Wildland residents focus on prevention

Tag : brush handles

“From my house I could see 180 degrees of fire, it lookedlike the surface of the sun,” said Mike Williams, whose homewas seven miles from the fire line at one point.

Living with the threat of fire is nothing new for Williams.

“It’s part of the price of living in thewilderness,” he said in a phone interview last week.

As president of the Wildland Residents Association (WRA), it hasbeen Williams’ job to prepare and educate the residents ofthe 600 homes scattered throughout the hillsides and heavyvegetation of the communities of Mountain Drive, Painted Cave,Paradise Canyon, San Marcos Trout Club and Rosario Park.

The nonprofit WRA was incorporated in 1982, and participates intraffic and water projects in addition to its fire education andpreparation duties. The WRA handles the management of the SanMarcos Pass Volunteer Fire Department, and assists in themanagement of the Mountain Drive Fire Department in Montecito.

As the Zaca Fire continued its easterly movement, the evacuationorder was given for over 300 people in Paradise Canyon and the LosPrietos Boys Camp, while residents in the surrounding communitiesprepared for the worst.

The WRA helped organize the evacuation, broadcasting the news overits radio station, 1040-AM, and through the association’sphone tree and Web site, www.wildlandresidents.org .

Williams said the association also escorted residents to and fromtheir homes, as Highway 154 had been closed by that time out ofsmoke and safety concerns.

“Those guys did a great job,” the Santa Barbara FireDepartment’s Eli Iskow said. “Small localized groupsthat are informed and aware definitely helped the situation.”

Iskow called the fire “the biggest emergency event in thecounty’s history,” and said that his colleagues at thestate and national level complimented the county and localorganizations on their organization and preparedness.

With a small crew of 14 volunteers, and a small fleet of vehicles,mostly brush trucks equipped with fire retardant foam, the SanMarcos firefighters try to put out small fires quickly, or stalltheir growth until the County Fire and Forest Service“cavalry’’ arrives, according to Williams.

During a major fire event in the area, where county and ForestService personnel are occupied, the San Marcos department helpscover the usual fire and medical calls.

Department spokesperson Ted Adams said the WRA works more onpreparations before the fire starts, such as clearing excess brushfrom populated areas, and keeping lines of communication open tothe public.

“Our greatest ability and asset is to be able to communicateknowledge and educate,” said Adams, who doubles as thechairman of the Santa Barbara County Fire Safety Council, whichoffers information and presentations to homeowners and communitygroups interested in fire and disaster prevention and preparation.

Both Adams and Iskow said this fire season be as dangerous as lastyear, as evidenced by multiple fires burning through northernCalifornia.

Adams warned that while the Zaca Fire burned only small anduninhabited structures in the national forest, the next blaze mightnot be as kind.

“The Zaca Fire was unusual that it was a wildland fire thattook forever to travel. While during the Painted Cave Fire (1990)we had minutes to evacuate homes,” Adams said.

Iskow said that with the local climate becoming dryer, andtemperatures rising, the personal responsibility and fire emergencyplanning of groups like the WRA become more necessary every year.

Glenn Wallace can be reached at 737-1059 or gwallace@syvnews.com .

ZACA FIRE BY THE NUMBERS:

n Began July 4, 2007

n Firefighting personnel peaks at 3,090, Aug. 21

n Contained, Sept. 2

n Controlled, Oct. 29

n Estimated 500 residents evacuated

n Burned over 240,000 acres, one small structure burned

n 43 injuries, including a helicopter crash, during the suppressioneffort

n Estimated cost, $118.3 million