The Norte fire was at 60% containment as of Sunday evening, Oct. 18, fire officials said, edging up from 50% earlier in the day and marking significant progress since 25% on Saturday night.
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A total of 467 firefighters remained assigned to the fire, working to strengthen containment lines and extinguish hot spots, the Orange County Fire Authority said Sunday morning.
Firefighters also plan to remain at the fire in San Clemente and San Juan Capistrano for several days to make sure the flames stay down and to prevent rekindling, they said, after the blaze destroyed or damaged seven homes.
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“We’re going to be here for a number of days,” OCFA Capt. Steve Concialdi said. “We don’t want those embers to catch a palm tree or some vegetation in another area or next to homes.”
Containment is the area beyond which the fire is not expected to spread.
All evacuation orders for San Clemente and San Juan Capistrano were lifted Saturday evening as firefighters continued battling the fire, which remained at 570 acres as of Sunday evening.
Residents affected by the wildfire were allowed to return to their homes beginning at 6 p.m. Saturday.
Via La Mirada in San Juan Capistrano – where four homes were damaged or destroyed – remained closed to vehicle traffic north of Esperanza to allow OCFA emergency vehicles to continue working. The burn scar remained closed until further notice because it was still considered an active fire hazard area.
See a map of the burn scar here
The Norte Fire broke out shortly after 11:30 a.m. Friday in the area of Portico Del Norte, according to the OCFA. Driven by strong Santa Ana winds, it grew to 250 acres within an hour. By evening, it was at 570 acres.
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Some 6,000 homes and 16,000 residents were initially under evacuation orders, said Orange County Sheriff’s Capt. Justin Chevalier, the chief of police services for San Clemente.
Crews battled the blaze on the ground and with water-dropping aircraft, with additional strike teams summoned as the fire grew rapidly.
OCFA officials initially said six homes were damaged or destroyed in the fire, but bumped up that number to seven on Saturday evening as the assessments continued.
There was, at least, some comforting news amid the losses. OCFA officials posted a photo of a large safe buried in ashes that firefighters were able to recover from the wreckage of one home. The contents were intact.
“While it is difficult to comprehend the magnitude of this homeowner’s loss, recovering these priceless family heirlooms meant the world to her,” OCFA posted on X.
Yesterday, as containment grew and families began returning home, an OCFA strike team helped a resident whose home was destroyed in the first hours of the fire.
In a moment of indescribable devastation for a member of our community, our firefighters’ role shifted from >>> pic.twitter.com/OcG0VupzuS— OCFA (@OCFireAuthority) October 18, 2026
In addition to dousing the fire, increasing containment and keeping an eye on stray embers, firefighters plan to stick around to repair areas disturbed by battling the blaze, to help reduce erosion, the OCFA said.
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The cause of the fire is under investigation.
All evacuations lifted as Norte fire in south OC at 25% containment
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