Coastal fire in Orange County burning about 200 acres and 2 dozen homes.
An upscale Laguna Niguel subdivision was burned in an intense brush fire Wednesday evening, spanning almost 200 acres, burning 20 homes and forcing evacuations. According to reports, cold winds coming from the Pacific Ocean pushed the fire up a rugged canyon, sending and sparking embers on to the homes in the Coronado Pointe area.
Orange County Fire Authority Chief Brian Fennessy said that an estimated 20 homes and more had been destroyed during a Wednesday night news conference. The fire department are still apprehensive as winds have not yet died down, as the latest report this morning still has unknown containment status. The destruction underscored the year-round danger of fires in Southern California, even in cool conditions. Unlike most wildfires in the Southern California region, the Coastal fire was fanned not by typical Santa Ana winds from the desert but by strong gusts coming from the Pacific Ocean.