Fire breaks out in center divide of I-15 in Rainbow

Firefighters were quickly able to get a handle on a vegetation fire in the center divide of Interstate 15 in Rainbow Thursday afternoon.

The fire was reported a little before 1:10 p.m. near the Rainbow Valley Boulevard interchange on I-15.

North County Fire Protection District spokesman John Choi said crews were heading to the scene as of about 1:20 p.m. By a little after 1:30 p.m., the fire's forward spread had been halted, the fire district said on Twitter.

Cal Fire San Diego, which assisted in responding to the fire, said it was contained to a 50-foot-by-100-foot spot.

The left two lanes of southbound I-15 and the far left lane of northbound I-15 were shut down while fire crews were at the scene, according to a CHP incident log, and a Sigalert was issued for the area.

Lanes were reopened soon after the fire was knocked down.

1:40 p.m. Thursday: This story was updated with information about traffic in the fire area.

2 p.m. Thursday: This story was updated to indicate the fire's forward spread was stopped.

3:20 p.m. Thursday: This story was updated to indicate lane closures have been lifted.

Will Fritz can be reached by email at [email protected]