Brush fire temporarily causes evacuations, I-215 Freeway closure in Riverside County

A series of mandatory evacuations and the temporary closure of a part of the I-215 Freeway in Riverside County have been lifted after being impacted by a large brush fire Friday afternoon, authorities said.

The Murrieta Police Department issued the evacuations at 2:20 p.m. following the closure of the I-215 Freeway in some areas. Just a day earlier, the city faced another wildfire which led to the evacuation of local residents.

On Saturday, police told anyone in the area of the fire to leave immediately, posting a map showing where flames are burning.

"If you are in the immediate area of the active brush fire, you are urged to evacuate IMMEDIATELY!" the department said in a post to X. "Structure fires reported along Whitewood."

At around 4 p.m., all evacuation orders were lifted and Whitewood was reopened to all traffic. All lanes of I-215 were reopened as of 9:40 p.m.

Just a little earlier, police warned about the partial freeway shutdown.

"Due to the active fire in Murrieta, the I-215 Freeway has been CLOSED NB at Los Alamos Rd & southbound at Clinton Keith Rd. Please avoid the area and take alternate routes," police said just after 2 p.m. "Do NOT block intersections due to incoming emergency response personnel."

While no acreage has been given so far, Murrieta police have described it as a "large brush fire."

Police also warned of heavy traffic along some of the I-215 due to the freeway's closure.

Check back for updates to this developing story.