Zaca Fire: Emergency Briefing Call

Monday, August 20, 2007

Zaca Fire: Emergency Briefing Call

Zaca Fire: Emergency Briefing Call ::Great update at The Ojai Post:

Zaca Fire: Emergency Briefing Call

The Governor's Office just hosted an Emergency Briefing Call at 2:30, concluding at 2:54 pm. Following are notes from the call:

Yesterday morning, the Governor's Office received a request to declare an emergency in Ventura County, which was signed by the Governor yesterday. This follows a declaration for SB County on August 3rd.

The #1 Priority for Unified Command is the southern edge of the fire, which is "almost buttoned up", with two miles of open fire line to secure. #2 Priority is in the northeast, the Richardson Zone, which spans both counties. They are confident on having a "good handle on it by tonight." #3 Priority is the northwest, which is rough terrain. The plan is still being established.

A coordination team has been established at VC Fairgrounds, working on the possibility of the fire expanding into Matilija Canyon. The teams are being challenged by an active Fire Weather Watch. Challenges faced include difficult terrain and "no recorded fire history, exceeding 75 to 100 years" for much of it. What is going well is the total communication effort, with no breakdowns recorded.

The DC-10 has flown every day "for the past few days". Forest Service Air Operations gives it high praise, but warns that it is not a "silver bullet", but a tool in the toolbox which is being used effectively and well.

There are bulldozer contingency lines just about completed at Wills and Rice Canyon, at least 8-10 miles as the crow flies from the fire. All lines are holding, and the fire has not crossed Highway 33. Trigger points have been established, which would give the Ojai community 72 hour notice if the fire does come in.

Highway 33 has a hard closure at Pine Mountain, including closure to residents, until the burnout is done. Gravel trucks, which have been watched traveling 33 would not be able to get past the hard closure were they to travel up that far. I believe that the 33 is not closed at Wheeler Gorge right now, but has been moved up to Pine Mountain, so that Rose Valley residents can reach their homes and farms.

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Monday, August 20, 2007