Bond fire rapidly jumps through Orange County canyons, forcing evacuations

Share:

A fire that erupted in Orange County’s canyon country quickly jumped into the nearby hillsides Thursday, whipped by Santa Ana winds and fueled by bone-dry brush that also drove three smaller fires in Riverside.

The Bond fire nearly quadrupled in size in just a few hours, exploding to about 7,200 acres by Thursday afternoon. About 25,000 residents live in a mandatory evacuation order in effect for Silverado Canyon, Modjeska Canyon, Williams Canyon, Black Star and Baker canyons and portions of Portola Hills and Foothill Ranch, the Orange County Sheriff’s Department said.

Two firefighters were injured battling the blaze, which was 0% contained. Officials with the Orange County Fire Authority said the injured firefighters had been treated by paramedics and taken to a hospital.

Multiple structures may have been damaged by the blaze.

“We are in the process of verifying the number involved and the extent of the damage,” the Orange County Fire Authority wrote on Twitter.

The blazes come as the National Weather Service issued red flag warnings for a “particularly dangerous” combination of strong winds and low humidity levels. Across Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino counties and other areas in Southern California, warnings for fire weather and strong winds remain in effect through at least Saturday.

In Orange and southwestern San Bernardino counties, gusts were expected to reach up to 50 mph. Riverside and San Diego counties could see gusts up to 70 mph. The red flag warnings prompted Southern California Edison to initiate a public safety power shut-off late Wednesday.