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Con Fire reports early wildland season, expands response resources and enforces weed-abatement deadlines
Summary
Chiefs told the board an East County fire in May was contained to about 50 acres, the district has increased wildland response staffing, will deploy a helicopter on June 1, expanded hand crew staffing and contracted three weed-abatement firms to speed compliance ahead of summer fire season.
Contra Costa County Fire Protection District officials told the board on May 20 the county's fire season has begun early and the district has increased staffing and resources to prepare for more frequent wildland incidents.
Chiefs reported a significant East County incident near unincorporated Brentwood that burned about 50 acres; district personnel contained the fire but said conditions across East and West County are drier than typical for mid-May. "We thought we would wait till June but May kicked it off for us," said the chief in his report.
To boost readiness, the district said it has a full wildland response package in place (five engines and a hand crew), expanded the hand crew to 18 people operating daily, and will bring a contracted bulldozer and a helicopter (to be called Copter 1) into service June 1 out of Byron. The district said last year its crews performed weed-abatement compliance work as late as October when contractor capacity was limited; this year the board approved three contractors to allow more timely abatement work.
Weed-abatement compliance dates were affirmed in the report: May 12 for areas east of Willow Pass and June 1 for the rest of the district (west to San Pablo). The chief advised these dates are weather-dependent and have been shifted in past years; the district said it will rely on multiple contractors and partner communications (city outlets, social media) to increase public notice and early compliance.
Chiefs also reported a successful academy graduation and a first girls' empowerment camp for youth over the weekend that drew participants and instructors from inside and outside the county. Board members praised the events and thanked EMS and fire personnel for their service.
The board had questions about resource coverage during the "Walnut" incident; the chief described a second-alarm response that pulled units from Brentwood, Oakley, Discovery Bay, Antioch and Pittsburgh and required backfill from Concord, Martinez and Walnut Creek while another significant incident in Concord was occurring simultaneously.
No new district policies were adopted in the report; the items described are operational adjustments and staffing changes the chiefs said are already in place or scheduled for immediate deployment.
