A Spring Valley arson suspect was arrested after sheriff's deputies used a drone to track a man reportedly seen setting a palm tree on fire near the Spring Valley Swap Meet site, according to East County Magazine.

The fire was reported shortly after 6:30 p.m. May 25 in the 6000 block of Quarry Road. Deputies from the Rancho San Diego Sheriff's Station evacuated residents at Spring Canyon Townhomes while deputies and California Highway Patrol officers searched the area.

Deputies launched an unmanned aerial vehicle to search a riverbed behind Quarry Road, and the drone tracked the suspect moving south toward Sweetwater Dam until a sheriff's ASTREA helicopter arrived, according to the report. Deputies arrested 35-year-old Miguel Hernandez near the state Route 125 and state Route 54 interchange.

Hernandez was booked into San Diego Central Jail on arson and drug charges and on an outstanding felony warrant for identity theft, East County Magazine reported. Fire crews, including San Miguel Fire & Rescue, extinguished the fire, and residents were allowed to return home. No structures were damaged.

For Santee and East County residents, the incident is a reminder that small ignition points can trigger neighborhood evacuations quickly when dry vegetation is involved. The San Diego Sheriff's Bomb/Arson Unit is handling the investigation.

Source: East County Magazine.