CAL FIRE news: South Valley: Drug bust leads to arrest in six arsons

Friday, June 29, 2007

CAL FIRE news: South Valley: Drug bust leads to arrest in six arsons

WOODLAKE -- Police believe they have caught an arsonist responsible for six recent wildland fires near Woodlake in an investigation sparked by a search warrant for alleged drug dealing.

State forestry and Woodlake police officials announced Thursday that Woodlake resident Humberto Gonzalez, 26, was arrested in connection with six arsons: on June 19, June 20 and June 21, 2006, and May 22, May 27 and June 10 of this year.

Gonzalez was being held at a Tulare County jail on $95,000 bail, Woodlake Police Chief John Zapalac said.

The investigation leading to Gonzalez's arrest started June 12 with a search warrant for drugs at a home in the 300 block of south Magnolia Street carried out by officers from several agencies, Zapalac said.

Officers found methamphetamine and paraphernalia related to the sale and use of the drug, along with a silencer for a gun, Zapalac said. Gonzalez was arrested along with his brother, 27-year-old Gonzalo Gonzalez.

During the search, law enforcement officials found suspicious items that prompted Woodlake police to notify California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection officials about what they found.

Cal Fire officials served another warrant June 16, and further investigation linked Humberto Gonzalez to the six fires, Cal Fire Battalion Chief Paul Marquez said.

Marquez said the fires burned mainly small amounts of grass in the Woodlake and Elderwood areas, although one scorched 80 acres. No structures were damaged, and no one was injured in any of the blazes.

But he said the fires could have been much more serious if fire crews hadn't quickly snuffed them out.

"There's a high fire danger in the wildland areas," Marquez said. "The lack of rain this winter means feed grass for cattle is very valuable."

A monetary loss for the burned areas wasn't available Thursday.

The Tulare County District Attorney's office hadn't made a decision Thursday on whether to file arson charges against Gonzalez, but a decision on the matter was expected by today, Assistant District Attorney Don Gallian said.

Gonzalez already faces charges of possessing drugs and drug paraphernalia and maintaining a home for drug sales, Gallian said. His brother faces a charge of being under the influence of drugs.

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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).

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Friday, June 29, 2007