The COVID-19 pandemic has created additional complications, limiting availability of the low-risk inmate fire crews the state typically relies on, as state officials have urged early release of minor offenders to avoid prison crowding and spread of the disease. Scotts Valley Mayor Randy Johnson echoed that, saying the roughly 1,000 firefighters they have in the area are under-resourced due to unavailability of aircraft support due to thick smoke. BONNY DOON, CA – AUGUST 20: As the CZU August Lightning Complex fire burns houses near by, Santa Cruz County Central Fire Protection District firefighters work in a residential neighborhood near Empire Grade to protect the remaining homes in Bonny Doon, Calif., in the early morning of Aug. “There’s so many fires in the state that we’re just out here trying to pre-treat this area to keep the fire from spreading through the homes without almost any additional resources,” Weber said. Yet, he said, they could use closer to 50. His department is currently using all four of the department’s engines. “So many variables go into what resources are needed, and no fire is the same,” Williams said.īut firefighters on the front lines are quite clear they could use more help.īryan Weber, the Ben Lomond Fire Department Battalion Chief and a retired CalFire firefighter, said Friday his biggest problem is lacking resources. And for the 153,336-acre Camp Fire in 2018, the agency had a firefighter for every 144 acres and engine for every 2,101 acres. ![]() And for the even more massive 229,968-acre SCU Lightning Complex, Cal Fire had a firefighter for every 206 acres and engine for every 2,277 acres.īy comparison, Cal Fire at last year’s 77,758-acre Kincade Fire, Cal Fire had a firefighter for every 1,414 acres and engine for every 15,552 acres. However, the figures only represent Cal Fire personnel and equipment, not those of other agencies, so it is not a reflection of the full response.įor example, for the 50,000-acre CZU Lightning Complex fires raging through Santa Cruz and San Mateo counties, Cal Fire had a firefighter for every 49 acres and engine for every 610 acres.įor the 219,067-acre LNU Lightning Complex in the North Bay, Cal Fire had a firefighter for every 207 acres and engine for every 2,148 acres. (Dai Sugano/Bay Area News Group)Ī Bay Area News Group analysis of Cal Fire resources reported for current major fires and epic blazes in past years doesn’t suggest any clear difference in terms of firefighters and engines per acre burned when comparing this year’s major wildfires and ones in previous years. BOULDER CREEK, CA – AUGUST 20: Volunteer firefighters for the Boulder Creek Fire District and look at the direction of the fire before they are dispatched to battle the CZU August Lightning Complex fire on Aug. The 12,000 fire personnel is roughly twice those deployed during the peak of the deadly 2018 Camp Fire. “There’s no magic number to say, ‘this number is the effective amount,” Williams said. But California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection spokeswoman Heather Williams couldn’t say how that compares to past fire seasons and major wildfires, or how many the agency requires at the moment. State officials say they have 12,000 firefighters currently battling wildfires. They were simply overwhelmed by what they saw.” “I was down there in Santa Clara yesterday meeting with some San Jose firefighters that looked completely wiped, saying we need more support. “These fires again are stretching our resources, stressing our personnel,” Newsom said at a Friday news conference, recalling a visit with exhausted fire crews in San Jose a day earlier who were preparing to go back out on the job. ![]() Gavin Newsom to overwhelmed fire crews complaining about a severe shortage of resources to fight this growing siege of lightning-sparked blazes. California is desperately summoning help for firefighters from across the country and beyond, with everyone from Gov.
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