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Mono County and Mammoth Lakes press for coordinated emergency‑management planning and Cal Fire resources
Summary
Officials reviewed progress on an emergency operations assessment and discussed standing up local emergency‑management capacity. The town said Cal Fire will station seasonal apparatus and aircraft at the airport, improving regional response but raising dispatch and communications coordination needs.
At the May 7 liaison meeting, Mono County and Town of Mammoth Lakes officials emphasized the need for stronger emergency‑management coordination ahead of the summer fire season.
County staff said a consultant is preparing an assessment and an emergency operations plan draft; the draft assessment is expected by the end of May and the plan could be presented to the board in June. Committee members encouraged extensive review and interagency input and discussed whether the town should create a liaison or small emergency‑management team to work closely with the county.
Members also welcomed an announced Cal Fire presence at the airport: the town said a Cal Fire engine company will be housed at the airport and contract aircraft (referenced in discussion as CH‑47) will be based there for approximately five months of the year, augmenting regional suppression capacity. Speakers cautioned that a change in dispatch (including some dispatch functions moving to San Bernardino) could complicate communications and stressed the need for compatible planning and systems.
Next steps include finalizing the assessment, coordinating training and communications, and clarifying the roles and staffing needed to support evacuation planning and interagency response. The committee agreed to pursue closer integration of town and county emergency plans and to consider funding or staffing options that would provide a local point of contact for multiagency coordination.
