Is Mission Viejo subject to fire danger like the current ones? (Santa Ana: homes, neighborhoods)

[dls]

1. Is Mission Viejo subject to fire danger like the current ones?

2. Are any other parts of O.C. fairly safe from devastating fires
regardless of how bad the Santa Anas blow? If so, which ones.

Thank you.

[missionhome]

Mission Viejo is a fairly safe city from wildfires. I live here, and we could see the flames above Portola Hills and Foothill Ranch yesterday from the top of our street. Today the flames have moved back into the canyons. It was about 4 miles away. None the less I have always rest assured that the fire could never burn through Mission Viejo which has almost no brush fuel that fires like so much and is a fairly developed city. To get to me, the fire would have to burn through four miles of solid homes and businesses. Many homes have fire retardant roofs, stucco, etc..

Still, there are border neighborhoods in Mission Viejo that I would watch out for due to fire danger. The eastern border of the city is entirely bordered by Oneil Regional Park. This brush canyon has caught on fire before, but was put out quickly. It is only about one half mile wide and on the other side is development making it easy to fight and giving the fire not much time to gain momentum. Particular neighborhoods up against the brush are Painted Trails, Stoneridge, a small portion of Pacific Hills, Quail Run, Calafia, Carl Hankey, and the Coronado neighborhood around Capistrano Valley High. Still, almost all these neighborhoods have flame retardant roofs and the OC Fire Authority is probably one of the best in the world. The Santiago fire has only claimed nine homes back in rural Santiago and Majeska Canyons, and completly saved the neighborhoods of Foothill Ranch and Portola Hills in Lake Forest.

Certain areas of Mission Viejo are really far from brush. The closer you are to the 5 freeway and the more homes between you and this canyon the more safe you are. Still, there is a very low chance that Mission Viejo will ever burn. Neighborhoods like Ladera Ranch, Foothill Ranch, Portola Hills, Las Flores, Coto de Caza, Talega, etc... were all built surrounded by wilderness and brush. These neighborhoods and cities are like islands in which fire makes them much riskier.

In response to your second question, areas like Anaheim (not the hills), Santa Ana, the beach communites like Dana Point, Huntington Beach, Seal Beach, areas like Fountain Valley, and any area far from brush will probably never have a forest fire threaten them.

Do not be afraid to move to CA due to fires. If you buy a home far from brush and not in an outlying community you will be fine. Fires are a part of life here, as all of us are undergoing horrible air quality right now, are locked inside, and getting our version of snow (ash). Don't worry!

[A Proud American]

Originally Posted by dls

Are any other parts of O.C. fairly safe from devastating fires

All housing developments in Southern California are fairly safe from devastating fires.

Every couple years there is a big scare and some sort of mass evacuation. Every couple years the media runs footage of flaming brush nonstop for about a week and tries to convince everyone else in the US that the whole state is on fire and we're all gonna die. But at the end of the day, MAYBE a few hundred homes out of several million are actually harmed, and MAYBE a few dozen guys are injured or killed fighting the fires. The numbers are on your side.

If you're still worried, follow the previous poster's advice, and avoid canyons, foothills, wilderness areas, etc. But keep in mind that you are sacrificing some very pretty views that way.

[dls]

Thanks so much for your really comprehensive answer missionhome.
That's way more than I expected and great info; just what I was looking for.
Now we know where to look.
(And thanks to the other responder, too.)

[missionhome]

Glad to help you. I know Mission Viejo best, and south Orange County very well so if you have any other questions on the area I'm glad to help. If you have kids, Mission Viejo is a great family neighborhood