5, 2007, the Harris Fire was 100% contained. Hotspots persisted within the perimeter of the fire until November 16, when the last hotspot was finally extinguished.
References
References
- (5 November 2007). "Harris Fire".
- (8 January 2009). "California Fire Siege 2007: An Overview".
- (October 22, 2017). "Searing lessons: how the 2007 wildfires changed San Diego County". The San Diego Union-Tribune.
- Anne Krueger, Leonel Sanchez and Ray Huard. (22 October 2007). "Harris fire burning unchecked, heads for Otay Lakes and Chula Vista". Signonsandiego.com.
- Neely, Liz and David Hasemyer and Karen Kucher. (October 22, 2007). "Harris fire roars unchecked in East County - 700 residents flee Barrett Junction". [[The San Diego Union-Tribune]].
- (October 23, 2007). "Heroics in failed San Diego fire rescue". United Press International.
- (October 25, 2007). "4 charred bodies in Calif. migrant camp". AP via Yahoo! news.
- (October 23, 2007). "Harris fire update 8:16pm October 23, 2007". [[The San Diego Union-Tribune]].
- (October 24, 2007). "KPBS Google Map". Google.com.
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