A state prison, a juvenile detention facility, three county jails and a federal detention center sit just outside the Border 2 fire’s evacuation zone.
A single thoroughfare, Alta Road, connects the facilities, which, combined, house more than 4,600 men, women and children. CalFire said Friday that Alta was closed.
As of Friday afternoon, officials said there were no immediate plans to evacuate.
Lt. Adam Garvey, public information officer for Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility, California’s southernmost prison, said the fire was moving away from the facility, which remained under a shelter-in-place protocol.
All outdoor activities had been moved inside, he said.
In an emailed statement, a spokesperson for the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation said the agency is closely monitoring all California fires and coordinating with state and local fire experts to determine if evacuation is necessary.
“CDCR’s top priority is the health and safety of all who live and work within its institutions,” Mary Xjimenez said.
On-site medical staff are keeping an eye on detainees with respiratory problems, she said, and housing units at Donovan prison are equipped with powerful air filters.
Visits to George Bailey Detention Facility, the county’s largest jail, have been suspended “out of an abundance of caution,” the San Diego Sheriff’s Office said in a statement issued early Friday afternoon.
Visits have also been suspended at the two smaller jails that bookend George Bailey — Rock Mountain Detention Facility and East Mesa Reentry Facility.
“The current status of our Otay Mesa Detention Facilities is to shelter in place,” the Sheriff’s Office statement said. “There is an evacuation plan in place if this becomes necessary.”
The Sheriff’s Office assured family and friends of people incarcerated at the three jails that none of them were currently threatened by the fire.
Chuck Westerheide, spokesperson for the San Diego County Probation Department, which operates the East Mesa Juvenile Detention Facility, said officials were monitoring the fire and were prepared to evacuate the roughly 150 teens and young adults in custody.
“We have notified parents of suspension of visitations,” he said. “Youth can still call and contact their parents or guardians. All other services are still in operation within the facilities.”
Immigration and Customs Enforcement did not immediately respond to questions about conditions at the Otay Mesa Detention Center, which can hold up to 1,142 people detained by ICE and the U.S. Marshals Service.
