A vegetation fire nearly caused four houses to evacuate early Tuesday morning in Kennewick, but a brick fence kept the flames from spreading to them. The fire was reported just before 3:30 a.m. along US 395 near W 27th Avenue, and grew to about a half an acre in size because of winds, according to Battalion Chief Mikal Barnett. Motorists were asked to use the left lanes of US 395 as firefighters worked to contain the fire. Kennewick Fire Department and Benton County Fire District #1 were on scene and were mopping up the fire shortly after it started. The exact cause of the fire is under investigation.