`Embers were everywhere': 20 houses burned, 11 damaged; 15% containment level
By Nathaniel Percy, Josh Cain, Eric Licas, Tess Sheets and Caitlin Antonios
A total of 20 homes were destroyed and 11 damaged in a brush fire that devastated a ridgetop community in Laguna Niguel, fire officials announced Thursday afternoon, as crews continued to put out hot spots and establish containment lines.
Firefighters trudging through difficult terrain around the Coronado Pointe neighborhood of large, multimillion-dollar houses caught a break: Winds were much calmer than when the fire erupted on Wednesday.
Two firefighters were injured while battling the blaze, officials said, but no details were disclosed. They are expected to be OK.
Evacuation orders for about 900 homes will be extended to today.
Deputies have been combing the neighborhood, sheriff's Capt. Virgil Asuncion said, to provide security and deter any attempted burglaries.
As of 5 p.m. Thursday, the 200-acre fire was 15% contained.
The blaze was reported just before 2:45 p.m. Wednesday in Aliso Woods Canyon and, pushed by sharp winds from the Pacific Ocean, quickly moved up dry, steep terrain. When firefighters arrived, the blaze had consumed about an acre.
Just two hours later, flames had crossed an access road and moved toward homes, and sparks ignited them. By 7:30 p.m., the blaze had swept through 20 houses, burning some to the ground and charring the interiors of others.
The inferno was undeterred by recent work to clear brush from 100 yards around the houses.
The hilltop neighborhood of Coronado Pointe along the eastern slope of Aliso Summit, just west of Pacific Island Drive, overlooks Aliso Creek. It’s from the bottom of that valley that the Coastal fire swept up a steep hillside on Wednesday. As the blaze crested the hill, embers fell like rain over the area.
Richard Vogel, 77, watched as the flames advanced from about a quarter-mile below his house that evening. After about a minute, the dry brush of the hillside exploded, sending columns of flame surging upward. At that point, he knew his home of 30 years stood no chance against the fire’s onslaught.
“There was so much wind. The air got real cold. The fire was still about 1000 feet away but, sure enough, some embers were falling,” Vogel said. “Within 30 seconds we knew.”
Vogel and his wife, Sandy, had grabbed some items from inside the house but they hadn’t finished collecting their valuables by the time firefighters told them they had seconds to leave. When they were allowed back to the neighborhood on Thursday, their house was gutted and the walls had caved in. From their driveway — now slick with water, ash, mud and other debris — they could see directly into what used to be the center of their home.
“(We saved) nothing that we should have saved,” said Vogel, founder of a solar installation company. “Things we inherited from grandparents and great-grandparents. But we’re lucky. My wife had burn holes in her sweater. Embers were everywhere.”
Coronado Pointe bore the brunt of the Coastal fire. Firefighters were still hosing down smoldering homes a day after it erupted. Workers were jackhammering and drilling into sidewalks and driveways.
Homeowners like Vogel stood in shock amid all that
Of the 20 homes that were destroyed in Wednesday’s fire, 16 were on Coronado Pointe, which represents more than 40% of the homes on that street. Homes that were 20% or more in flames were considered inextinguishable. 11 other homes were damaged. activity Thursday. Some of them were seeing their destroyed homes for the first time.
Lynn Morey, 56, lives across the street from Vogel. Her home also was gutted. The garage door of what used to be her house collapsed, and the roof crushed one of their cars inside. Morey clutched the one item firefighters were able to pull from her home:
A framed picture of her and her husband Keith’s wedding.
“This is all I have,” she said.
The cause of the fire is under investigation. But Southern California Edison issued a brief incident report “out of an abundance of caution,” saying, “Our information reflects circuit activity occurring close in time to the reported time of the fire. Our investigation is ongoing.”
A spokesman for the utility provided no context for it. The report was sent to the California Public Utilities Commission, spokesman David Song said, but it wasn’t immediately clear if an investigation has been initiated.
Some of California’s worst fires were caused by power lines damaged by winds, including the 2018 Camp fire that devastated Paradise and other Northern California communities.
A temporary shelter remained open Thursday at Crown Valley Community Center on Crown Valley Parkway. The Mission Viejo Animal Services shelter helped with pet evacuations.
Shawn Shafi came to the Crown Valley shelter Thursday morning with his wife and their dog Brawny to get food after staying overnight at their daughterin-law’s house in Newport Beach. They were ordered to evacuate Wednesday afternoon from their home in the enclave of Palmilla, taking with them photos, home videos and documents.
While the couple’s home was spared, Shafi said he has neighbor friends who weren’t so lucky. One, whose home Shafi knew had burned, wasn’t picking up the phone.
As Shafi ate chicken and potatoes, he jumped up when he recognized that friend on the TV news. She was crying amid the rubble that was once her home.
“I am very calm in a situation like this,” Shafi said. “To see people suffering, that’s what gets to me.”
Evacuation warnings in Laguna Beach were lifted late Wednesday as the fire continued moving away from that city.
In Laguna Niguel, mandatory evacuation orders were in place for areas north of Flying Cloud Drive and Pacific Island Drive, to
Highlands Avenue and Pacific Island Drive, the Orange County Fire Authority said.
Voluntary evacuation warnings were in place for areas south of Flying Cloud and Pacific Island to Crown Valley Parkway.
Though winds had calmed on Thursday, they were expected to die down further after 8 p.m., said National Weather Service forecaster Brandt Maxwell. Today’s temperatures along the coast should be in the upper 70s with humidity at 25%, he said.
The Fire Authority has received help from the Laguna Beach Fire Department as well as other city fire agencies in Orange County, said TJ McGovern, assistant chief of field operations for the authority. Cal Fire has also provided air and ground resources.
Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Thursday morning that funding from the Federal Emergency Management Agency was granted to help with fighting the Coastal fire. The funds will allow responding agencies to apply for 75% reimbursement of eligible fire-suppression costs.