SAN DIEGO — Firefighters managed to contain the second of San Diego County's two deadly wildfires, and crews in Ventura County made progress on the lingering Piru Fire.
Teams surrounded the 11-day-old Paradise Fire near Valley Center early Thursday, said Audrey Hagen, spokeswoman for the California Department of Forestry. It claimed two lives and destroyed 221 homes as it burned 56,700 acres in northern San Diego County.
Its cause is under investigation.
The larger Cedar Fire was contained earlier in the week and it has burned 280,278 acres in San Diego and eastern San Diego County. The blaze, which apparently began when a lost hunter started a signal fire on Oct. 25, killed 14 people, including Novato firefighter Steve Rucker who died on Oct. 29 when he was caught in a firestorm near Wynola.
The 64,000-acre Piru Fire in Ventura County was 95 percent contained and officials with the Los Padres National Forest expected full containment by Nov. 10.
The Angeles National Forest, which did not burn during the wildfires but has been closed since Oct. 27 because of wildfire danger, was to reopen Friday to visitors.
The string of wildfires that tore across Southern California also claimed 24 lives.
Sheriff's and coroner's officials in San Bernardino on Thursday announced two more fire-related fall victims, pushing the death toll to eight in the county.
Harold Rathbun, 43, whose body was found Wednesday near Highway 138, may have died of head injuries sustained after falling down a ravine while checking on the status of his Crestline home. An exact cause of death has not been determined.
Rathbun, a father of four, told others over the weekend he planned to hitchhike or hike up the mountain, despite mandatory evacuation orders.
Timothy Stewart, 27, of San Bernardino, died at Loma Linda University Medical Center on Monday, nearly a week after he was injured while evacuating his home.
Stewart fled his home on a gas-powered scooter, but fell less than a half-mile away, striking his head, officials with the county coroner's office said.
Both deaths were under investigation. Authorities did not know if either man's home survived the fire.
Coroner's officials also identified two men whose fire-related deaths were previously announced.
Robert Taylor, 54, of San Bernardino, died Saturday at Arrowhead Regional Medical Center following a heart attack, exactly one week after his home was destroyed.
Ralph McWilliams, 67, of Cedar Glen, died of emphysema Sunday at Loma Linda University Medical Center.
More than 1,140 firefighters continued to work Thursday on the Cedar Fire, putting out fire pockets in the interior of the containment area, Hagen said. They hoped to extinguish the blaze by Nov. 16.
The Paradise Fire, which had 788 firefighters involved Thursday, was expected to be out by Nov. 15.
Though rains have helped by bringing moisture to the tinder-dry trees and brush, Hagen said the chance remained that winds could pick up again and re-ignite the fire threat.