Okay, "Tis the Season" kind of sounds like it's time to go out and get a gift, right? Well, actually, it's fire season in Marin and like that other season of the year it tends to sneak up on you rather quickly. The Marin Red Cross Chapter has been sent on Disaster Action Team (DAT) responses to support our local and CDF firefighters (more than 100 of them at one fire) three times over the past week. That's unusual.
So, yes, it's that time of year. If you haven't gotten that special firefighter something to kick off the season, a gift to mark the season, no worries. They love it when you give them defensible space around your house, especially if that has you removing junipers that might still be growing next to your home from the 1970s when those stickery, bug-infested firebombs were considered landscaping. Now-a-days, they are just considered "fuel" by firefighters who really hate to see them when they pull into a neighborhood on a windy, dry afternoon.
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| Red Cross Disaster Worker Micah Joins San Rafael Fireman on the Ridge Above Albert Park Last Saturday |
So what's the situation? To clarify for Jersey Shore Vacation viewers, in this case The Situation I'm talking about is an actual situation and not a Dude who does laundry, gym and cocktails as a weekend routine. (What? No teenage children at home? Just ignore that one.) The situation in Marin is that the fuel load is fairly high, but, for the most part, our fire departments, many of which have battalion chiefs that specialize in vegetation management, are on it. Why do I say "for the most part?" Well, there are some areas of West Marin that are currently carrying fuel loads 25% larger than they were before the Vision Fire and that has the Golden Gate Rec Area Fire Chief watching things very closely. That's the thing about protected land. There are some environmental groups that are not excited about you mowing it or removing all the junipers just because of the fire issue. That's not meant to be political. That's just life in Marin. One man's protected wild turkey is another man's dinner.
You may have noticed that the Marin Fire Crews have been out a lot this week doing controlled burns. Though it looks like a PG&E crew digging a hole (one man digs, 8 men watch), there is actually a method to the madness. There are firemen lighting grass using torches on one side while other firemen stop the fire on the other side using a hose fed by their 800-gallon tender. All those firemen watching and leaning on shovels are there in case a gust comes up and throws a monkey wrench into the plan. So, the next time you pass them by, be happy they are out there preventing something unplanned and probably worse from happening by reducing the fuel load with a controlled burn.
When there is a fire, or the three grass fires we've had so far this week, there's a coordinated response. Local firemen are deployed to work from neighborhoods toward the fire so there is a growing buffer of safety. In the case of the San Rafael fire above Albert Park, they came through a neighborhood bordering the top and brought hoses up through side yards and back yards. They also go out on the hill and tackled the fire itself, attacking from the bottom, where "Smores Night" at a homeless camp turned out to be a bad idea, and the middle. In this case, it was large enough that prison inmates were also used for the task of shoveling and putting out hotspots.
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| Red Crossers Arrive on the Ridge in a 4X4 turck with Water, Coffee, Burritos, Energy Bars, Gatorade and Other Items for Fire Crews. Down below is a Red Cross Emergency Response Vehicle (ERV referred to as "Irv" as in "go get water from the Irv!") that has more capacity, but is hard to navigate on the narrow dirt roads being used by large firefighting equipment. Kevin gets us there! |
Above it all are CDF tankers circling full of fire retardant. They receive radio communications from the incident commanders (usually assistant fire chiefs or battalion chiefs coordinating with the fire chief for the local area) letting them know where they'd like a drop. Also, the tankers and their helicopters act as an eye in the sky directing fire crews toward suspected hotspots.
The unsung heros you might not think about are folks from the police and, yes, parking enforcement, that are deployed to keep citizens sheltered in place and off roads being used by fire equipment and serve as impromptu traffic cops up in the fire area as tankers and tenders and fire engines bring men and equipment back and forth in cramped quarters (often, calling the road a "one lane road" is overly optimistic.)
In the middle of all of this, is the American Red Cross bringing in food, water, coffee or anything else the firemen need while we await orders from the fire chief concerning any need for evacuation or medical triage where Red Cross brings the ERV into a neighborhood to help with care and sheltering. In cases where damage is very minor, we just pass out cleaning supplies. I know, I know. Not super sexy and you aren't likely to see a movie where Dwane Johnson hops out of a Red Cross vehicle and hands someone a mop and a bottle of Mr. Clean as the citizens go, "Thank goodness you got here when you did!"
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| What's Oooey and Gooey and Stuck to Your Tender? |
And I Should Do What?
If you are wondering just what all of this has to do with you and if there's something you should do, the answer is yes. But, don't stress over this. You local fire departments and their volunteer support groups like the American Red Cross have been preparing and practicing with joint exercises and disaster drills (always thought that was kind of bad branding, by they way. I mean if someone invited you to something called a "neighborhood disaster drill," wouldn't you assume it was just that crazy neighbor who walks his dog while wearing flip flops and black socks just lighting his garbage cans on fire yelling, "Wooohooo. Now, that's a disaster!!!"?) Anyhow, back on point, a lot of preparedness professionals have been, well, preparednessing or something like that. You can too.
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| When Firemen Bring Their Own Water, They're Serious |
And you should too. Here's how. Walk around your house or apartment building (if you live on a boat in Sausalito, maybe not) and look at it as there was a fire across the street about to move over to your lawn. Are there branches or bushes right up against your house? Are there dead plants or weeds in your yard? Well, remove them. Get rid of anything that looks easy to burn that's touching your home. That's step one. Step two: Get a fire extinguisher. That's so you can create enough of a gap to get yourself out of the house even if your door is on fire. You aren't going to try to put out the fire by yourself. Just get out and get safe. Step three: Put together a go bag. Nothing crazy, just enough medication (blood pressure pills?), copies of vital records, bottle of water, bandaids and granola bars you can use if you have go evacuate to a shelter. A flashlight is a great idea, because sometimes disasters don't follow our recommended daytime-only scheduling recommendation.
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| "Excuse me, but I'm pretty sure I have the right of way. Okay, maybe not." |
That's the skinny on fire season as it starts. Any questions? Visit your local fire station. A plate of cookies and get you a lot of really useful information. Want us to come to you? The Red Cross does that in Marin and we'll even check out your smoke alarms and add some new ones while we're there. Want to know the people most-likely to help you as the very first responders in a fire or other type of disaster, say hello to your neighbors? Make sure you know each other just a little bit. Are there neighbors with special needs? Are there kids at home during the day?
And Now a Word from Our Sponsors!
It's always especially nice when I get to eat crow in public, so let's get to it. I've been vocally NOT drinking coffee from "evil corporate death star Starbucks" for years. I'd walk into meetings with my coffee cup from some local coffee place and proudly display that I was a rebel who only drank manly Marin chai tea with coconut milk (ya, that's how I roll) that wasn't from evil corporate people trying to Walmart-ize neighborhood coffee. Then, and here comes the crow part, I started with the Red Cross and needed to do things like pick up last minute coffee travelers for 125 firemen who need it right now or groups of volunteers installing smoke alarms in apartments in the Canal Neighborhood. And, well, the folks at the San Rafael 4th Street Starbucks turn out to be some of the nicest supporters of anything we are doing and when it's for the firemen, their policy is pretty much "take whatever you need!" Want more cream? Sure. More cups? Sure! More Coffee? Sure! Do any drink decaf? No? Well take some anyhow. So, with a mouth full of crow, I have to say, Thank You San Rafael 4th Street Starbucks for being one of our best supporters who help us help and ask for nothing at all in return.
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| Thank You San Rafael 4th Street Starbucks for All You Do and for Not Being an Evil Corporate Death Star! |
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