PROGRESS MADE ON COWBOY FIRE, NOW OVER 700 ACRES

Update 8:35 p.m. -- The Cowboy Fire is now 719 acres and is 10% contained.  Progress is "excellent" according to Cal-Fire Battalion Chief Nick Schuler.

September 2, 2010 (Campo) 7 p.m. --The Cowboy Fire has reached 300 acres, however Cal-Fire public information officer Roxanne Provaznik reports, "Firefighters are beginning to make some progress."  The fire is currently back-burning onto itself and there is minimal threat to structures.

Additional resources have been ordered by the incident commander.  Firefighters will be on scene through the night and a base camp is being set up at Potrero County Park.

Campo Elementary School was evacuated earlier, with students taken to Mountain Empire High School.

The Cal Fire info/call center has been activated for concerned citizens.619 590 3160. In addition, residents can find updates at www.calfiresandiego.blogspot.com, www.twitter.com/calfiresandiego, and www.flickr.com/calfiresandiego.

The wildfire, reported at 1:13 p.m. , began in an inaccessible area between Campo and Potrero near the Pacific Crest Trail. Incident Page Network indicates the fire is near the junction of Highway 94 and Star Ranch.

Authorities from Cal-Fire, the U.S. Forest Service, San Diego Sheriff’s Department, San Diego County Fire Authority, and several volunteer agencies are battling the blaze.

Homes are not threatened at this point. Cause of the fire is under investigation.

If you are not set set up to receive the Viejas Wildfire and Emergency Alerts, sign up free at the upper right side of our homepage.

For updates through the night, check the Cal-Fire resources listed in our earlier story on this fire.