County Brush Fires Through the Years

Although a pair of wildfires burned nearly 10,000 acres two weeks ago, the 1998 fire season in Orange County has not been the nuisance some officials feared, and--so far--nowhere near as bad as past years. “We’ve actually had a very quiet fire season,” said Capt. Scott Brown, spokesman for the Orange County Fire Authority. But danger remains. There’s still plenty of extra vegetation from El Nino-related storms that could burn. And if La Nina shows up--the sister weather phenomenon that’s expected to bring drier-than-normal conditions this winter--Orange County may not get the rainfall it needs and fire season may continue indefinitely, Brown said. Then again, the rains could yet arrive and snuff the danger. “It’s still too early to tell,” Brown said. “What ends up shaking out will probably be somewhere in the middle. It just underscores what an important role weather plays.” A look at major brush fires in Orange County during the past 50 years:

Firefighter Terry Teal battles the Laguna fire, which engulfed more than 300 homes in Laguna Beach in October 1993. The firestorm cut a swath from just south of the San Diego Freeway to the Pacific Ocean.

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Fire Date Acres Laguna Oct. 1993 16,000 Boat Dec. 1979 550 Carbon Nov. 1980 8,260 Carbon June 1990 6,600 Carbon June 1994 730 Carbon Aug. 1998 900 Shell Aug. 1985 1,440 Yorba July 1990 6,927 Owl Oct. 1980 14,873 Coal Canyon 1984 500 Green River July 1985 740 Stagecoach Oct. 1993 750 Gypsum Oct. 1982 16,800 Baker Oct. 1997 6,317 Grundy Dec. 1975 1,700 Modjeska Jan. 1984 1,101 Santiago Sept. 1997 325 Live Oak Aug. 1994 180 Silverado Sept. 1987 7,100 Trabuco Sept. 1970 3,268 Indian Nov. 1980 28,200 Ortega Oct. 1993 22,000 Ortega 1979 750 Ortega Sept. 1988 2,384 Ridgeline June 1994 750 San Clemente Jan. 1976 2,400 Soquel Oct. 1978 5,600 Paseo Grande Oct. 1967 48,639 Green River Nov. 1948 45,000 Niguel 1979 200 Stewart Dec. 1958 66,300 Talega 1959 3,000 Santiago Canyon Aug. 1998 8,800

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Source: Orange County Fire Authority

Graphics reporting by BRADY MacDONALD / Los Angeles Times