Cal Fire’s Mendocino Unit to Transition out of Peak Fire Season Starting Monday

Cal Fire image of plane dropping retardant

Plane dropping retardant [Image from Cal Fire]

Press release from Cal Fire:

Recent rains and cooler temperatures across the region have lowered the threat of wildfires allowing CAL FIRE’s Mendocino Unit to transition out of peak fire season effective Monday, November 20th at 12:01 AM in Mendocino County.

CAL FIRE will continue to maintain staffing to meet any potential threat, as well as maintaining the ability to strategically move resources to areas that remain at a higher threat level. CAL FIRE will also continue to monitor weather conditions closely and still has the ability to increase staffing should weather conditions change or if there is a need to support wildfires or other emergencies in other areas of the State.

The 2017 fire season has been an extremely active year, even more so than in 2016. Statewide, CAL FIRE and firefighters from many local agencies responded to over 6,000 wildfires within the State Responsibility Area that burned nearly 505,000 acres. In the Mendocino Unit, CAL FIRE responded to 240 wildfires that charred 39,736 acres. In addition to the 240 wildfires, CAL FIRE, along with local fire departments, responded to 190 structure fires and 856 other fires.

During the cooler winter months, CAL FIRE will continue to actively focus efforts on fire prevention and fuels treatment activities as guided by the State’s Strategic Fire Plan and localized Unit fire plans. These will be done through public education, prescribed burns and various types of fuel reduction. These activities are aimed at reducing the impacts of large, damaging wildfires and improving overall forest health.

Residents are urged to still take precautions outdoors in order to prevent sparking a wildfire. A leading cause of wildfires this time of year is from escaped landscape debris burning. Before you burn, ensure it is a permissive burn day by contacting the Mendocino Air Quality District (707) 463-4391 and then make sure you have any and all required burn permits. During burning, make sure that piles of landscape debris are no larger than four feet in diameter, provide a 10-ft. clearance down to bare mineral soil around the burn pile and ensure that a responsible adult is in attendance at all times with a water source and a shovel.

For more ways to burn safely visit www.ReadyForWildfire.org.

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Lundbar Hillbilly
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Lundbar Hillbilly
6 years ago

Thank you CalFire for all your hard work this past season. I can’t imagine where we would be without you, but we would be much worse off than we were.