Critical Fire Weather : CAL OES Pre-positioned Fire Resources and Emergency Personnel Dispatched to North SF Bay Area

Saturday, October 13, 2018

Critical Fire Weather : CAL OES Pre-positioned Fire Resources and Emergency Personnel Dispatched to North SF Bay Area

With Strong Winds and Red Flag Conditions, Cal OES Pre-Positions Critical Firefighting Resources and Personnel in North Bay Area

In preparation for dangerous fire weather conditions, including high winds, anticipated to impact Northern California Counties, the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES) has strategically pre-positioned critical fire response resources to include strike teams of fire engines, firefighters, water tenders and emergency dispatchers in the designated impacted areas.

These resources and personnel are staffing up into position as early as this evening and into tomorrow. The pre-positioned fire resources and emergency personnel include:

Sonoma County Operational Area – one Type-3 engine strike team, one water tender, one emergency dispatcher
Marin County Operational Area – one task force of Type-3 fire engines and one water tender, one additional water tender, one emergency dispatcher
Solano County Operational Area – one Type-3 engine strike team
Alameda County Operational Area – one Type-3 engine strike team, one water tender, one emergency dispatcher
Contra Costa Operational Area – one task force of Type-3 fire engines and one water tender, one emergency dispatcher
Napa County Operational Area – one Type-3 engine strike team, one emergency dispatcher
Santa Clara County Operational Area – one Type-3 engine strike team
Lake County Operational Area – one task force of Type-3 engines, a water tender and a leader, one additional water tender

All pre-positioned resources are expected to remain in place until fire weather conditions improve in the region. Additional resources could be staffed up as well, depending on the weather conditions across the state.

A strike team includes five fire engines with 15 firefighters and a strike team leader. A task force is five fire resources of different types/vehicles, such as four fire engines and one water tender make up a single task force.

The National Weather Service is forecasting unusually low relative humidity and winds gusting up to 35 miles per hour, creating Red Flag weather conditions over parts of Northern California through Monday.

A Red Flag Warning means that critical fire weather conditions are either occurring now or will soon. A combination of strong winds, low relative humidity, and warm temperatures can contribute to extreme fire potential and erratic fire behavior.

Click here to see the National Weather Service’s Red Flag warnings.

The public is urged is remain aware of their surrounding conditions and to avoid outdoor activities that can cause a spark near dry vegetation, such as yard work, target shooting, or campfires and follow local fire restrictions. Also, remember to have an emergency plan in place, emergency preparedness kits at home and vehicles full of fuel; sign-up for emergency alerts; listen to authorities and warnings and be prepared to evacuate if necessary.

The Cal OES Warning Center and State Operations Center will monitor conditions and be ready for further resource requests as necessary throughout the Red Flag period.

For more from Cal OES, visit CalOES.ca.gov and follow us on Twitter @Cal_OES.For more information on Cal OES Fire Regions, click here.
Original article CAL OES http://www.oesnews.com/prepo101318/

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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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Saturday, October 13, 2018