The Rancho Fire that forced evacuations in Laguna Beach on Monday was caused by fireworks, investigators suspect.
The fire grew to four acres Monday afternoon before forward progress was halted and evacuation orders lifted that evening, the Orange County Register reports. No structures were damaged and no injuries were reported.
In the aftermath, a fireworks mortar was spotted on the ground, and Laguna Beach Police Chief Jeff Calvert said fireworks, which are illegal in Laguna Beach, are the suspected cause, the Register added.
Residents of the area near the fire seemed to confirm that fireworks had been detonated just a few minutes before the fire was first reported.
A neighbor named Jack told KTLA that he was doing yard work when he heard two explosions, and 10 minutes later, he spotted smoke.
Another person in the area, Roger Robleto, told the Register he also “heard a boom” in the few minutes leading up to the fire.
“It sounded like an M80. I got up, I went and checked, I saw three kids riding their e-bikes down the hill,” he told the Register.
The Los Angeles Times reports that as of Monday night, no one has been arrested in connection with the blaze.
If the Rancho Fire was indeed sparked by fireworks, it would mark the latest in a string of dangerous and sometimes deadly incidents involving pyrotechnics in recent days.
Multiple homes were burned, several people hurt and at least two dead in fires and explosions in Simi Valley and Pacoima that both involved fireworks.
