As fires are beginning to rage in California where the drought is being blamed we need only look at the stupidity of US Congressional budget cuts to see why citizens do not have adequate fire protection against a very blatantly obvious and disastrous fire season.
Yesterday, within 15 miles of me, three fires broke out. Because of insufficient staffing already stretched thin, crews were unable to obtain immediate containment on two of them which are now expanded to over 300 acres and threatening homes. Cal-fire crews from hundreds of miles away have arrived last night with little rest, to staff the station houses as back-up for exhausted local fire fighters who are predominantly now young and volunteer personnel.
I've spoken with three fire Captains and several crews and will relate the expressed opinions below the smoke billow.
Currently the most dangerous fire known as the "Sky Ranch" in Oakhurst, California, began about 1 p.m. Thursday with an overheated motor-home on its way to Yosemite pulling off highway 41 a mere twelve miles from its destination. The engine caught fire, then flames engulfed the entire vehicle. There was no loss of life or injury but local crews arrived swiftly with limited water available. They thought they had matters under control but without local Cal-fire back-ups, the wind escalations swept the flames uphill into dry trees and the fire swiftly consumed 20 acres.
Then things got worse fast.
Local Cal-fire stations closest to the scene had Congress mandated funding cuts taking effect this year. The cuts effected various stations with 25-40% reductions in their funding, which when translated to each Cal-fire station meant one less truck and crew for the nearest firehouse (6 miles distant at Oakhurst); and two trucks, two crews cut from the next closest, 16 miles away in Coarsegold. Two other stations within 25 miles had crew reductions of similar numbers meaning: 140 fewer firemen, four fewer trucks to put out a now very dangerous fire according to John, a retired Captain of 27 years.
Realizing the escalating situation Calfire Chief Chris Kristofferson, in addition to having summoned bombers from Merced and Fresno, called in multiple units from Mariposa (the other entrance to Yosemite) and Merced. Because Fresno had deployed all of its resources in structure fires for the preceding three days, there were no backups in five communities making up the mountain cities nearby. Cal-fire pulled fifteen crews from Tuolumne county and beyond to 'staff' the local firehouses in case of local emergencies.
In speaking with the Coarsegold crew, I asked if they arrived rested. One jovially answered, "Hardly." They had just come from three days battling other fires and were working with about 7 hours sleep for the previous four days after a ten hour commute yesterday. Remarkably, morale was high, the crews alert and ready. "This is what firefighting entails anymore," said one seasoned veteran. "Due to the Congressional budget cuts many crew members had to seek other work and are not available. If you work a full time job in Fresno, would you risk losing that steady job to respond to a part-time job battling flames in 100+ temperatures which may only last a few days?"
(Obviously, not)
Another crew member, the most junior, said the state requires 20 hours unpaid volunteer time for every hour worked. (I've not verified that but other firemen present were nodding) Senior crewmen nearby solemnly shook their heads in an expression of dismay. They added, "If you are wearing mandated equipment you can maybe last 4-5 hours on duty at a fire before fatigue begins to really toll on you." Crews sometimes work 4-5 days in rotations on site without sleep.
"About all you can do is rest or cat nap and then psyche up for the next round... which could be 5 or even 6 hours long, depending." His voice trailed off and I could see the glaze of fatigue now.
And how's the pay? Less the half of what construction jobs pay. So why do it? There were as many reasons as there were firefighters. But three things are certain: fewer firemen, longer distances, and a higher cost to society for those cuts in new training, longer commutes and lost property.
At 3:30 p.m., the third flight of bombers was on scene of SkyRanch fire. which now had consumed 50 acres. As each one vanished from sight in steep dives entering the cloud haze it made me shiver. I've flown in zero visibility and know the strain of 'G-forces' on those planes which pull out at full throttle less than fifty feet above ground level making you feel like you've been compacted in a tomato can. After each plane emerged, crowds of people at the Vons shopping center cheered in relief. They both did three more retardant drops and beelined back to Merced for reloads. However they had not diminished the flames.
Winds 8 miles from the fire were a brisk and steady 15 to 20 mph and picking up. You could see the enormous plume was now becoming a thundercloud: a towering 50,000 foot Cumulonimbus monster creating its own weather system. Flashes within the cloud showed this.
I could see this was fast becoming a disaster and left for Northfork which is the center of California before road closures would prevent my business. However, I stopped at station houses along the way speaking to the skeleton crews in each. Two hours later the SkyRanch fire was over 300 acres and expanding fast with evacuations of tens of thousands of people from local communities, altering weekend plans for all.
Completing my business in Northfork I no sooner arrived at my second home when I got the call of my cheery but anxious best friend who was in a canyon surrounded by crackling flames approaching her position. With multiple dogs and only one way out, she asked I get fire support immediately to her location. After checking scanner traffic for reports it was determined Cal-fire had dispatched, but not yet determined the precise location of this newest fire.
I got the battalion commander on the phone and provided the GPS fix and requested air evacuation on standby. Within 4 minutes the first arriving crews had descended the canyon road and began battling. However, because of cuts there was no air-evacuation available. By 9:20 p.m. power lines were down but nearly all the community was evacuated. Now the back-up crews above the canyon were tensely waiting for command direction in combating this fire: the "Corrine Lake fire".
It would be a night fight. Without air support. On strange turf. I grabbed my essential gear and took off.
I arrived on scene around 10, located the commanders and we were able to derive the few remaining available approaches utilizing BLM accesses with keys and clues given by the locals. Seasoned fire-staff knows the first rule when on unfamiliar ground is 'listen to the locals.' But having evacuated them all hours earlier, they had no opportunity to find the lay of the land until I arrived. This fire, while slow moving, escalated from 40 acres to 120 in less than two hours entering dense, steep terrain, impossible to access.
The danger of backing and changing winds rendered containment an impossibility so they focused on protecting structures and evacuation of a large undetermined number of native Americans living off grid and without phone services in a myriad of unpaved roads. The presence of those people was unknown to Cal-fire before my arrival, the local fire crews familiar with the region having been dispatched previously to other fires.
Having 'done my thing', I cleared out and from a distance watched the enormous smoke cloud expanding in a steady creep toward other population centers (Auberry and small enclaves) protected only by other exhausted crews without air support.
About 1 a.m. I turned off my scanner and laid down to rest trusting that my best friend and the many others in the area of Lake Kertchoff would be safe with the 20 Cal-fire units deployed there supported by massive numbers of local LEOs and CHPs combing far-flung back-roads in complete darkness.
I got a first glimpse of how well that had gone at 6 a.m. when my friend called that she'd been kept company and safe by the engine crews on her property who'd fought back walls of flames or creeping carpets of advancing 'ground-glow' or 'hot-spot flares' throughout the night and were now laying exhausted on her driveway, her only power derived from the lighter outlet in the driver's console of a fire engine. She relayed that the fire source was a down transmission line probably where work had been concluded early in the day by PG&E which had employed an out of state line company unfamiliar with our state of fire hazard and eager to 'git-her-done!'.
As of my writing there has been no loss of life but substantial costs in attempts to stem the fires, still without containment and no way of predicting any date because of variable winds, heat and now depleted resources. More units are enroute.
These three things are certain. Cuts to the very safety net by Tea Party wingnuts has endangered all of the State. The lack of resources and personnel is exponentially more expensive to requisition in the presence of emergency than it would be if it were readily available. The loss of property and costs to families impacted by the fires will be gigantic.
And we've just begun.
Most certainly this 'fire season' is begun ahead of most people's expectations (most predicted August) but the only way this scenario will be less than catastrophic and likely repeated for years to come, is if those Republican representatives who voted for Tea Party budget killing are inundated with calls of other citizens decrying there selfish shortsighted and mean actions.
With the steady drone of bombers in the background, I sign out and post.
Peace!
2:25 PM PT: At 2 p.m. Friday the two fires remain barely contained. Corinne Fire about 23 and 600 acres approaches small rural towns. Reports say most residents have refused evacuation. This remains a very dangerous fire now. Investigators focus on power line constructed by International Line Builders (ILB) of Portland, Oregon this week which may have failed hours after the crew left it. Locals complained about lax supervision by PG&E and refusal to respond to concerns.
Sky-Ranch is zero percent contained estimated at 538 acres with potential growing to 600 - 1,000 acres in the next couple of days. Has entered old growth and said to have destroyed largest tree in California. Approximately 300 personnel have been assigned to the fire; two forest service engines, one forest service hotshot crew with more resources summoned. 15 Cal-Fire engines also assigned to the fire and three air tankers.
Regional visibility now 1/2 mile an improvement from 1/4 mile at 6 am. Winds variable and gusty 15 to 20.
More evacuations as fire progresses.
5:52 PM PT: 4:30 p.m
Update on SkyRanch: over 600 acres, winds strengthening all day, now 500 homes threatened. The fire took off early this morning because of dryer than normal conditions. Despite that: LOOK AT THIS! Zero structural losses. No casualties. Additional crews arrived in past hour. Containment, was at 20% this morning, is now 5%, according to Madera County Fire Chief Eldridge.
A retired captain observing this fire has informed me, "This one is getting away. It may go all the way into Yosemite burning for months. Expect they will really pound it now in a last ditch."
As for 'Corrine Lake Fire': There are 10 strike teams on the fire (five engines each) and 10 more on the way. These relieving the previous 10. Zero containment 790 acres.
At 3 p.m. -A new front opened on this fire spawning another one dubbed "North Fork Fire" as a hot spot erupted ahead of the main vector and threatens the mountain community. Regarding that new front a spokesperson said: “The next three or four hours are going to be critical.”
County Supervisor Tom Wheeler said the fire was about one mile from North Fork. Five strike teams, 25 engines, were ordered to the blaze.
At 4:45: Fire fighters are now "all in" on defending North Fork area which is completely evacuated. For the hundreds of evacuees from North Fork they are now cut off from evacuation routes. They give a 50-50 chance of saving this historic town outgunned and undermanned. Crews on other areas are redirected. Some experienced fighters had urged withdrawal but the area is Supervisor Wheeler's hometown and leaders have vowed to battle it out.
Footnote: neither local republican who voted for sever cuts has been sighted or issued comment about the firestorm engulfing the state. Nearly 12,000 acres are destroyed in Big Bear's Lake Fire as of 3 pm with zero containment.
5:59 PM PT: Four minutes ago:
Corrine Fire has burned over 1,000 acres, 5% CONTAINMENT.
4 additional crews on scene and 4 more en-route from NorCal.
Strong winds are now whipping the fire towards the San Joaquin River Valley and containment there is not possible. 3 outbuildings destroyed NO HOMES LOST!
Crews on Fire Line in North Fork front is HOLDING. Slowed the advance and stopped it in most places! Burning embers are starting new blazes wherever the touch. Trees exploding like rockets. Sounds like hell.
Sat Jun 20, 2015 at 12:27 PM PT: 6/20/15
New 'fresh' fire crews from Multanomah and Modoc Counties arrived at 7 am as the que reached over 60 trucks standing in the morning sun, waiting for the units they replace to pull out. Talking to some of the replaced crews at a nearby high school used as a staging area, they had been 36-48 hours on the fire lines, often sleeping on the grounds 20-30 yards from the fire for an hour or so, then getting back to work. They say it takes a day to three to ensure an area is safe after the fire burns through. Much of the work is clear cutting partially burned brush and turning smoking debris to ensure smoldering fuel is extinguished.
At 8 am I met the PG&E work crews who were not talking about their assignments. It was clear they'd been advised not to discuss anything pertaining to the equipment failure which caused the fire. Along the delivery truck from Fresno, they unloaded sets of insulators, stabilizers and 'wings' filling three trucks for the repairs.
Josh, the PG&E repair chief provided information which conflicted with statements of the fire inspector given 20 minutes earlier pertaining to his findings, but acknowledged, "It's going to cost the company plenty." What is indeterminate is why older poles are being blamed for failure but PG&E has requested access operating bulldozers to cut trails to the new lines through private property. Mystery.
8:30 a.m. Now the line of fire crews awaiting access is stretched three miles down the hiway. I counted 12 heavy earth movers. One operator, nearly as big as the machine, stated to my query of the 'plan of action', "Dozing the perimeter. It'll take two maybe three days. Plan is to put three abreast and make a break the fire won't cross. We'll be here until this is done." (This guy was H-U-G-E, didn't need a bulldozer>) But: that's an enormous area and gigantic footprint to leave on the land!
North Fork is secure. (!) The crews on scene are putting out the hots spots. Unbelievable effort and dedication to the task. Humbling to see these exhausted firemen. Fire was stopped between buildings near town.
9 a.m. Five empty tour buses arrived at North Fork to transport the families of Native Americans who were evacuated. No one would tell me the destinations but the tribal office had arranged it. Good unity of command.
9:30. As the exodus of new trucks for old proceeds the majority of traffic on the road is fire trucks followed by PG&E crews, followed by private contractors with dozers, backhoes and tree cutting equipment. One in 20 vehicles is privately owned and will be turned around at one of the several roadblocks. "Total Lockdown" according to CHP. All routes around the fire affected.
SkyRanch fire has been slowed and they expect containment by 4 today. At dawn the view of the mountains beyond Oakhurst was obscured in smoke like the original Jerry Schur lithographs. By 7:30, no bombers on scene and more fire crews were driving to Oakhurst from west and south. None observed leaving.
11 a.m. General Vicinity of fires: Winds picked up 10-15 mph, temps are staying cooler at under 90 on both fronts. Gusts are up to 25, directional variability may still be problematic. My bet is that with the hundreds of new crews, this thing will be mostly contained by evening. A new estimate of the acreage is 1200 for the Corine fire and 1300 for Sky Ranch. No loss of structures. Around 12,000 evacuees. Miniscule compared to Big Bear but the economic impact on fire budgets is immense this early.
Put in perspective, these fire teams have done the impossible and after a slow start they have caught up to this fire in the most difficult terrain under very challenging weather conditions. Now. How about we pay them a living wage and reward the heroic efforts with full time employment? Anyone?
Sat Jun 20, 2015 at 4:46 PM PT: Perhaps a setback?
Temps are 105 in the areas of fires. Now the commodity most transported is water. Fewer trucks are leaving, smoke is billowing again and gusty winds hit both fires about 3:30. I counted 120 fire units at the staging area, black and yellow overall hung everywhere. Was requested not to photograph. A makeshift sleeping area in several buildings houses nearly all those crews.
PG&E, true to their estimate had restored power to affected areas about 3:00. Those guys were totally beat, too.
Checking the emergency relief centers, about 400 pets have been taken in and owners housed at various churches, Red-Cross locations and people are boosting the fast food store sales around Oakhurst. Still complete road closures on both fires so no returns for evacuees.
A local who had sneaked back to his house on motorcycle exclaimed the area is unrecognizable except for the standing structures. Called it "And alternate reality."
Very sad so many lives affected but very proud that the community mustered and crews overcame the conditions. Hope is done soon.
Sun Jun 21, 2015 at 9:01 AM PT: 8:32 update on Sky, Sierra NF. IMT2 (Cooper). Two miles northeast of Yosemite Forks, CA. Timber and chaparral. Active fire behavior with group torching and uphill runs. Numerous structures threatened. Road and area closures in effect. Reduction in acreage due to more accurate mapping.
(500 acres, 691 personnel, 40% containment, 0 structures lost)
June 21, 2015 at 8:43 AM 'Official Report' -edited for length
Today crews will continue reinforcing containment lines and extinguishing hot spots on the fire perimeter. Fire crews will also continue with fire line suppression repair work. Fire line suppression repair is repairing or improving land damaged during fire suppression and line construction. The extent of repair will vary depending upon intended use after the fire.
Firefighting resources, such as engines and crews, will begin to be released from the Sky Fire and sent to other fires in California. The public is reminded a lot of firefighting equipment will be traveling on the roads going into the Sky Fire area and others will be leaving the community heading to other incidents.
Corrine Lake Fire: no official update. Evacuation still in effect until Tuesday. Smoke and flames seen from 3 miles distance by contact on the ground. Crews still operating heavy equipment, engines still being dispatched to this fire.
Sun Jun 21, 2015 at 9:24 AM PT: Corrine Lake fire: 920 acres burned, 35% containment, perimeter at 27% completion, 1440 personnel on site, 3 structures lose (out buildings)
And the BIG ONE:
San Bernadino, Big Bear 'Lake' fire: "Extreme fire behavior present"
16,135 acres burned, 15% containment, zero perimeter, 1890 personnel on site, 0 structures lost, 60 fire units en route.
Evacuations remain in effect, smoke effecting communities 50 miles away.