Norte Fire in San Clemente Burns Hundreds of Acres, Damages or Destroys at Least Six Homes

The Norte Fire started at 11:33 a.m. Friday, Oct. 16, near Portico Del Norte and Eminencia Del Norte in San Clemente, according to CAL FIRE. Santa Ana winds pushed it north and into San Juan Capistrano within hours.

By early afternoon the fire covered 250 acres. By about 2:40 p.m. it had reached 465 acres. A Fox News report on Saturday, Oct. 17, put the burned area at more than 570 acres.

The Orange County Fire Authority confirmed that at least six homes were damaged or destroyed. The preliminary count did not say how many were lost entirely.

Flames in the neighborhoods

Aerial footage from local stations showed fire coming through rooftops near Avenida Calita, Via La Mirada and Via De Agua in San Juan Capistrano. Homes were engulfed while crews tried to keep the flames from jumping to the next house.

"We rapidly launched an assault of air and ground resources to head towards this fire," OCFA Division Fire Chief Mark Backoff said in an update on social media. "We can confirm six homes have either been damaged or destroyed by this fire. Our hearts go out to the folks that are impacted by that."

More than 500 firefighters were assigned, with additional strike teams ordered in and water-dropping aircraft working the flames. OCFA Capt. Steve Concialdi said one firefighter suffered mild heat exhaustion, was taken to a hospital and was doing well.

"We're doing everything we can to protect structures," Concialdi said.

The fire was at 0% containment Friday afternoon. No later containment figure was available as of late Saturday night.

Evacuations

Mandatory evacuation orders covered San Clemente zones SCL12 and SCL13 and San Juan Capistrano zones SJC04, SJC05 and SJC10. CAL FIRE's incident page described an "immediate threat to life" and closed the affected areas to the public.

Orange County Supervisor Katrina Foley urged residents to get out and stay out. "Please evacuate, do not stand around," she said, warning that people gathering on sidewalks to watch were putting themselves in danger.

CBS News reported that homeowners described terrifying moments as the fire spread, and that crews are also working a separate Bryson Fire elsewhere in California.

Wind and warnings

The National Weather Service recorded gusts of 69 mph in Orange County's Santiago Canyon and 45 mph at John Wayne Airport. Coastal Orange and San Diego counties were also under a heat advisory Friday, with temperatures expected in the mid-90s in some cities.

Backoff said the department saw the wind event coming and placed equipment in the area before the fire started.

Gov. Gavin Newsom had directed Cal Fire and the Governor's Office of Emergency Services on Wednesday and Thursday to pre-position firefighters, engines and aircraft, and activated the State Operations Center ahead of the expected winds. On Thursday he also declared a state of emergency in four counties, including Los Angeles and Orange, over recovery from Tropical Storm Rachel. "California is confronting these threats head-on," Newsom said.

Thousands of people statewide had their power shut off as a precaution during the wind event.

What remains open

The Santa Ana winds that drove this fire also fueled last year's deadly and destructive Palisades and Eaton fires in Los Angeles County. Orange County officials say they staged resources early this time.

Cal Fire is investigating the cause of the Norte Fire. No cause has been announced.

The number of homes lost outright, the total acreage and the containment percentage are the figures to watch as crews work the fire line and evacuation zones remain closed.