Border 32 Fire

SUPPORT PROVIDED TO BORDER 32 FIRE SURVIVORS

By Chuck Westerheide, County of San Diego Communications Office

September 13, 2022 (Potrero/Dulzura) - County Emergency Services opened a Local Assistance Center Monday to support those affected by the Border 32 Fire.  The fire burned 4,400 acres and destroyed more than a dozen homes and buildings in the area between Dulzura and Potrero.


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GOFUNDME SITES SET UP TO HELP SURVIVORS OF BORDER 32 FIRE

By Miriam Raftery

September 11, 2022 (San Diego’s East County) – Some lost homes. Others lost outbuildings, horses, and vehicles.  Damages included wells needed for water, orchards, and more. One needs help to pay her dog’s emergency veterinary bill. All are survivors of the Border Fire, which scorched through the Barrett Junction, Dulzura and Potrero communities – and all need your help through donations at GoFundMe.com.


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Support community news in the public interest! As nonprofit news, we rely on donations from the public to fund our reporting -- not special interests. Please donate to sustain East County Magazine's local reporting and/or wildfire alerts at https://www.eastcountymedia.org/donate to help us keep people safe and informed across our region.

DESPITE HEROIC EFFORTS TO SAVE PROPERTY DURING BORDER 32 FIRE, FAMILY SUSTAINS LOSSES AND NEEDS HELP

Retired paramedic loses RV home; family’s water well, solar panels and dreams up in smoke

By Miriam Raftery

Photos by Henri Migala, Miriam Raftery, Ryan and Gemma Sommers

September 10, 2022 (Potrero) – Ryan and Gemma Sommers had a dream—to build an earth-berm home on 80 acres in Potrero that Ryan grew up on and inherited from his father. So when the Border 32 Fire swept through the community last week, Ryan didn’t hesitate – he headed into the wildfire and fought singlehandedly to save what he could. But the family had no insurance, and their losses are overwhelming.

“I have been trying to live out my father’s dream of living self-sustainability on a ranch,” says Ryan, who lost his father to pancreatic cancer in 2020. Now the fire has torched much of their property, including burning his uncle’s RV home to the ground.  “My uncle has lost everything,” Ryan reflects. Ryan and Gemma also suffered major losses, with Ryan risking his life to save what he could.

On a GoFundMe page set up to help the family repair and rebuild their lives, Gemma wrote, “We don’t want to say goodbye to our land that has been in our family these past 21+ years..”


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Support community news in the public interest! As nonprofit news, we rely on donations from the public to fund our reporting -- not special interests. Please donate to sustain East County Magazine's local reporting and/or wildfire alerts at https://www.eastcountymedia.org/donate to help us keep people safe and informed across our region.

POST OFFICES REOPEN IN TECATE, POTRERO AND DULZURA AFTER BORDER FIRE

East County News Service

September 3, 2022 (San Diego’s East County) – The Tecate, Potrero and Dulzura Post Offices have all been reopened and have resumed operations at their facilities. 


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Support community news in the public interest! As nonprofit news, we rely on donations from the public to fund our reporting -- not special interests. Please donate to sustain East County Magazine's local reporting and/or wildfire alerts at https://www.eastcountymedia.org/donate to help us keep people safe and informed across our region.

ALL BORDER 32 FIRE EVACUEES CAN RETURN HOME

East County News Service

Photo by Josh Stotler: Hose near ruins of a burned home in Barrett Junction area.

September 2, 2022 (San Diego's East County) -- Everyone who was evacuated due to the Border 32 Fire can now return home, San Diego County officials confirm.  County officials have also established a recovery email, RecoverySanDiego@sdcounty.ca.gov, to help those affected by the fires. People whose property was affected by the fire can reach the County at the recovery email and County officials will respond.


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Support community news in the public interest! As nonprofit news, we rely on donations from the public to fund our reporting -- not special interests. Please donate to sustain East County Magazine's local reporting and/or wildfire alerts at https://www.eastcountymedia.org/donate to help us keep people safe and informed across our region.