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Heat, wind puts crews on alert for wildfires
Congressional panel adds $450 million to spending bill for firefighting and post-fire restoration.
By Carrie Peyton Dahlberg - cpeytondahlberg@sacbee.com
Published 12:00 am PDT Tuesday, May 20, 2008
Story appeared in METRO section, Page B2
With winds expected to kick up again soon, fire officials said Monday the foothill blaze that triggered brief evacuations near Pollock Pines last week cost about $500,000 to suppress.
"We had a lot of folks," 320 personnel along with planes, engines and bulldozers, working from midday Thursday to well into Friday, said Tobie Edmonds, spokesman for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.
The 67-acre blaze was started by a downed power line, he said. It prompted scattered evacuations in the Sierra Springs neighborhood, and a nearby nature education camp sent students home early.
Warm, windy weather is back in the forecast this week, with a "fire weather watch" expected to go into effect at noon Wednesday.
The watch, which is one notch below a red flag warning, is predicted to last through Thursday morning for the Sacramento Valley, said Cal Fire spokesman Daniel Berlant.
In Washington, D.C., the Senate Appropriations Committee is trying to bolster fire readiness by adding $450 million for firefighting and post-fire restoration into an emergency spending bill.
If Congress approves the legislation and President Bush signs it, $350 million would go toward fighting wildfires and $100 million to planting trees and stabilizing soils on scorched wild lands.
After the committee decision Thursday, Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., praised the action in a prepared statement as "major step forward" for California and other fire-prone states.
California usually faces its worst fire risk from August to October, but vegetation is already drier than usual this spring, raising the prospect that things may heat up early.
Last week's blaze should remind people living in wooded areas to keep brush cleared away from homes and to make basic evacuation plans in advance, Edmonds said.
"I watched a few people scramble around, trying to grab everything in the house," he said. "Sometimes there's no time for that."
About the writer:
- Call The Bee's Carrie Peyton Dahlberg, (916) 321-1086.
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