Silverado Fire: Blaze Near Irvine Grows To More Than 12,000 Acres; Containment At 5%

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This post was late updated at 6 p.m.

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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.

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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

Acreage: 12,600
Containment: 5%
Structures threatened: 70,000 homes in Irvine and8000 homes in Lake Forest are in evacuation zones
Structures destroyed: None
Resources deployed: 750+ firefighters

BACKGROUND

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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."

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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:

All residences from Irvine Boulevard south to Trabuco Road and from Jeffrey Road east to Portola High School
Communities in the city of Lake Forest, Baker Ranch and Foothill Ranch
Residents in Modjeska Canyon

Check the Orange County Emergency Public Information Map to see if you may be in an evacuation zone.

Warnings:

Residents in Mission Viejo should be prepared to evacuate:
- El Toro Road to the north
- Marguerite Parkway to the east
- Upper Oso Reservoir to the east
- Los Alisos Boulevard to the south
Silverado, Modjeska, Trabuco canyons along Live Oak Canyon

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.

University High School: 4771 Campus Dr
Woodbridge High School: 2 Meadowbrook
Las Lomas Community Center: 10 Federation Way
Turtle Rock Community Center: 1 Sunnyhill, 92603
University Community Center: 1 Beech Tree Lane
Quail Hill Community Center: 35 Shady Canyon Dr
Los Olivos Community Center: 101 Alfonso
Harvard Community Center: 14701 Harvard
Rancho Senior Center: 3 Ethel Coplen Way
Newport Coast Community Center: 6401 San Joaquin Hills Rd., Newport Beach, CA 92657
Village Church of Irvine at 77 Post

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

SR 241 from Santiago to the 133
Northbound/Southbound Interstate 5 connector to northbound 133
Northbound 133 between the 5 and 241
Northbound 133 connector to northbound 241
Southbound 133 between the 241 and 5
Portolla from 241 to Jamboree
Northbound 241 fully closed from Oso Pkwy to SR 91
Southbound 241 between SR-91 and Lake Forest Drive
Northbound 261 between Irvine Boulevard and 241/Santiago Canyon Road
Southbound 261 between 241/Santiago Canyon Rd and Irvine Blvd
Santiago Canyon Road from Cooks to the 241
Irvine Boulevard from Alton to Sand Canyon
All roadways north of Irvine Boulevard remain closed
Great Park Boulevard east of Sand Canyon

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.

FIRE RESOURCES

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Silverado Fire: Blaze Near Irvine Grows To More Than 12,000 Acres; Containment At 5%