Local, state and federal firefighting forces converged on a rugged hill about a quarter-mile south of Highway 92, just east of the city line, to battle a stubborn and dangerous wildfire. The first call came at 4:51 p.m.
While officials don't yet know what caused the fire, San Mateo County Sheriff's Lt. Ken Jones said that his agency was interviewing a man at the Coastside substation who may have intentionally or inadvertently sparked the blaze. Jones declined to name the suspect but Half Moon Bay officers arrested a transient minutes after the fire started and business people in the area say the man is a frequent troublemaker around the cluster of retail shops at Spanishtown.
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CalFire San Mateo and Santa Cruz counties Chief John Ferreira said he was very concerned by 5:30 p.m. that the fire would break containment. Fueling his concern - and the fire itself - was a grove of eucalyptus trees between the fire and Stone Pine Center, less than a quarter of a mile to the west. Firefighters beat back the blaze with the help of a U.S. Forest Service airplane from Redding that dropped thousands of gallons of retardant on the fire.
About 14 fire engines and trucks from several county agencies along with U.S. Forest Service planes and helicopters attacked the fire.
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