Second fire scorches oil fields area

A brush fire that broke out late Wednesday off of West 19th Street in Costa Mesa was the second fire in the area in two weeks.

The cause of the fires is unknown, but fire officials said the area is known for transient camps and a place where young people smoke and ride bikes.

Although the fires are a little early for fire season ? which officially begins Wednesday ? they can serve as a reminder that fire season can be a year-round affair.

“The reality for Southern California is that the fire season basically never ends here,” Newport Beach Fire Capt. Todd Knipp said.

The Orange County Fire Authority designates the official beginning and end of fire season each year, depending on the weather and the amount of unburned vegetation.

Recent dry, warm weather and an abundance of brush growth creates the potential for brush fire, Knipp said. It comes down to whether there’s an ignition.

“We have a lot of fuel built up, and it’s just a matter of how the weather goes,” Knipp said.

Wednesday’s brush fire burned less than an acre of vegetation at the end of West 19th Street in Costa Mesa. Costa Mesa firefighters responded first at 7:30 p.m. The police helicopter helped to extinguish the fire using a water bucket, and units from the Orange County Fire Authority also assisted, according to the Costa Mesa Fire Department.

The fire was extinguished, and it did not threaten any homes or businesses.

A man believed to be a transient living in the area was treated at the scene for mild smoke inhalation. The man was questioned and released, Costa Mesa Fire Battalion Chief Scott Broussard said.

The brush area, which stretches about three miles on the border of Costa Mesa, Huntington Beach and Newport Beach is always a fire concern.

Part of the area is private land belonging to the West Newport Oil Field