Fire, Jitters Dying Out

As a stubborn Orange County wildfire sputtered into its final hours Sunday, residents who were briefly evacuated a week ago said life was mostly back to normal.

The Sierra fire, named for the peak in the Santa Ana Mountains where it erupted before dawn Feb. 6, was 100% contained Sunday evening, officials said.

The fire scorched nearly 11,000 acres in northeastern Orange County, but no homes were damaged and nobody was seriously injured.

When the fire began, officials evacuated about 2,100 homes in Orange and Anaheim Hills. Residents were allowed to return the next day, but many remained jittery. “We still had the threat of winds,” said Ruth Camarena of Anaheim Hills, “and the smoke was really heavy.”

It will probably be five days before the blaze is officially declared over, said Capt. Stephen Miller, spokesman for the Orange County Fire Authority.

Fire crews will continue to patrol the area this week, snuffing out hotspots.

The U.S. Forest Service, which accidentally caused the fire during a controlled burn in the Cleveland National Forest, will pay for extinguishing the blaze, which had reached more than $7 million Sunday.

Although nearby residents said the Sierra fire was unnerving, some had seen worse.

Joy Burch of Orange said 1993’s Stagecoach fire burned up to her back fence and destroyed two homes in the area.

And Camarena recalled 1982’s Gypsum Canyon blaze, which engulfed more than a dozen homes and had residents in her neighborhood hosing down their wood-shingle roofs. A sudden shift in the wind was “the only thing that saved us,” she said.

Despite the risks -- and the higher homeowner insurance rates -- in the area, Camarena said, her family has never contemplated moving.

“We like the quietness. We like the wildlife coming into our backyard,” she said, recalling sightings of deer, raccoons and a mountain lion over the years.

Burch, taking a break from gardening Sunday afternoon, agreed. “I would never leave,” she said. “You just have to be on guard when the winds kick up.”

The National Weather Service said a red-flag warning for dangerous fire weather conditions would remain in effect through 6 p.m. today because of warm weather, wind and single-digit humidity.