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This story is no longer being updated. Follow our coverage of the Silverado Fire for Wednesday, Oct. 28 >>
This post was late updated at 6 p.m.
Follow these official sources for latest updates after-hours:
The Silverado Fire continues to burn a day after it erupted, quickly spreading in the hills near Irvine, prompting more than 75,000 people to evacuate and critically injuring two firefighters.
The two firefighters were burned over at least half their bodies and were intubated Monday. Orange County Fire Chief Brian Fennesy described them as "gravely injured."
Three other firefighters have sustained minor injuries.
The fire started at 6:47 a.m. in the area of Santiago Canyon Road and Silverado Canyon Road, according to a post from the city of Irvine.
The area has been under a red flag warning through at least 6 p.m. today because of strong, dry Santa Ana winds.
At 4 p.m., the O.C. Fire Authority said they were continuing air operations to douse the flames with fire retardant, giving crews a chance "completely extinguish the fire," tweeting that firefighters would "continue to battle the flames throghout the night."
THE BASICS
BACKGROUND
The area that's burning last burned in the Santiago Fire back in 2007.
That fire consumed 28,000 acres and destroyed 42 structures. Fuel is lighter this time around because of the previous fire, but there are far more homes threatened as developments have expanded.
CAUSE
Nothing is confirmed yet, but Southern California Edison has notified the state that it's power line may have sparked the fire.
The report says "it appears that a lashing wire that was attached to an underbuilt telecommunication line may have contact SCE’s overhead primary conductor which may have resulted in the ignition of the fire."
An internal investigation at SCE is ongoing, according to the report.
EVACUATIONS
Note: Some areas of Irvine are now being re-populated. Find details via this map.
Mandatory:
Check the Orange County Emergency Public Information Map to see if you may be in an evacuation zone.
Warnings:
SCHOOL CLOSURES
All schools in the Irvine Unified and Tustin Unified school districts are closed today, according to Irvine city officials. Families were urged to monitor their phones and emails for updates and visit iusd.org and tustin.k12.ca.us for more information.
EVACUATION CENTERS
*For the most up-to-date information on evacuations, the Orange County Sheriff's Department website has an emergency map.
Note: Officials say the evacuation centers allow pets, but residents also have the option of dropping off their pets at Irvine Animal Care Center.
ROAD CLOSURES
In addition, the Southern Open Space Preserve, which includes Bommer Canyon, Quail Hill, and Shady Canyon trails, is closed.
HOW DOES THIS IMPACT VOTING?
Four ballot drop boxes in Orange County have been closed, as they happen to be inside the evacuation zones for both the Silverado and Blue Ridge Fires.
Officals say voters should utilize alternate options for returning their ballots.
All ballots in the affected drop boxes have been retrieved and secured by Registrar of Voters’ Ballot Collection Teams under escort by the Orange County Sheriff’s Department.
You can find updated ballot dropbox info here.
HOW WE’RE REPORTING ON THIS
This is a developing story. We fact-check everything and rely only on information from credible sources (think fire, police, government officials and reporters on the ground). Sometimes, however, we make mistakes and/or initial reports turn out to be wrong. In all cases, we strive to bring you the most accurate information in real time and will update this story as new information becomes available.
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