Thursday, May 10, 2012

CAL FIRE Hollister Air Attack Base is now staffed

CAL FIRE Hollister Air Attack Base ready

New Air Attack Officer takes command

S2T air tanker in action. / Photo credit U.S. Forest Service

In a sure sign that fire season is here the CAL FIRE Hollister Air Attack Base is now staffed with an air tanker and an air tactical reconnaissance and coordination airplane.

Two S2T air tankers will be assigned to Hollister ready to drop fire retardant on any wildfires breaking out statewide, CAL FIRE said in a news release.

As of Monday one air tanker and the air tactical plane were ready to go. The twin-engine, highly maneuverable S2Ts are former U.S. Navy patrol planes that have a capacity to carry 1,200 gallons of retardant.

With longer, warmer days and drier conditions fire danger starts to increase, said CAL FIRE. “The recent rains, while beneficial, did not make up for months of below average precipitation in the San Benito and Monterey County areas where we are in moderate drought condition,” said the news release.

The Hollister base is under the command of newly-appointed Battalion Chief Josh Nettles. Nettles, who took over on April 30, has been in the fire service since 1998. He is a certified Air Tactical Group Supervisor and has a private pilot’s license.

CAL FIRE has operated an air attack base at the Hollister Municipal Airport for 50 years. The base has living quarters, a retardant mixing base, control tower and mechanical shop.

New fires in California can be reached within 20 minutes with 23 air tankers placed strategically around the state, CAL FIRE said.
Source: The Californian - Link

California Fire News 2012

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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

Thursday, May 10, 2012

CAL FIRE Hollister Air Attack Base is now staffed

CAL FIRE Hollister Air Attack Base ready

New Air Attack Officer takes command

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