SACRAMENTO – California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services Director Mark Ghilarducci today 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 Pawnee Fire burning in Lake County. The FMAG also enables local, state and tribal agencies to recover eligible costs.
Photo via CAL FIRE Twitter
The fire started on the evening of Saturday, June 23rd and, so far, has burned at least 1,500 acres and is threatening more than 600 homes in and around the Spring Valley and Clearlake Oaks areas. As many as a dozen structures have burned. The Lake County Sheriff’s Department ordered a mandatory evacuation notice early Sunday morning for the residents of Spring Valley. A shelter has been established at Lower Lake High School, 9430 Lake Street, Lower Lake, CA 95457 (map).
Cal OES Fire and Coastal Region personnel are actively involved with other federal, state and local agencies to address emergency management and mutual aid needs for the incident. The recent high temperature, gusty winds and low humidity have made ideal environment for dangerous fire conditions throughout the region (National Weather Service Red Flag Warning).
CAL FIRE, Lake County Sheriff’s Department, and other mutual aid resources are on scene working in Unified Command. Cal OES is assisting to mobilize mutual aid strike teams and firefighters that may include fire engines, dozers, water tenders and aircraft.
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.
- Find out more information about the Pawnee Fire on CAL FIRE’s Incident website here: http://www.fire.ca.gov/current_incidents/incidentdetails/Index/2080
- Sign up for alerts from Lake County Sheriff’s Department here: http://www.lakesheriff.com
- National Weather Service Red Flag Warnings in California – https://www.wrh.noaa.gov/fire2/cafw/and https://www.wrh.noaa.gov/hazardSummary/?state=ca
- FEMA Fire Management Assistance Grants – https://www.fema.gov/fire-management-assistance-grant-program