County fire chief outlines wildfire mitigation steps, reserve engine purchase for Morongo Basin

San Bernardino County Fire Chief Bill Villarreal gave an update to the Twentynine Palms City Council on March 11 outlining wildfire preparedness and regional response measures for the Morongo Basin.

Villarreal described staffing and equipment at the local station, mutual-aid arrangements and new investments intended to improve response when larger incidents occur. He said Station 44 (Yucca Valley) is staffed daily by a three-person crew — a captain, an engineer and a firefighter/paramedic — and houses a Type 1 engine, a water tender and a Type 6 brush patrol, plus Office of Emergency Services (OES) brush apparatus that are deployed under mutual-aid agreements.

"So, it doesn't ever go uncovered," Villarreal said of the station when apparatus are sent to larger incidents, explaining that the department immediately backfills units dispatched to other fires.

Villarreal told the council the county has acquired funding to purchase 10 reserve fire engines, a county Board of Supervisors-backed purchase he described as intended to address gaps that occur when large incidents draw many frontline units away. He said today’s frontline apparatus are expensive — "Current fire engine is over a million dollars" and ladder trucks can approach "about $2,000,000" — and build times for custom engines can be three to four years. The 10 reserve engines were described as more standardized, cookie-cutter units that can be delivered in roughly 10–11 months and used as immediate reserves or backfill.

The chief reviewed operational programs: a Residential Assessment Program (RAP) that sends local engine crews to advise homeowners on home hardening; a fuels-reduction crew that conducts roadside chipping and community chipping events; and cooperative projects with Fire Safe Councils. He described three defensible-space zones residents can use to guide clearance and home-hardening decisions: Zone 0 (0–5 feet), Zone 1 (5–30 feet) and Zone 2 (30–100 feet), and urged noncombustible mulches and removal of combustible fencing adjacent to structures.

Villarreal highlighted recent exercises and technologies: a multiday mass-casualty-incident (MCI) drill conducted in the National Park that exposed communication gaps among cooperators and a county drone program that recently aided a nighttime rock-climbing rescue and is being tested to assess small or unknown fires before dispatching an engine.

He summarized call activity and regional coverage: for a recent quarter (September), he reported a total of 752 calls tied to the station’s area, encompassing structure fires, vehicle fires, medical aids and public assists. He noted that the county is remodeling a Yucca Valley station and that staffing remains a fiscal challenge.

Council members and members of the public asked about backfill frequency, the condition of reserve apparatus, coordination with Southern California Edison on fuels control and whether overhead utilities must be buried for certain development — Villarreal said he was not familiar with an undergrounding code off the top of his head but offered to follow up.

Villarreal encouraged residents to use county resources (Ready, Set, Go guidance and RAP) and to prepare evacuation plans. He said the department will continue community outreach and training with regional partners to address communication and equipment shortfalls.