Also serving the communities of De Luz, Rainbow, Camp Pendleton, Pala and Pauma

New fire chief steps into 'explosive' season

New technology offers defense

Rick Monroe

Special to Village News

Keith McReynolds, the new fire chief with the North County Fire Protection District, stepped into his position knowing the potential for a wild wildfire season. However, he also noted there are new defenses available.

"The drought is worsening," he explained. "This past winter it was a very disappointing rainfall, so there was really no deep soaking. The vegetation needs that moisture, and it just didn't happen. On top of that, the rain ended early, so that means the amount of dead brush is enormous."

He said live fuel moisture is about a month and a half ahead of where it should be for this time of year.

"Dead fuels are either near or breaking record low values away from the coastal areas," he added.

Furthermore, rainfall is expected to be below normal through October, and temperatures above normal.

Alex Tardy, meteorologist with the National Weather Bureau, painted the same bleak forecast.

"It's record-setting territory with back-to-back years with lack of precipitation," Tardy said. "We've never seen a fuel condition this dry. We're very susceptible to wildfires through the rest of the year."

Santa Ana winds usually come in September through December, compounding the danger.

It's something McReynolds has a unique understanding about, serving the department in three different roles during the three most significant wildfires here since 2002.

On Feb. 10, 2002, he was a fireman. That's when the Gavilan fire was ignited. Pushed by winds that were unusual for February, the fire burned several thousand acres and 43 homes in just a few short hours.

On Oct. 21, 2007, he was a captain when the Rice fire was ignited on Rice Canyon Road just south of Rainbow. The Rice fire was the 26th major fire to start in Southern California that weekend, so the normal mutual aid response was slow. Air support was limited by the extraordinary winds. Within a few short hours, the fire crossed I-15 and directly threatened downtown Fallbrook. For the first time in the community's history, the entire town was evacuated. Over the next several days, the Rice fire would consume nearly 10,000 acres and destroy nearly 240 homes.

On Dec. 7, 2017, he was a battalion chief while under a Red Flag Warning the district was struck by the fast-moving, wind-fed Lilac fire. During one of the worst fire seasons faced by California in recent history, NCFPD battled to halt the procession of the fire that began in a basin west of Interstate 15 and south of State Route 76 along Old Highway 395.

Fanned by Santa Ana winds exceeding 40 mph, low humidity and dry conditions, the Lilac fire swiftly progressed burning into the Bonsall area. With the potential to burn into neighboring Camp Pendleton, Oceanside and Vista, it was predicted if the strong winds did not subside that the fire would reach the Pacific Ocean. Initially, winds drove flames almost more quickly than people could evacuate, with an estimated 10,000 people from Fallbrook and Bonsall moved into centers as mandatory evacuation was ordered. More than 1,500 homes were threatened.

The Rancho Monserate mobile home retirement community was one of the first and greatest casualties of the fire. The fire proceeded into the San Luis Rey Downs training facility, where 45 racehorses perished and two trainers were severely burned. More than 1,659 fire personnel, 100 fire engines and 22 helicopters, 11 fixed wing aircraft, 70 Sheriff personnel, 37 CHP officers, along with many others, worked together to halt the fire and secure civilian safety.

After the coordinated effort, the fire was fully contained on Dec. 13. The wildfire burned 4,100 acres, destroyed 114 homes and damaged 55 more. More than 77,000 people were affected by the fire, and although six people were injured, some severely, there was no loss of human life.

"These were firestorms, something you can't stop," McReynolds said. "It's like a hurricane, and these wind-driven fires are like a war zone. You can't see, there's choking smoke, power lines are down, and roads blocked."

The fire chief offers common sense advice, especially to heed evacuation orders and listen to weather warnings.

"Be prepared with an evacuation plan," he added. "Also, listening to Twitter reports gives really current information, or just stream the NCFD web page, NCFire.org."

"Come the fall months – and even now – we're always watching the weather," he added, "especially the wind conditions."

The chief also noted that even without strong winds, there is still a current fire threat with the dry vegetation and what is called topographical and fuel-driven fires.

McReynolds also offered the basic preventative advice for residents, including mow back or use a weed-wacker to create a defensible space around structures, keep vegetation trimmed, have your street address visible from the road, fire-resistant roof vents, maintain easy driveway access for firetrucks, identify hose bibs for firefighters to use in topping off their units, and clear around propane tanks.

He noted that the department's compliance officer takes weed abatement complaints seriously. The chief was pleased that no firecracker accidents occurred this year, but reminded residents they are dangerous and illegal in the county.

McReynolds noted that the mutual aid agreement with Cal Fire and nearby cities is an excellent cooperation that brings more safety to each community.

"The key is to attack early and to attack strong," McReynolds said.

Capt. Thomas Shoots, a spokesman for Cal Fire, agreed, saying it's ideal to attack a fire by both ground and air. He touted Cal Fire's resources and the cooperation of 30 agencies in the county.

"We all work well together," Shoots said. "The NCFD in Fallbrook is very strong, known for fighting vegetation fires."

He also pointed out that new and advanced technology is playing a big part in making a unified attack on wildfires successful.

Shoots and McReynolds both cited the new Heli-Hydrant being built by the Rainbow Municipal Water District as an exciting, innovative additional resource. The $150,000 project, the first in the county, involves placing a tank on a mountain top so firefighting helicopters can more effectively refill with water to dump on a fire.

The Heli-Hydrant will be located next to the district's Pala Mesa water tank, said Robert Guitierrez, operations manager for RMWD.

The tank hasn't been delivered yet, he said, but pipes are being installed and it should be operational by late August or September. The nearest Heli-Hydrant is in Yorba Linda, but others can be expected in this area before long. In fact, RMWD is looking at another location in the area and will proceed if it can obtain a grant, Guitierrez said.

"Helicopters hover over the tank and drop their bucket or tube shaped like an upside-down snorkel to refill," he said. "We are also able to be reimbursed for the water if it's declared an emergency."

The second site they are looking at is along Pala Temecula Road.

The Heli-Hydrant tank sits dry but can be filled remotely by the helicopter pilot or by the district.

"It's especially great for fighting spot fires along I-15," Guitierrez said. "The innovative technology is pretty exciting."

Shoots said another new way to refill helicopters this year is by using new portable tanks hauled on a truck.

Meteorologist Tardy pointed out another advancement in technology, with fire suppression teams being aided by satellite feeds from NASA and the National Weather Bureau, as well as camera surveillance coordinated by SDG&E and ALERTWildfire.

Satellite images can be observed every five minutes, he said, and can spot fires as small as 4-5 acres.

Live-streaming from more than 30 high-definition cameras placed on county mountain peaks offer a 360-degree scan of the area. Monitors are able to zoom into a specific area if they receive a call of a fire and are designed to improve fire detection and public safety by creating live-streaming of San Diego's most fire-prone areas.

UCSD, SDG&E and Cal Fire are partners in the camera observation system, and anyone can take a look by visiting Alertwildfire.org.

The cameras are most helpful in remote areas, said Cal Fire's Shoots, and the information is helpful in making operational decisions.

The camera system is about five years old, but it has been updated with a state-of-the-art system for live video. It can also show time-lapse scenarios, pan-tilt-zoom, and uses near-infrared capabilities for night vision. It uses machine vision to detect smoke and can link to incident command centers to notify fire officials when a plume of smoke appears.

Shoots said hand crews are back as strike teams, and that air support is stronger than ever with both helicopters and fixed-wing. Among the agencies providing helicopters are Cal Fire, the city and county of San Diego, SDG&E, the U.S. Forestry Department, and Camp Pendleton.

Cal Fire also has 24 engines plus tankers at its disposal. Its hand crews are now paid seasonal workers rather than from the prisoner work program.

With the recent Northern California fires, two local strike teams were dispatched north by Cal Fire, each with five engines and a chief.

"They need help, so we help," Shoots said. "That's how we work here."

The North County Fire District has five stations in the Fallbrook-Bonsall-Rainbow area. The district's primary service area is about 90 square miles with an estimated population of 52,000 people.

Chief McReynolds said fire suppression in the NCFPD is provided by highly trained firefighters operating state-of-the-art fire apparatus from each station. Every station houses a Type 1 fire engine, which is designed to fight structure fires and respond to medical emergencies. The district also operates several Type 3 engines that are specifically designed and equipped to fight vegetation fires. Firefighters and apparatus routinely participate in the State of California's mutual aid system, responding to fires as far away as northern California.

By working with Cal Fire and other organizations, residents in the NCFD can rest assured they are being protected.

 

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