Casino Fire Burns Esperanza Hills

Casino Fire Burns Esperanza Hills

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The Orange County Fire Authority reported a fire at approximately 12:15 PM on Thursday, September 17, 2015. It appeared to be north of Stonehaven/Via del Agua and east of Casino Ridge.  Orange County Fire Authority (OCFA) initially put it at six acres.  Post-burn GPS measurements put its final toll at 17 acres.  It seems the majority of the fire burned the Esperanza Hills property–land proposed for development with approvals by the County of Orange.  Hills For Everyone and others filed a lawsuit to overturn the decision.

At about 2:30 reports stated the fire was contained and essentially out.  Crews from OCFA, CalFire, Anaheim and Fullerton responded and were finishing the mop up phase.  Air tankers and helicopters dropped foscheck and water on the fire aiding in its containment.  The winds were not an issue.  California Department of Parks and Recreation is still determining if any portion of Chino Hills State Park was involved in the wildfire.

Here are the links to the various media reports from yesterday:

The most recent reports (September 18, 2015) from the Orange County Sheriff’s Department indicate a 26 year old male, Erik Virgil, was caught fleeing the scene, was apprehended and arrested for the fire.