A vegetation fire was burning Wednesday afternoon near the Ortega Highway in south Orange County, burning some 450 acres and forcing closure of part of the highway, fire officials said.
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The Gibby fire was reported just after 2 p.m. and grew to 150 acres within an hour, according to the Orange County Fire Authority. Watch Duty, a nonprofit that monitors wildfires in the region, said the fire had grown to roughly 450 acres by 3:30 p.m.
Crews were attacking the fire from the ground and air using dozers, a helicopter and a fixed-wing aircraft.
“No homes are currently threatened. Please continue to avoid the area,” the OCFA said in a social media post.
Watch Duty reported that the blaze was burning at a moderate to rapisd rate of spread, and said the community of Rancho Carillo and some commercial structures were threatened.
Since the fire was burning close to the Riverside County line, fire officials there were included in the response, Watch Duty ssid.
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This is a developing story. Please check back later for updates.