Massive Wildfire Threatening Homes; Forcing Evacuations In Laguna Beach

LAGUNA BEACH (CBSLA) – A large brush fire erupted in Laguna Beach early Thursday morning amid powerful Santa Ana winds and hot temperatures, forcing hundreds of evacuations.

The Emerald Bay Fire was first reported at 4:09 a.m., according to the Orange County Fire Authority. Video from Sky2 showed a wall of flames on the ridgeline above Emerald Bay, which is a gated community with dozens of large, multimillion-dollar homes.

Mandatory evacuation orders were issued for the Emerald Bay, Irvine Cove and the North Coast communities, according to Laguna Beach police. An evacuation warning was in place for North Laguna, which included all residents north of Broadway.

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