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IRVINE (CNS) - Containment of the Silverado Fire burning in Orange County increased to 70% Friday night while the number of acres burned was adjusted to 12,591 acres due to more accurate mapping.
The fire was previously reported to be 13,390 acres, according to Cal Fire. Nine structures have been damaged, and three structures and two ``minor structures'' were destroyed in the fire.
More than 69,000 buildings were at one point threatened by the flames, but by Friday night, none were threatened.
All evacuation orders and warnings were lifted Thursday morning and some highways were reopened. Silverado Canyon Road and Santiago Canyon Road were opened Friday, according to Cal Fire.
Fire officials also said northbound Highway 241, from Alton Parkway to Highway 261, as well as southbound Highway 241 from Highway 133 to Alton Parkway, remained closed. Northbound Highway 133, from Interstate 5 to Highway 241, was also closed Friday night.
Cal Fire, which is in charge of the firefighting effort, is focusing on fortifying the positions of firefighters, cleaning up areas under control and watching for flare-ups. One helicopter was aiding firefighters on the ground with water drops Friday night, down from six on Thursday.
Orange County Fire Authority Chief Brian Fennessy said there has been no change in the condition of two firefighters who remain in hospitalized in critical condition. The two firefighters critically injured are 26 and 31 years old. Both sustained second- and third-degree burns about 12:15 p.m. Monday, one over 65% of his body and the other over half his body, Fennessy said.
Those wishing to donate to the injured firefighters can contribute to the OCPFA Fallen Firefighters Relief Fund at www.ocfirefighters.org.
The Frank R. Bowerman Landfill in Irvine was damaged in the fire, according to Orange County Waste & Recycling, which owns and operates the landfill. "OCWR staff have reported significant damage to the environmental control and stormwater infrastructure" resulting from multiple spot firesthroughout the landfill property, OCWR said in a statement Wednesday. None of the landfill's structures or heavy equipment were damaged, however, and no injuries were reported.
High winds, which handicapped firefighters when the fire broke out Monday, were much less of a factor on Wednesday and Thursday.
The repopulation Wednesday morning of parts of Irvine was a "testament to the hard work of all firefighters on the ground and in the air the have worked hard the past two days to protect life and property," according to Orange County Fire Authority's Steve Concialdi, who added that no homes have been damaged or destroyed as a result of the Silverado Fire.
At its height, 70,000 people were under evacuation orders in Irvine and another 9,500 evacuated in Lake Forest, according to the OCFA and Lake Forest officials.
The fire erupted at 6:47 a.m. Monday in the area of Santiago Canyon and Silverado Canyon roads in the Santa Ana Mountains. Late Monday, Southern California Edison told California officials that a lashing wire may have contacted its overhead primary conductor, sparking the fire. SCE sent a letter to the California Public Utilities Commission on Monday night acknowledging it had overhead electrical equipment in the area where the blaze broke out.
Full containment isn't expected until Nov. 10.