Lake County Board proclaims May 2025 Wildfire Community Preparedness Month

The Lake County Board of Supervisors on May 2025 adopted a proclamation designating May 2025 as Wildfire Community Preparedness Month in Lake County, calling on residents, property owners, utility providers and essential services to take steps to reduce wildfire risk.

The proclamation, read by Supervisor Pyska, lists specific defensible-space recommendations — including a five-foot ember-resistant "Zone 0," a 100-foot recommended defensible-space radius around structures, and removal of ladder fuels within 10 feet of roadways or infrastructure — and references Article 8 to Chapter 13 of the Lake County Code regarding hazardous vegetation and combustible material. The board recorded the proclamation as "passed and adopted" by Chair Crandall; no roll-call vote was recorded in the transcript.

"What you do makes a difference," Supervisor Pyska said while reading the proclamation, which also asks utility companies, evacuation-corridor owners and essential-service providers to reduce fuels within 100 feet of critical infrastructure and to clearly post addresses.

A CAL FIRE chief, identified in the meeting as Chief Duncan, urged continued vigilance and described the current fire environment as "the era of mega fires." Chief Duncan said CAL FIRE responded to more than 600,000 emergencies in 2024, including about 8,000 wildfires, and noted that agencies treated more than 130,000 acres and carried out more than 900 fuel-reduction projects last year. He also referenced two January fires, the Eaton and the Palisades fires, saying they together "consumed over 16,000 structures and 30 civilian lives." He warned that fire season is now effectively year-round and highlighted new aircraft and local aviation assets coming into the county this summer.

Magdalena, a community Firewise and tribal partner, urged cultural and practical change toward what she called "a culture of fire adaptation," saying Lake County is learning from tribal stewardship and that residents can "live well with wildfire if we understand what it is." Several supervisors and speakers thanked volunteers, nonprofits and interagency partners for what they described as a decade of building networks and capacity since the 2015 fires.

During the public-comment portion tied to the proclamation, resident Elaine Brown said she advocated for "boots on the ground" responders and expressed concern about large-scale burning and smoke impacts on air quality and public health, including effects on children with asthma.

County staff closed the item after the proclamation and invited participants for a photograph.

Votes at a glance: The transcript records the proclamation as "passed and adopted this May 2025 by our Chair of the Board, Chair Crandall." No motion maker, seconder or roll-call vote numbers are recorded in the transcript.