With Red Flag Warnings issued throughout much of Northern California, the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES) has strategically prepositioned critical firefighting resources to include strike teams of fire engines, firefighters, hand crews, water tenders, helicopters, dispatchers and overhead staff in five counties. In addition to already prepositioned resources in Sierra and Nevada counties, firefighting personnel also have been deployed to Contra Costa and Sonoma counties as well as Sacramento.
Resources were deployed to Sacramento to allow for flexibility to respond from a centralized location to any of the areas affected by the fire weather.
The prepositioned fire resources include:
Sacramento: 5 OES Type 1 Engines, 5 OES Type 3 Engines
Contra Costa County: 3 Local Government Type 1 Engines, 2 Local Government Type 3 Engines, 1 Local Government Type 2 Dozer, 2 Local Government Type 2 Water Tenders, 1 Helicopter, 1 Type 2 IA Crew, 2 IMT Members
Sonoma County: 2 Local Government Type 3 Engines, 2 Local Government Type 6 Engines, 1 Local Government Type 1 Water Tender, 1 Dispatcher, 2 IMT Members
Sierra County: 2 Local Government Type 3 Engines, 2 Local Government Type 6 Engines, 2 Local Government Type 2 Dozers, 1 Local Government Type 1 Water Tender, 1 IMT Member
Nevada County: 1 Dispatcher
A strike team includes five fire engines with 15 firefighters and a strike team leader.
The National Weather Service is forecasting widespread Red Flag weather conditions through Friday evening. A Red Flag Warning means that critical fire weather conditions are either occurring now, or will shortly. A combination of strong winds, low relative humidity, and warm temperatures can contribute to extreme fire potential and erratic fire behavior.
Click here to see the National Weather Service’s Red Flag warnings.
The public is urged to remain aware of their surrounding conditions and to avoid outdoor activities that can cause a spark near dry vegetation, such as yard work, target shooting, or campfires and follow local fire restrictions. The public is also reminded to have an emergency plan in place, emergency preparedness kits at home and vehicles full of fuel. Sign-up for emergency alerts, listen to local authorities and warnings, and be prepared to evacuate if necessary.
The Cal OES Warning Center and State Operations Center will monitor conditions and be ready for further resource requests as necessary throughout the Red Flag period.
For more from Cal OES, visit CalOES.ca.gov and follow us on Twitter @Cal_OES.