The Esperanza Fire was reported on October 26, 2006 at 1:11 a.m. Pacific Daylight Time (PDT) in Cabazon, California, within the jurisdiction of the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE). At approximately 7:15 a.m., five wildland firefighters from Forest Service Fire Engine 57 were overrun by the fire, while they were positioned near an isolated, vacant residential structure. All five firefighters were fatally burned by a sudden, intense fire run up a steep drainage below their location. The fatalities occurred in the rural mountain community of Twin Pines, which is located in the San Jacinto Mountains approximately four miles southwest of Cabazon. Twin Pines is an identified wildland urban intermix with a recognized 'extreme threat' rating for potential destructive impacts from wildfires.

[This publication is referenced in the "Synthesis of knowledge of extreme fire behavior: volume I for fire managers" (Werth et al 2011).]