Lightning Sets Fire to Brush, Ignites the Sky

A spectacular lightning show passed through south Orange County on Friday evening, starting several minor brush fires and causing residents to light up fire department phone lines.

Between 3:55 and 7:45 p.m., firefighters recorded at least 15 lightning strikes, several of which started fires of less than an acre each, said Capt. Scott Brown, spokesman for the Orange County Fire Authority. Lightning downed a tree and singed brush off Laguna Canyon Road in Laguna Beach and south of Irvine near Bonita Canyon and Newport Coast drives.

But only a trace of rain accompanied the storm, prompting fire officials to summon many off-duty firefighters in south Orange County to work and to station a standby strike team in Aliso Viejo “just in case,” Brown said.

“They’re dry lighting strikes,” he said. “That’s why we’re in a higher stage of vigilance. . . . We just want to make sure we check out every call.”

Residents clogged the Fire Authority’s phone lines, many reporting that lightning had struck nearby homes. But firefighters were not able to confirm that the lightning had threatened any structures. No injuries were reported.

The storm, which meteorologists called a summer monsoonal thunderstorm, probably originated in the deserts of New Mexico or Arizona and then was pushed by strong winds to the valleys of Southern California.

“Typically, the storms stay away from the coast,” said Robb Kaczmarek, meteorologist for WeatherData, which provides weather information for The Times. “But once in a while, they kind of drift over to coastal regions.”

The thunderstorm ended after sunset.

“The sun is what feeds the storm,” Kaczmarek said.

Partly cloudy skies and high temperatures in the upper 80s to near 90s are expected over the weekend, with fewer clouds on Sunday.