Navy assists in Catalina wildfire

Friday, May 18, 2007

Navy assists in Catalina wildfire

Friday, May 18, 2007

By MC2 Stephanie Tigner Fleet Public Affairs Center, Pacific

Sailors attached to Assault Craft Unit Five (ACU-5) assist Los Angeles County Fire Department in delivering their firefighting equipment and personnel to Catalina Island aboard a U.S. Navy Landing Craft Air Cushion (LCAC) to assist in battling a massive wildfire May 11. The fire on Catalina Island, approximately 22 miles southwest of Los Angeles, ravaged more than 4,750 acres and is one of the largest fires there in years.

U.S. Navy Photo by MC3 Daniel A. Barker

CATALINA ISLAND, Calif. - Sailors of Assault Craft Unit (ACU) 5 from Camp Pendleton, Calif., assisted Southern California firefighters in battling a wildfire that broke out on Santa Catalina Island May 10.

So far, the fire has claimed more than 4,000 acres on the 76-square-mile island and has consumed several campground buildings and one residential house.

ACU-5 Sailors worked nonstop loading and off-loading fire engines, fire equipment, and working with more than 500 firefighters from Los Angeles County, Orange County, and the California Department of Forestry.

"I can't say enough about all the help the Navy has given us," said Los Angeles County Fire Department Capt. Andrew Olvera. "The use of the LCACs (landing craft air cushions) has been a vital part of our operation."

"We're just here to help and we'll do what we can to save this island," said Information Systems Technician 1st Class Patrick Gradert of Beach Master Unit (BMU) 1.

"It really makes me proud of the armed aorces of the United States and what they're able to do," said Fire Capt. Larry Tucker of the Los Angeles Fire Department.

Approximately 3,300 people were temporarily evacuated from Catalina Island, which is located approximately 22 miles southwest of Los Angeles. Several thousand residents populate the island, but as a popular tourist resort, it also hosts more than 1 million guests annually.

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How fires get their names

Every year in California thousands of wildfires start throughout the state. In most cases, the dispatch center sending the initial resources to a wildland fire will designate a name for the fire, but the first on scene engine or fire official can also name the incident. Fires are usually named for the area in which they start – a geographical location, local landmark, street, lake, mountain, peak, etc. Quickly naming the fire provides responding fire resources with an additional locater, and allows fire officials to track and prioritize incidents by name. For example during the Southern California Fire Siege of 2003, the largest wildland fire in California history, the Cedar Fire in San Diego County, was named after the Cedar Creek Falls area where it started. The destructive Old Fire, which burned during the same time period in San Bernardino County, was named after the road along which it started - Old Waterman Canyon Road.

CAL FIRE is the largest fire department in California and the second largest fire department in the United States. CDF - CAL FIRE Firefighters answer the call more than 300,000 times a year. CAL FIRE Firefighters make up the fire department for 30 of our 58 counties in California and more than 100 local communities. We serve as the incident command during many of California’s most serious disasters. CAL FIRE Firefighters respond to many various types and forms of calls ranging from structural fires, to auto accidents, to earthquakes, to floods, to the spilling of hazardous materials, to every conceivable disaster; CAL FIRE answer's the calls. CAL FIRE is the largest fire department in California and the second largest fire department in the United States . CAL FIRE firefighters protect 33 million acres of State Responsibility Area (SRA). We have over 4,000 members within CAL FIRE and CAL FIRE is associated with the California Professional Firefighters (CPF) and the International Association of Firefighters (IAFF).

CFN - CALIFORNIA FIRE NEWS - CAL FIRE NEWS

Friday, May 18, 2007