Mateo Fire

Wildfire in Riverside, San Diego and Orange counties, October 1989

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Printed October 28, 2026 from www.firezones.info/fire/4427/mateo-fire-1989

Key facts

Started October 18, 1989
Contained October 23, 1989, after 5 days
Burned 13,479 acres
2nd largest fire of 1989
Cause Miscellaneous
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Where it burned

Counties

  1. Riverside County 6,323 acres
  2. San Diego County 6,291 acres
  3. Orange County 866 acres

Community

  1. Rancho Mission Viejo 866 acres

Acres are the land the fire burned in each county and community, and places where it burned less than an acre are not listed. Communities are cities, towns and the unincorporated places the Census Bureau names, so land outside any of them is counted only in its county.

The same land, other fires

Burned before

  1. 1915 Unnamed fire 1,777 acres shared
  2. 1917 Unnamed fire 3,164 acres in total 3,039 acres shared
  3. 1917 Unnamed fire 5,624 acres in total 2,441 acres shared
  4. 1930 Unnamed fire 645 acres in total 346 acres shared
  5. 1934 Unnamed fire 1,466 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 1,394 acres shared
  6. 1937 Unnamed fire 4,916 acres in total 2,537 acres shared
  7. 1944 Unnamed fire 845 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 705 acres shared
  8. 1944 Unnamed fire 715 acres in total 506 acres shared
  9. 1952 Unnamed fire 351 acres in total 327 acres shared
  10. 1952 Unnamed fire 897 acres in total 291 acres shared
  11. 1952 Indian Potrero Fire 5,605 acres in total 4,963 acres shared
  12. 1957 Talega Fire 346 acres shared
  13. 1958 Unnamed fire 11,775 acres in total 7,519 acres shared
  14. 1958 Steward Fire 68,106 acres in total 7,346 acres shared
  15. 1958 Kelly Fire 2,380 acres in total 292 acres shared
  16. 1959 Talega Fire 3,188 acres in total 1,600 acres shared
  17. 1961 Outside Origin #2 Fire 5,019 acres in total 1,958 acres shared
  18. 1969 Unnamed fire 15,757 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 974 acres shared
  19. 1971 White Springs Fire Cause: Equipment use 378 acres shared
  20. 1973 Mateo Fire 308 acres in total · Cause: Miscellaneous 246 acres shared

And 11 more fires that burned less of the same land. Acres are the land each fire shares with the Mateo Fire, and fires that shared less than an acre are not counted. Some older or smaller fires may be missing, and a fire perimeter can include unburned patches. How to read fire history

Sources

Fire history
CAL FIRE Fire and Resource Assessment Program
Published 28 July 2026
Building damage
CAL FIRE Damage Inspection
Updated 19 October 2026

This site is independent and not affiliated with CAL FIRE or the CPUC, so for an official determination, check with the agency or your city or county. How we read the data