June
2008 | by Bettina
Experton
With
the first heat
wave of the
season on a
calm and mildly
windy Sunday
afternoon on
April 27, 100
acres in Los
Penasquitos
Canyon burst
into flames
in only two
hours. The brush
fire led to
the evacuation
of two hundred
and fifty homes
and took 180
firefighters,
two helicopters
and two CalFire
tanker planes
to put out
the fire. The
fire was out
of our sight
but not out
of touch – only
three miles
away from Del
Mar in another
canyon overgrown
with dry brush.
It
has now been
six months since
the October
Witch Creek
fire and with
it the Del Mar
big “Test
of Fire” and
call for action
(www.delmarsandpiper.org).
Indeed, the Del
Mar City Council
took action:
Implementing fire-hazard
home inspections
and zoning changes
to facilitate
hazardous-tree
removal, working
on building-code
changes, reaching
out for brush
clearing in Crest
Canyon , and
issuing a call
for all Del Martians
to clean up their
yards. Many of
us responded
to the call and
also urged for
further regional
action in reaching
out to the City
of San Diego (for
Crest Canyon
) and to the whole
region (regarding
air firefighting).
On
the eve of what
has been predicted
to be an even
drier summer and
riskier fire season,
Crest Canyon has
still been left
untouched and
the overgrown
dense brush is
now ready to ignite.
Furthermore, a
widespread fire
in the Del Mar
hills may quickly
overwhelm our
limited local
firefighting resources,
which makes effective
regional fire
defense a must.
On
November 5
last year, when
the City Council
launched its
Fire Prevention
Program, we
suggested to
the City of
Del Mar to support
building up
the San Diego
regional air
firefighting
capacity using
as a model
the “Pompiers
du Ciel” (the
air firemen)
firefighting air
base of Marseille,
France ( www.pilotesdufeu.com/pompiersduciel/). This
dedicated airbase
has 15 Bombardier “Super
Scooper” airplanes,
command and recognition
aircraft and
other air firefighting
assets. The permanent
airbase counts
88 pilots and
copilots who
are ready for
action and who
conduct preventive
patrols in times
of highest fire
risk. Like San
Diego County ,
the Marseille
region has a dry
Mediterranean
climate prone
to high winds
and disastrous
fires. They too
have developed,
but also have
strongly enforced,
rigid fire-fuel-reduction
laws with much
larger ground-based
firefighting
forces available.
Based on strong
prevention and
enforcement, integrated
air and ground
firefighting forces,
the Pompiers du
Ciel in their
last twenty years
of operation
have played a
key role in eliminating
the devastating
large fires of
the past by mostly
preventing any
fire from getting
larger than 12
acres.
Responding
to this call for
building up regional
air firefighting,
the San Diego
County Board of
Supervisors unanimously
approved on May
6 the interim
plan of leasing
two Super Scooper
airplanes and
a command/recognition
airplane for the
summer/fall fire
season, while
building up an
effective centralized
command and necessary
ground firefighting.
Meanwhile
and starting now,
our first line
of defense remains
in our own hands.
Let's look around
for all the overgrown
brush, eucalyptus
and pine tree
canopies, which
have built up
dangerous fire
fuel next to our
homes and our
neighbors' homes.
Our State's Governor
recently called
for law enforcement
to have his neighbors
in Brentwood clean
up their yards
after being told,
by the firefighters
inspecting his
own home, that
cleaning up his
own property would
not suffice to
protect his home
if his immediate
neighbors would
not clear up their
fire-fuel-loaded
yards!
Since
March this year,
the State has
in fact adopted
a fire-risk zone
map, which places
two thirds of
the Del Mar hills
in the highest
fire-risk zone
(
ftp://frap.cdf.ca.gov/fhszlocalmaps/san_diego/del_mar.pdf ).
With this State
action, scores
of Del Mar properties
are now not only
subject to the
City fire-protection
ordinances, but
also to State
law requiring
that we maintain
proper defensive
space around our
homes. For specific
measures we should
now take to abide
by the law and
foremost protect
our homes before
the next fire
season (which
has already started),
go to the City's
web site at: www.delmar.ca.us/business/NewDevelopment/CityPlanningProjects
Following
on our “Governator's” example
and leadership,
and before calling
the State or Federal
government to
the rescue when
it is too late,
let us all act
as our community
conscience and
become parsimonious “Del
Mar Treeminators”:
From Crest Canyon
to our backyards,
let's urgently
manage, while
preserving, our
green character
and urban forest!
Bettina
Experton is Chair,
Del Mar Finance
Committee
© 2007-08 Del Mar Community Alliance, Inc. All rights reserved.
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