Photos show efforts to mitigate Laguna Beach brush fire that forced hasty evacuations

An early morning wind-driven fire burns in the hills above Emerald Bay and Irvine Cove in Laguna Beach on Thursday, February 10, 2022.Photo by Mark Rightmire/MediaNews Group/Orange County Register via Getty Images

• Fire crews battled an unusual winter brush fire near Laguna Beach on Thursday.
• The blaze threatened multimillion dollar homes in two affluent Southern California communities.

A rare winter brush fire fueled by unseasonable heat and blustering winds erupted near Laguna Beach on Thursday morning, prompting hasty evacuations as firefighters worked to mitigate the flames.

The Emerald Fire first emerged early Thursday morning between Laguna Beach and Emerald Bay along the Coast Highway. The blaze forced members of two affluent Orange County communities to desert their homes in a rush.

Around 4:00 a.m., several Orange County sheriff's deputies hastily woke sleeping residents in nearby neighborhoods to alert them to the fire, according to The Los Angeles Times.

As of Thursday afternoon, the fire had swept through 145 acres, but the Orange County Fire Authority said the blaze appeared to be manageable by mid-afternoon, USA Today reported.