Orange County residents were affected last week as a fire broke out in Laguna Beach on July 7. Although it was quickly contained, homeowners near Rancho Laguna Road were briefly evacuated.
The cause of the fire, suspected to be fireworks, and the subsequent arrest of a 13-year-old boy raised concerns over improper firework usage and potential hazards to nearby communities.
The event in Laguna coincided with a recent tragedy in Buena Park involving the death of 8-year-old Jasmine Nguyen, which was also related to firework usage.
On July 4, the Laguna Beach Police Department stated in an Instagram post that, “all fireworks are illegal in the city of Laguna Beach.”
The post further specified that fireworks deemed, “‘safe and sane’ such as sparklers, fountains, etc.” are also illegal. People found to be acting against these laws are punishable with misdemeanors and fines, the post advises.
In Irvine, fireworks are also banned. This is true in most Orange County cities, except Stanton, Buena Park, Santa Ana, Costa Mesa and Garden Grove. In these cities, users must be over the age of 16 and are restricted to state-approved fireworks.
One nearby resident expressed concern over potential fire insurance bills.
“Most of us are now relegated in the state insurance plan, which triples our fire insurance,” Laguna Beach resident Mark Vuille told New University.
However, he maintained that the local government’s competence has allowed for a safe and efficient recovery.
“The city puts a s***load of money towards taxes and to the infrastructure of fire suppression,” Vuille said.
Shauna, one woman staying with her family near the site where the fires broke out, exhibited that vacationers were also threatened by the fires.
“[We’re] down the hill…we just saw a bunch of smoke, the helicopters and airplanes,” Shauna told New University.
She described how she and her family thought they might need to evacuate.
“We were kind of just monitoring the … fire watch and all that, and making sure that we didn’t have to go pack up,” she said.
Other residents were displeased at the suspected conduct of the arrested individual.
Laguna resident Konrad App lives in an area heavily impacted by the fire and containment efforts. He saw police and heard sirens going through his neighborhood and described his experience seeing smoke from his intersection.
App described seeing a video that surfaced of someone shooting off fireworks in the affected area and said the situation was handled well by city authorities and law enforcement.
“I think, you know, presenting a scary sentence in front of him… and ending up with, you know, something on his record, I think that is significant… It’s great that they found him,” App told New University.
Other residents had different opinions on the child’s possible involvement. Vuille said he believes the suspect had fallen into a position of misfortune.
“I’m lucky I wasn’t in his shoes. But, you know, you get kids, summertime, Fourth of July. S**t’s going to happen,” he said.
Vuille recounted being impressed by what he heard about the conduct of the suspect.
“From what the rumor is around town … he immediately confessed to his crime. And you know, kids are going to have problems. But nobody’s hurt,” Vuille said.
Eric Kude, assistant supervisor for fire safety at UC Irvine, and his team are responsible for checking and maintaining various equipment and systems around campus. He provided details on the proper handling and care of fireworks.
“Basically, common sense is a big thing,” Kude told New University. “Any time you’re playing with safe [and] hopefully not illegal fireworks, a bucket of water or a fire extinguisher is always, you know, should be kept handy.”
Kude also warned against specific varieties of fireworks.
“No projectile fireworks, due to the fact that you cannot estimate where they’re going to land and what kind of incendiary damage they could do,” Kude said.
Kude is grateful that he has not had to deal with any such injuries or damage at UCI. When asked about the recent events in Laguna, Kude offered his opinion.
“The key word would be illegal. They’re illegal for a reason, because they’re unpredictable,”Kude said. “And if you’re not watching what you’re doing, then yeah, explosions and fires start.”
Fire remains a frequent theme in California news, as CAL FIRE reports 315,917 total fire incident responses so far this year. Of these, 3,938 have been wildland fires and 2,126 have involved law enforcement.
Aidan Wyrough is a Features Intern for the summer 2025 quarter. He can be reached at awyrough@uci.edu.
Edited by Peyton Arthur and Gabrielle Neve Landavora.
