Wildfire races through SoCal as structures threatened by wind-fueled blaze

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A wildfire in Orange County exploded in size Friday, forcing evacuation orders as it threatened structures, growing to 250 acres in a matter of minutes.

The Norte Fire broke out around 11:30 a.m. in the San Clemente area and quickly grew to at least 50 acres by around noon, according to the Orange County Fire Authority and CalFire.

“The fire is at 50 acres at this time. Structures are threatened. Crews are aggressively attacking the fire from the ground and air. Please continue to avoid the area,” Cal Fire wrote in a 12:30 p.m. update.

In the next hour, the fire kept growing, blowing up to 250 acres by 1:12 p.m. The fire was 0% contained as of that update.

Evacuation orders have been issued for San Juan Zones 4, 5, and 10 as well as San Clemente Zones 12 and 13.

Heat, strong winds and dry conditions were fueling the blaze as firefighters and aerial support worked to stop its spread.

Smoke from the fire prompted the Capistrano Unified School District to urge students to stay indoors due to the smoke.

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San Clemente Mayor Rick Loeffler told KTLA the city had been making preparations for a fire.

“We actually instituted a goat program about a year ago, a pilot program to have goats start clearing our hillsides,” he said.

“The county supplied a pumpkin tank at the top of our ridge, which allows helicopters to come in and resupply their water quickly.”

The fire is one of several scorching SoCal right now, as fire officials are also dealing with the Bryson Fire in Malibu, the Henderson Fire near Camp Pendleton, and the Peak Fire in Azusa.

Ongoing Red Flag Warnings in effect across much of Los Angeles and Ventura counties have signalled ideal conditions for fires to break out.

Officials advise those in the community to avoid the area of the fire. The cause of the fire is under investigation.