Anaheim Hills Fire Update

This morning the News Wire is monitoring an brush fire that broke out around 10 p.m. Tuesday near the 241 Windy Ridge Toll Plaza in the Anaheim Hills area, prompting the California Highway Patrol to close an portion of the 241 tollway.

The fire has burnt 60-acres and according to the Orange County Fire Authority.

UPDATE 3:24 p.m.: The fire is expected to be 90% contained by 6 p.m.

No homes have been damaged and no evacuations have been ordered.

UPDATE 6:47 a.m.: Irvine Regional Park will be closed today as it is now the incident command center for the fire.

Early in the firefight flames were quickly being spread by steady 32-mph winds, but around 1 a.m. an break came for firefighters and residents as the winds backed off and shifted the flames back to where it burnt earlier.

Early this morning OCFA public information officer Greg McKeown tells the News Wire there are at least 120 firefighters on scene, both from the OCFA and Anaheim Fire Department.

Though equipped with nighttime firefighting capabilities all OCFA firefighting aircraft must remain grounded overnight due to an ongoing union dispute with management over how to handle nighttime aircraft firefights, until then all aircraft must cease operations 30-minutes after sunset and can resume operations 30-minutes before sunrise.

The good news for now, as of early this morning it does not appear any flames are showing, the southbound 241 has reopened and the CHP is preparing to reopen the northbound 241, which has been used as an staging ground for firefighters.

UPDATE 6:18 a.m.: The northbound 241 has reopened.

The fear today is later this morning winds are suppose to pick up, peaking at 8 a.m.

An high wind warning has been issued for Los Angeles and Ventura Counties has been issued until 3 p.m., and an Red Flag warning has been issued for the Santa Ana Mountains, where this fire is currently burning.

During an moderate wind event winds in the Anaheim Hills can reach up to 50-mph.

Firefighters are cautiously optimistic they will be able to get the upper-hand on this brush fire before winds kick up.

As we have experienced over the last year an fire seemingly laying down can quickly roar back to life by the stroke of wind, devastatingly illustrated last May during the Jesusita Fire in Santa Barbara.

With that said, though flames have laid down McKeown advises residents living near the 241 to monitor media reports and get things together in case they need to evacuate.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation, however McKeown notes this fire did not have multiple ignition points.