As peak fire season begins in Southern California, eyes are turning to Orange County’s hills.
Flames began this week when a fire broke out in Trabuco Canyon Monday afternoon, forcing mandatory evacuations for some south OC residents.
As of 7 p.m. Tuesday, the flames — dubbed the Airport Fire — burned nearly 20,000 acres as it moved east towards Riverside, according to the CalFire website.
Officials have called for mandatory evacuations in parts of Rancho Santa Margarita’s Robinson Ranch. Homes in the Trabuco Highlands Homeowners Association are also under mandatory evacuation orders — along with the Trabuco Highland Apartment Complex.
Mandatory evacuations have also been issued for areas along Ortega Highway near Caspers Park.
Click here for a live map of the evacuations.
According to the latest available situation report at 7 p.m. Tuesday, the fire was 0% contained.
[Read: Orange County Firefighters Battle 8,500-Acre Wildfire in Trabuco]
Officials are also dealing with a 900-acre fire near Camp Pendleton that broke out over the weekend.
Orange County’s last major fire was in 2020, when the Silverado and Blue Ridge Fires burned over 30,000 acres and forced more than 90,000 people to evacuate.
[Read: “Like Nothing I’ve Experienced Before,” Orange County Flees from Two Fires]
So far this year, flames have been raging across the state — over 800,000 acres have burned, largely from the Park Fire in Northern California.
More land in California has already burned this year than the last two years combined.
Orange County Fire Authority Captain Greg Barta said Orange County has seen mostly smaller fires in the past few years that they’ve been able to knock down quickly.
“Fortunately, we haven’t had any major wind events to really drive those smaller fires that we’ve had here,” Barta said. “This is a good time for everybody here in Orange County to take those necessary steps to make sure you’re informed, you’re prepared and you have given your home the best chance of surviving a potential brush fire.”
While California’s wildfire season usually peaks around late summer and early fall, high temperatures allow for wildfire conditions throughout the year – especially when Santa Ana winds hit.
“As we get deeper into the fire season, when the Santa Ana winds pick up, this is a great reminder to protect your home,” said OC Fire Authority spokesman Steve Concialdi at a Monday night news conference near the Airport Fire.
“Keep combustibles away from windows and roofs. This could be a far different fire if we had Santa Ana winds,” Concialdi told reporters.
As of Tuesday afternoon, the fire was moving away from Rancho Santa Margarita and towards Riverside County.
The state is particularly vulnerable after a rainy winter season prompts the growth of brush and grass that all dries out over the summer — exacerbated by heatwaves – and can easily ignite when it meets a spark.
“There used to be this thought process that there was a fire season, which was September, October, November,” Barta said. “And now with what we’ve seen, we say the fire season is year-round. We’re seeing brush fires that occur throughout the year.”
In preparation for future fires, OCFA received a pair of new firefighting helicopters earlier this summer. They were launched in response to the Airport Fire this week.
The two helicopters, Sikorsky S-70 Firehawks, are capable of dropping 1,000 gallons of water. Their current helicopter fleet can drop about 350 gallons each.
“Those are greatly going to increase our capability to serve the residents of Orange County and our aerial firefighting capabilities,” Barta said. “It’ll be a big assistance to us on the ground.”
Preparing for Wildfires
Barta said prevention is paramount when it comes to keeping homes safe from brush fires, especially for OC residents who live near the hills and wildlands.
He recommended having bags ready for a quick evacuation and removing all dead vegetation within 100 feet of the home.
“If you have dead fuel around your home, a fire can be quite a distance away, we’re talking even miles, but due to the wind, a firebrand can be thrown onto your property,” Barta said. “If you have that dead or dying vegetation within 100 feet of your home, all of a sudden we can have a spot fire break out at your home.”
Residents can also clean out their gutters and remove all combustible debris from on and around their homes to keep them protected from flames.
Joe Tyler, fire chief and director of Cal Fire, recommended families create a wildfire action plan during a press conference last month.
He also emphasized Californians be mindful of any device or technology that can create a spark.
“Lawnmowers, weed-eaters, chainsaws, grinders, welders, tractors and trimmers can all spark wildfires if not properly maintained,” Tyler said. “They need to be used in a way that’s intended.”
For more information and preparation tips, click here.
Keep An Eye Out for Santa Ana Winds
Strong winds make fires unpredictable and more difficult to extinguish.
Barta said Santa Ana winds in the weather forecast should tip off residents that a fire could be coming.
“We’re pretty fortunate, in the last year we did not have a major brush fire,” he said. “That certainly does not mean that it couldn’t happen very soon. That’s another thing folks can do — watch the weather. When you see that we have a Santa Ana wind event coming, you know that’s a warning sign.”
Angelina Hicks is a Voice of OC Tracy Wood Reporting Fellow. Contact her at ahicks@voiceofoc.org or on Twitter @angelinahicks13.
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