SACRAMENTO – California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES) Director Mark Ghilarducci, secured a Fire Management Assistance Grant (FMAG) from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to help ensure the availability of vital resources to suppress the Cave Fire burning in Santa Barbara County. The FMAG also enables local, state and tribal agencies to recover eligible costs.
The fire started on Nov. 25, 2019, and, so far, has burned in excess of 3,300 acres of state and federal land and is threatening thousands of structures in and around the communities of Goleta and Santa Barbara.
Mandatory evacuations are underway and the County of Santa Barbara has declared a local emergency. Portions of the area are also experiencing power outages due to the fire.
Cal OES Fire and Rescue and Southern Region personnel are currently responding in concert with other federal, state and local agencies to address emergency management and mutual aid needs for the incident. The recent sustained high winds have made ideal environment for dangerous fire conditions throughout the region.
Cal OES Fire and Rescue, Law Enforcement and Southern Region personnel are currently working with other response agencies to address all emergency management, law enforcement, evacuation and mutual aid needs for the incident.
The federal Fire Management Assistance Grant, which is provided through the President’s Disaster Relief Fund on cost-share basis, will assist local, state and tribal agencies responding to the fire to apply for 75-percent reimbursement of their eligible fire suppression costs.