A 56-year-old man was arrested for allegedly setting off a vegetation fire that scorched about 80 acres in La Habra and Fullerton, police said Thursday.
Paul Munoz, of Fullerton, was arrested after being questioned by investigators Wednesday morning, according to Fullerton police.
He was booked on suspicion of negligently causing a fire with injuries. Two firefighters were injured battling the blaze, according to police.
The so-called Risner fire broke out about 4:15 p.m. Tuesday, along Idaho Street about a half-mile south of Imperial Highway, near Risner Way. The brusher burned along both sides of Idaho Street, in a small section of hills surrounded on four sides by housing tracts. About 40 homes were evacuated during the firefight.
Police said the exact cause of the fire remained under investigation, but they believe it started at a transient encampment in the Coyote Hills area near Gilbert Street and Castlewood Drive.
It was not immediately clear what led investigators to Munoz.
