Norte Fire grows to 570 acres with zero containment as homes burn in Orange County

The Norte Fire in Orange County grew to 570 acres by Friday evening with zero per cent containment after sparking around noon near neighbourhoods in San Clemente and San Juan Capistrano, the Orange County Fire Authority said.

Six homes have been destroyed or damaged, and two firefighters suffered “significant” injuries but are stable in area hospitals, fire officials told CNN. Evacuation orders cover roughly 4,600 homes and 16,000 people, with Deputy Incident Commander Battalion Chief Mike Yeun saying crews will hold “evacuations remaining throughout the night”.

“A majority of the fire has been knocked down,” Orange County Fire Authority spokesperson Steve Concialdi said, but warned conditions remained volatile with winds “still blowing pretty strong”. Crews’ objective is “keeping the fire within its current footprint”, Chief TJ McGovern said, and officials cautioned they would “be here for a number of days” guarding against ember-driven flare-ups. Gulf News corroborates the 570-acre, zero-containment figures from CAL FIRE.

The fire is one of several burning across Southern California amid fierce Santa Ana winds. The Bryson Fire in Malibu has burned roughly 150 acres and is 17 per cent contained, with more than 100 structures threatened, while the Henderson Fire near Camp Pendleton has burned more than 2,000 acres, according to CAL FIRE, CNN reported.