175-acre Laguna Beach brush fire is 65% contained, firefighters say

A brush fire that temporarily displaced thousands of Laguna Beach and Aliso Viejo residents over the weekend has burned 175 acres and was 65% contained as of Tuesday morning, fire officials said.

All Laguna Beach residents who were evacuated Saturday because of the blaze were permitted to return to their homes Sunday evening. Initially, 1,500 residents were evacuated from the Top of the World and Old Top of the World neighborhoods.

The Aliso fire, which broke out at about 1:15 p.m. Saturday below Top of the World and behind Soka University in Aliso Viejo, also forced the evacuation of more than 2,000 homes in Aliso Viejo. However, that order was lifted at 9 p.m. Saturday after authorities determined the fire was no longer a threat to those homes.

At one point Saturday, the fire was reported to have burned 250 acres, but that was downgraded to 120 at around 8:40 p.m. after an aerial survey of the burn area gave firefighters a more accurate count, officials said. The figure was increased to 200 in an Orange County Fire Authority tweet at 12:05 a.m. Sunday, but it changed again to 150 later Sunday morning. By late Monday, the fire had burned 175 acres.

Fire officials upgraded the containment figure to 65% late Monday from 55% earlier in the day and 40% on Sunday night.

The cause of the fire is unclear.

As firefighting conditions improved during the weekend, Laguna Beach residents on the west side of Alta Laguna Boulevard were permitted to return to their homes Sunday morning. The rest of the evacuation order was lifted at 6 p.m., officials said.

The Laguna Beach Community & Susi Q Center was established as an evacuation shelter.

Fire Authority Capt. Tony Bommarito said Sunday’s weather conditions were favorable for firefighters.

“Things are looking good,” he said. “Whenever we don’t have any wind, it’s going to be in our favor. We try to get as much done as we can during those times.”

He said fire crews got a break Saturday night as erratic winds that had whipped flames through thick brush that hadn’t burned in more than 100 years died down. Bommarito said firefighters used that to their advantage overnight as hand crews cut about a mile of fire line in an effort to contain the blaze.

Officials said 525 firefighters from several agencies, along with two helicopters, are working to combat the fire.

Three firefighters have suffered non-life-threatening injuries, authorities said. The OCFA said one of them was rescued by helicopter Sunday.

No structural damage has been reported, officials said.

The fire caused Top of the World Elementary School to be closed Monday, and Costa Mesa High School’s prom scheduled for Saturday night at Soka University was postponed.

The elementary school is expected to reopen Tuesday. Costa Mesa High’s prom has been rescheduled for Saturday at Soka.

Investigators asked that anyone with information about the cause of the fire call (800) 222-TIPS (8477).

KTLA and the Los Angeles Times contributed to this report.

hannah.fry@latimes.com

Twitter: @HannahFryTCN

UPDATES:

8 a.m. June 5: This article was updated with the fire at 175 acres and 65% contained.

2:30 p.m. June 4: This article was updated with new schedule information for Top of the World Elementary School and Costa Mesa High School’s prom .

7:35 a.m. June 4: This article was updated with the fire at 55% containment.

7:25 a.m. June 4: This article was updated with Top of the World Elementary School being closed Monday.

7:15 a.m. June 4: This article was updated with a new number of firefighters injured and the phone number for tips on the cause of the fire.

6:45 p.m. June 3: This article was updated with the rest of the Laguna Beach evacuation orders being lifted, plus additional details and comments.

1:05 p.m. June 3: This article was updated with a new number of residents still under evacuation orders.

10:10 a.m. June 3: This article was updated throughout.

This article was originally published at 9:25 a.m. June 3.