Fire season is coming, although sections of central and northern California have already delt with forest fires, including the recent Gifford fire in San Luis Obispo county that scorched more than 100,000 acres (firefighters from Newport Beach were deployed to help fight that fire) and one currently burning in Napa Valley wine country.
Brush fires are not all that common in Orange County, although there have been several memorable fires in the past, including the Laguna Canyon fire in 1993 that burned more than 16,000 acres and destroyed hundreds of homes in Laguna Beach and Emerald Bay before it was fully contained.
To that end, 300 volunteers participating in the OC Fire Watch program are ready to protect our local wildlands during Red Flag Warning events by deploying to high-risk areas.
On August 13, Orange County Fire Watch volunteers, managed by Irvine Ranch Conservancy in partnership with OC Parks, the City of Newport Beach, the City of Irvine and the OC Fire Authority, conducted a mock deployment at Ridge Park Crystal Cove in Newport Beach to practice and demonstrate their response protocols.
The program focuses on reducing ignitions that can lead to catastrophic wildfires during high-risk conditions through education, early reporting and deterrence.
“Over the past 20 years, Orange County has seen an increase in major wildfire events, causing significant damage to our local wildlands and communities,” said Madison Killebrew, Irvine Ranch Conservancy’s Wildfire Prevention Program Manager. “We always want to stay prepared and vigilant. That is why we host mock deployments, so volunteers can hone their skills and prepare for active deployments. Practicing now can help ensure we’re ready for a real Red Flag wind event.”
According to Scott Graves, Communications Manager for Irvine Ranch Conservancy, the mock deployment was a way to try to spread awareness among the community about the threat of high winds this time of year and the potential catastrophic impact of ignitions during high wind events and the devastating wildfires that result from those ignitions.
“We wanted to get that word out early and try to get people to start thinking about ways that they can be vigilant and prepared for this upcoming fire watch or the upcoming wildfire season,” said Graves.
“The Orange County Fire Watch program is a volunteer-based group facilitated by Irvine Ranch Conservancy,” said IRC Fire Watch Manage, Renalynn Funtanilla. “I like to think of our volunteers as skilled observers. During those critical weather conditions like Santa Ana wind events with high temperatures, those are critical times to be more aware and alert when wildfire ignition starts so that we can tackle that and get it taken care of right away. I like to think of us as additional eyes and ears for Orange County Fire Authority and any other emergency responders in case there are some issues that occur on the open space.”
“One of the messages we’re trying to get out there for the public is the difference between wildfires in Southern California and wildfires in Northern California or the Sierra Nevada Mountains,” explained Graves. “A lot of other wildfires throughout the country are fuel driven fires. Over time fuel builds up, which can create conditions that result in catastrophic wildfires. In Southern California, we have a different problem. It’s not a fuel driven wildfire problem. We have shrubland around here, so if a wildfire tears through the shrubs and the grass, those kinds of things can grow back quickly, so it’s not really a matter of having too much fuel out on the land. It’s really a wind problem. In Southern California, we don’t have fuel driven wildfires. We have wind driven wildfires. And the best way to prevent those catastrophic wildfires from happening is to prevent ignitions on high wind or red flag days. That’s the main reason that we put our volunteers out there on those days—to try to educate the public about that increased threat during those high wind events, and to look out for smoke. That way we can get first responders activated as quickly as possible to put out that fire.”
According to Funtanilla, there are 36 locations throughout Orange County where the Fire Watch volunteers are stationed. Those locations were determined by previous wildfire history in the area as well as roadsides that have more ignition history plus public trailhead areas where wildfires have occurred.
There are also cameras that serve as a virtual watch tower and keep an eye on the Orange County landscape.
“Our main goal is to address those really high-risk areas where there’s a lot of people, and that kind of wildland urban interface where nature meets the city,” said Graves. “Those are the areas where there’s most likely to be an ignition, so we station our volunteers in those areas kind of strategically located almost like a triage where we’re looking at the most dangerous hot spots.”
Funtanilla noted that a unique aspect of the Fire Watch group is that some volunteers are dedicated amateur radio operators that provide additional communication support during red flag deployment.
“We actually had an incident where someone had a flat tire along Santiago Canyon, and when they approached our volunteer they had no cell service, but our volunteer was an amateur radio operator and we were able to get assistance for the person during a red flag warning on Santiago Canyon,” said Funtanilla.
All this talk of fires begs the question: When is the start of fire season?
“There is no official start to wildfire season,” stated Graves. “May is wildfire preparedness month, and there’s usually somewhere in there wildfire prevention day. That kind of signifies to the broader community that hey, we just got a bunch of rain and things look green now, but pretty soon things are going to start to dry out, and everything that’s green and lush right now will dry out and become fuel, so we need to start preparing. So anywhere from the beginning of summer is when people need to start being concerned about wildfire. For us, the Santa Ana wind events usually start around September all the way up through December. Once we hit August, we’re kind of on high alert and ready to deploy the volunteers whenever a red flag is announced.”
Funtanilla added that the Orange County Fire Authority has a program called Ready Set Go! that is designed to get the community ready in the event of a wildfire and prepare them for potential evacuations.
“One of the best ways to protect your home is to follow the steps that they outline,” said Funtanilla. “This is a community issue and requires a community response. We all need to be prepared to protect our own homes and try to prevent our homes from igniting. We can prevent your house from burning up, and it’s one less house for firefighters to have to go and defend.”
For more information, visit www.OCFA.org/RSG.
Orange County residents are also encouraged to sign up for emergency notifications on www.AlertOC.org.
