‘We Were Lucky This Time’

The blustery fire that scorched 10 acres of Upper Newport Bay this week left a black scar on the fragile wetlands, a sore reminder to biologists of just how vulnerable the state-owned sanctuary is to injury.

But the damage is not expected to have significant impact on the environment, officials said.

“It’s so, so sensitive, so susceptible to even the slightest interference,” said Loren Hays, a Fish and Wildlife biologist who toured the charred area Thursday. “We were lucky this time. I mean real lucky.”

Fire officials said the blaze is suspicious because it started in a muddy swath of marshland in the Ecological Preserve shortly after four teenagers were seen running from the area. Then the fire--whipped around by the stiff, dry Santa Ana winds that wreaked havoc on the region Wednesday--marched up a hillside toward a strand of homes on Santiago Drive and forced the voluntary evacuation of at least 40 residences.

Investigators who scoured the marshland Thursday were unable to determine the exact cause of the fire and doubted that would change.

“It’s unlikely we’ll ever be able to figure that out,” said John Blauer, a Newport Beach Fire Department spokesman. “We just can’t say for sure what happened out there.”

The 752-acre preserve is one of Southern California’s largest and most delicate coastal wetlands, known for its rich array of threatened birds, fish and sensitive plants. The marshes alone shelter such rarities as the light-footed clapper rail, a long-legged bird protected under the federal Endangered Species Act. The clapper rail relishes the worms, snails and frogs that inhabit the bay.

After hiking through the blackened site early Thursday, Hays said he was relieved not by what he saw, but by what he heard: birds calling from the sooty marsh around him.

“They were out there, still singing away,” Hays said. “That’s always a good sign. All night long, I was fearing the worst and to hear that, well, it was so nice.”

The fire wiped out several patches of coastal sage scrub, one of the most endangered vegetation types in the country, which serves as a habitat for the California gnatcatcher, biologists said. But it also destroyed acres of pesky, nonnative plants that tend to choke off the desired species, said John Scholl, manager of Upper Newport Bay Ecological Preserve.

“As is usually the case with fire, there will be some positive effects to this one,” Scholl said. “We wanted to get rid of some of those exotic plants anyway, and the fire will really help us restore the area again.”

The fire department’s semi-annual weed abatement program was also credited with keeping the flames from consuming more of the preserve, Blauer said. Last year’s El Nino rains encouraged a thick, new crop of growth just in time for the fire season, weeds that later dried out and “made for real good tinder,” he said.

Firefighters removed the weeds in the summer and again this fall, concentrating on the areas closest to homes and other structures.

“There’s no doubt in my mind that the (weed abatement) program helped prevent a real disaster,” Blauer said. “Without it, things could have looked a lot different this morning.”

Three years ago, a similar fire broke out in roughly the same area of the preserve, fueled by Santa Ana winds that threatened to send flames over the rooftops of nearby homes. That fire prompted some environmentalists to expand their education efforts on the importance--and fragile nature--of Back Bay, which they have long tried to shield from encroaching development and careless abuse.

“Natural areas are becoming so limited these days and so spread apart,” Scholl said. “We just want to protect this one because it really is a gem.”

Elsewhere in the region, wind advisories remained in effect Thursday but little damage was reported. Authorities spent the day cleaning up debris-covered freeways and righting downed power lines, including nearly 20 that fell in a Highland neighborhood because of Wednesday’s winds.

“Those poles snapped like toothpicks,” said Chip Patterson, a San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department spokesman. “It was a real headache for us.”

Winds will continue to die down through the weekend, with temperatures in the high 60s to mid-70s expected both days, said Guy Pearson, a meteorologist for WeatherData, which provides forecasts for The Times. But the Santa Anas will be back, he warned.

“There’s something brewing out there right now,” Pearson said. “By Tuesday you may be doing this all over again.”

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Lucky Break

Police are not sure what caused a blaze that charred 10 acres of Upper Newport Bay on Wednesday. The damage is not expected to have a significant effect on the environmentally sensitive area. For a time, though, the wind-whipped flames did endanger nearby homes.