By Marsha Smith, Publisher

Kern Valley Sun, 8/18/2009

I attend many meetings around our valley and in doing so many times I hear the same speakers. Often the speaker's program is the same but usually I still pick up something I missed the first time around. Over the years I have been present for many presentations by our local Kern River Valley Fire Safe Council. Although the basic principals are the same, I always come away with new information and amazement at the accomplishments of the Fire Safe Council members; each presentation is for me a new experience.

All organizations require people devoting their time to make their mission a reality and the Fire Safe Council is no exception. Recently I learned they are on a quest for new members so I thought I would help them spread the word.

K.R.V. Fire Safe Council originated in 2000 and is one of the first fire safe councils to be formed in California. They are a non-profit, 501c3, organization and all volunteer. The work they do to promote fire protection awareness is truly awesome and I take every chance I get to promote their efforts. I urge those of you who want to make a difference in our community to look their way to donate your time. They need your help and you will certainly feel rewarded for making our valley a safer place to live.

Their Mission Statement: "To provide awareness through education and information exchange, and to facilitate interagency coordination, fire protection and fire safety projects within the Kern River Valley." They partner with the Kern County Fire Department, Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, the business community, property owners associations, civic groups and individuals to make their mission statement not just a promise but also a reality.

These are some of the projects currently being undertaken:

Hazardous fuel reduction grant projects: 2009 - $185,5000 and 2010 - $206,800. These projects clear fuel breaks around and in communities. The projects take place on private property where the activity would benefit the communities and are fully coordinated with the U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management projects on immediately adjacent lands. Previous projects include: Isabella Highlands/Sawmill/Hungry Gulch; Rodgers Road (Kernville); Meyers Canyon (Bodfish); Alta Sierra Community; Kennedy Meadows; Current and Future projects: Bodfish Canyon Phases 1, 2 (2009) and Phase 3 for 2010; Piute Meadows (Walker Basin) and Pala Ranches 2009 (Wofford Heights) and Burma (Kernville) for 2010.

Community Wildfire Protection Plans include: Kern River Valley; Alta Sierra; Meyers Canyon and Kennedy Meadows. These plans define a spectrum of activities to make communities safer. They include programs to help homeowners make their property more fire safe and define needed community hazardous fuel breaks. The Kern River Valley Plan was a pioneering document that became a model for similar plans throughout California. It is still their primary guiding document and is updated annually. Copies are in our local libraries.

KRV 16 Demonstration Lots: Illustrated what defensible space should look like.

Wildfire Awareness Week (usually the 2nd week of May) event: "Living With Wildfire" newspaper inserts for the past five years; Vons parking lot educational displays; Home Ignition Zone Workshop event with home assessments in the KRV; Wildfire poster contest for elementary school children with savings bonds given for prizes; Fire Safe Council presentation each year to the Kern County Board of Supervisors; sponsorship of the High Desert Fire Prevention programs for elementary schools.

Highway billboards: Four signs in the KRV and Havilah displaying wildfire/home fire prevention reminders. Signs are rotated quarterly to reflect seasonal concerns.

Chipper Days: The group purchased a chipper with BLM grant funds and is maintained and operated by the Kern County Fire Department. The Fire Safe council works with property owner associations, businesses and neighborhood groups to schedule chipper days. They conducted six chipper days events in 2008. Four chipper day events have been completed thus far for 2009, with at least three more to be scheduled. Camp Erwin Owen wards assist the KCFD crew by hauling cut brush to the chipper site. This is free to the residents other than a provided lunch for the crew and Camp Owen wards and a porta-potty.

Their website is kept up to date with educational information, minutes and contacts/links: www.krvfiresafecouncil.org.

Fundraising efforts supports all of the above activities, with the exception of grant-funded projects. Their proposed budget for 2009 is $6,427. Thus far donations total $2,194 for 2009.

KRV FSC Collaborative holds an annual meeting of the Fire Safe Council, Kern County Fire Department, Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Forest Service to identify and fully coordinate future hazardous fuel reduction and mitigation projects; prioritize projects and incorporate results into the Kern River Valley Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP) copies of which are located in our local Libraries.

Monthly meetings are held the third Thursday each month (except December) in Supervisor McQuiston's conference room, 7050 Lake Isabella Blvd., Lake Isabella, CA. Board meeting - 8:30 a.m., stakeholders meeting held at 9:30 AM.

By Robin Wyatt-Little

Kern Valley Sun, 8/19/2009

Lake Isabella-Bodfish Property Owners Association hosted the Kern River Valley Fire Safe Council at their Aug. 12 meeting. Presenters were Debbie Santiago of the Bureau of Land Management, Battalion Chief Dennis Monahan of Kern County Fire Department and Robin Wyatt Little, Kern River Valley Fire Safe Council (KRV FSC.)

Home Ignition Zones and the Ember Phenomenon were the subjects of the power point program. Debbie Santiago, Wildland Fire Mitigation and Education Specialist, took the audience step-by-step through the process of evaluating home and property for ignition zones where flying embers can settle, smolder and start spot fires. She stressed that often, following the initial wildfire, embers are lodged in nooks and crannies, able to smolder for hours, then igniting a fire. Many times this occurs after firefighting personnel have left the area.

Specifically, areas of concern are roof, foundation and eave vents with larger than 1/8 inch covering which embers can enter; gutters with a build-up of leaves and pine needles; fire wood stacked against a house or outbuilding; pet doors left unlocked when no one is home which can allow embers to be blown into the interior of the house; low decks without 1/8 inch screening to prevent leaf litter build up and ember intrusion; mobile homes without adequate skirting, allowing ember intrusion; brooms, cleaning supplies etc. stacked against a structure; tile roofs lacking end and ridge caps which prevent bird nests and ember intrusion; fire safe landscaping spaced properly and 5 feet from a structure wall; wood fences attached to a house or other buildings (separate with a masonry post); patio furniture pillows left outside when residents are not home and broken windows which allow flying ember intrusion.

Santiago stressed that if it's attached to the house it's part of the house. She asked the audience to walk their property and try to imagine where embers might land and what was available to feed a fire. Experience has shown it's the little things that can lead to the destruction of a home.

Santiago thanked the audience for all the defensible space treatment work they have done on their properties. She commented that this is much more evident in the KRV than eight years ago when the Fire Safe Council was in its infancy.

The Fire Safe Council invites individuals, property owner associations, civic groups and business owners to participate in their monthly meetings held the third Thursday of each month in Supervisor McQuiston's conference room, Lake Isabella. For information about chipper days and meetings please call Robin Wyatt Little at 376-6842 or check the website at krvfiresafecouncil.org.

By Mike Devich
Kern River Courier, 5/15/2009

The vegetation in the Kern River Valley is drying out, and as that happens, the chance of a catastrophic wildfire increases.

Here's what you need to know about how to clear your property to be fire safe. And you'd better get started now; the heat is coming.

Get that flammable stuff out of your yard. We provide you with some helpful tips on this page, from the Fire Safe Council.

The Fire Safe Council of the Kern River Valley, which meets on the third Thursday of the month at Supervisor McQuiston's meeting room in Lake Isabella at 9:30 a.m., supplies a lot of material to homeowners, telling them what they recommend homeowners to do and also telling them what state law requires them to do.

They also have a Web site, which tells all about how to defend your home and property from wildfire. Clearing is a most important thing to do for your neighbors' sakes, because if your home is fire safe, fire on your property might not spread to your neighbors' homes as well.

The Web site address is http://www.krvfiresafecouncil.org/

Fire Safe in brief

• Defensible space treatment will help to create a fire-safe area around your home and property.
  
• Clear all weeds within ten feet of all property lines on undeveloped parcels.
  
• Clear all weeds, brush, rubbish and dead trees within a 30 foot distance from any house or structure.
  
• Don't stack combustible materials such as firewood next to your house or other structures.
  
• Clear all combustible materials within 10 feet of your propane tank.
  
• Limb your trees up to a minimum of 6' or to one third of the total height of the tree.
  
• Clear your roof tops of all dried leaves and pine needles. Sweep regularly.
  
• Clean out your gutters of dried leaves and needles.
  
• Cut back tree limbs from roof, at least 10' from your chimney.
  
• Affix ¼" screening to your house vents and chimney opening.
  
• Plant fire resistant landscaping: NO Juniper or Rosemary. Try Vinca or Rock Rose instead.
  
• Plant fire resistant trees: NO Eucalyptus, Cypress or Pine Trees. Try Oregon Ash, Mulberry, Valley Oak or Redbud Trees. Space your trees so they don't compete for the same water. A tree that is stressed is more susceptible to wildfire.
  

Here's how to have a chipper day
May 29, 2009

A Chipper Day is a day in which the Fire Safe Council Chipper is brought to a community or neighborhood by the Kern River Valley Fire Safe Council and the Kern County Fire Department. The chipper will turn branches and shrub material piles into small piles of chips. The chips will be left on the properties. The chipper is maintained and operated by Kern County Fire Department personnel. Cutting and piling material for the chipper is the responsibility of individual property owners.

The Council's policy is to provide chipper days as a community service, regardless of the number of participants, to residents, business, and other groups, so long as the work is done for fuel reduction and the creation of defensible space, and the event is coordinated to make a reasonable day's work for the crew. Experience in the past is that in a typical residential community, service to 10 or more properties is needed to provide a reasonable day's work.

The council schedules the chipper day for a neighborhood, working with property owner associations or other neighborhood groups. These groups must actually organize the chipper day. For questions, contact Tom Parkin, 661-331-7502 (cell).

To organize a Chipper Day -- Follow the directions on the "Chipper" page on this web site.

Spate of lightning fires reminds us to clear away flammable material
June 5, 2009

A quick lightning storm that passed through the valley Wednesday morning apparently caused a number of fires from lightning strikes.

Local firefighters from the U.S. Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management and Kern County Fire Department responded quickly to the fires.

The "Old" fire, located a mile away from the Democrat Fire Station on the Old Kern Canyon Road, was about 40 acres by press time. The seven acre "China 1" and the 25-acre "China 2" were located on the north side of the river, at China Gardens, in the lower Kern Canyon.

The "Windy" fire was located about a half-mile west of the Greenhorn Summit Station, along the Windy Gap Road. "Windy" was 1 ½ acres, creeping slowly, and burning in heavy fuels.

Division Chief Mike Ryan with the U.S. Forest Service said, "We are making progress towards containment on these fires largely due to the adequate number of resources available and the precipitation that came with the storms."

At the time over 100 firefighters were taking suppression action on the four fires, which represented a total of 53 acres. Two air tankers and two helicopters were also involved in the suppression action.

Property owners should take note of the fire dangers that exist in our communities. Please be sure to have "Defensible Space" around your property completed.

Wildland Fuel Reduction Area

The Wildland Fuel Reduction Area usually lies beyond the residential landscape area where wild plants grow. Within this area:

• Remove all dead vegetation (dead shrubs, dried grass, fallen branches, pine needles, etc.).
  
• Thin out thick shrubs and trees to create a separation between them.
  
• Remove "ladder fuels" by removing low tree branches. Remove or prune the shrubs under the tree.
  
• If using a mower during fire season, mow before 10:00 a.m. to prevent an ignition.

By Catherine Saillant
LA Times,  6/15/2009

Santa Barbara Fire Capt. David Sadecki was on his way to an emergency call last summer when he noticed a man on a tractor mowing tinder-dry grass in a field during the hottest part of the day.

After they finished their call, Sadecki and his crew returned to confront the man.

"He was just trying to clear this field for his boss," Sadecki recalled. "But he was doing it at the wrong time, in the heat of the day. All it would take is one spark to start a fire."

As California enters another fire season, officials say it's still all too common to find property owners and their employees unwittingly doing the right thing in the wrong way.

More than 1,600 fires are started each year by people improperly using mowers, weed trimmers, tractors and other power equipment to clear vegetation. Improper use of power equipment -- working without spark arresters, for example, or trimming or cutting during the hot afternoon hours -- is the single largest factor in accidentally set blazes, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.

Most are quickly extinguished. But a few grow into roaring wildfires that destroy homes, tax the state's firefighting capacity and cost taxpayers tens of millions of dollars to battle.

In May, flames from the Jesusita wildfire in Santa Barbara roared across mountaintops for nearly a week, destroying 80 homes and injuring 32 firefighters. Authorities believe the blaze, which cost an estimated $20 million to fight, was sparked in the early afternoon of May 5 by someone using power equipment to clear brush on a hiking trail.

It's a problem born in part of state laws requiring property owners to clear dead vegetation from open fields and to create a 100-foot buffer around homes in advance of fire season, said Daniel Berlant, a spokesman for the state forestry department. People trying to meet that mandate often don't take proper precautions when using brush-clearing machinery, Berlant said.

"We preach all year round about creating defensible space and clearing brush before wildfires start," he said. "What we see often is homeowners doing it at the wrong time."

Yard maintenance should always be done before 10 a.m. or after 6 p.m., when temperatures are lower and humidity is higher, fire officials say. In wilderness areas, spark arresters are required on gasoline-powered machines, including tractors, harvesters, chain saws and trimmers.

Metal blades striking a hard object can start a fire, so visible rocks should be removed. Officials advise carrying water to douse sparks and to use spark shields on trimmers and mowers.

The forestry department promotes the safety message each spring with public service announcements on radio and television, Berlant said. Fire prevention specialists talk to homeowners at fairs, festivals and home and garden shows to underscore the importance of being responsible with power equipment.

The agency distributes a brochure titled "Doing the Right Thing the Wrong Way" whenever its staffers meet with the public, he said. Over the last five years, the state has spent an average of $26 million annually on fire prevention, which includes public education campaigns, said Janet Upland, a deputy director with the department.

That figure could dip significantly in coming months as the state deals with a budget shortfall of up to $24 billion, said department Chief Del Walters.

Walters is proposing a fire prevention budget of $21.8 million for the 2009-10 fiscal year, a drop of nearly 30% from the current year's $30.9 million. Walters downplayed the reduction, saying it is preliminary and that its chief effect would be on the number of fire marshals assigned to the prevention unit, not on public education efforts.

"Certainly, if there is any area in my budget that I'd like to reinforce, it would be prevention," Walters said. "We'll have to look closely at where our cuts will come from."

Santa Barbara County prosecutor Jerry Lulejian doesn't think it's a matter of creating new laws. There are plenty on the books that strike a balance between activities likely to start a fire and people's responsibility for those activities, said Lulejian, who has prosecuted several cases involving blazes set by accident.

But people are either ignorant of the law or don't understand that their activities could ignite a fire, he said.

That was the case with a couple of ranch workers who accidentally started the Zaca wildfire in 2007, one of the largest in state history. On July 4, foreman Jose Cabrera and Santiago Cervantes were using grinding tools to repair a watering trough when a spark flew at least 10 feet, igniting the blaze.

It burned for nearly two months, consuming almost 375 square miles of wilderness and costing an estimated $118 million to fight.

The pair were unaware that they needed a hot-work permit. Cabrera pleaded guilty to a single misdemeanor count of negligence for using the grinder. Along with the ranch's owners, Cabrera also agreed to create a video cautioning property owners about how to safely use power tools in dry areas, Lulejian said.

By Robin Wyatt-Little

Kern Valley Sun, 6/2/2009

In 2003 the Kern River Valley Fire Safe Council selected 16 parcels throughout the Kern River Valley to help residents understand what defensible space treatment should look like. The Kern County Fire Department crews limbed up trees, chipped dead fuels and cleared the lots of dried grass and flammable materials, leaving bushes spaced according to fire safe guidelines.

On Saturday, May 23, Kern County Fire Department Captain Mike Heffner, Engineer Matt Dickerson and Fireman David Derr enlisted the help of Camp Owen Wards in refreshing the demonstration lot on Evans Road. This is the first demonstration lot cleaning with more to follow.

Owen Supervisor Jared Martinez, Kern County Fire Department personnel and these eight young men, using hand tools and weed eaters, cleared the lot so that residents once again have a visual reminder of what defensible space looks like.

By Susan Barr

Kern Valley Sun, 5/5/2009

Last Sunday morning, the bay doors of Kern County Fire Department Station #72 were flung wide open. It wasn't to make way for fire trucks making a speedy exit, but rather to provide room for valley residents eager to participate in the first annual "Keep Your Home Safe from Wildfire" Workshop.

Lloyd Smith, President of the KRVFSC welcomed everyone and provided a brief overview of the non-profit organization that is manned completely by volunteers. He told the gathered crowd, "The council's vision is to ultimately create a wildland fire-safe community in the Kern River Valley."

They hope to accomplish this by raising awareness and exchanging information at events like the weekend's workshop. He shared that the overall theme was "Take Responsibility - Learn to Live with Wildfire." The event was also being held to draw attention to National Wildfire Awareness Week (May 3-9).

"The Forest Service is definitely using science to help win the battle against wildfires," said Scott Williams, Fire Management Officer with the local USFS District. He used a PowerPoint presentation to show how Web cams placed in remote areas provide valuable air quality information on smoke from existing fires.

He also showed how satellite images are used to monitor fires, to illustrate how rapidly they are spreading and the direction in which they are moving. Williams also demonstrated high tech computer programs that are used to analyze data that can monitor and predict wind patterns.

Kern County Fire Department Station 72 in Lake Isabella was the first stop on Sunday's "Keep Your Home Safe from Wildfire" workshop. Additional properties in the area were assessed for the creation of a defensible space around the property, reduction of hazardous fuels, and planting firewise landscaping.

Guest speaker, Pat Durland, a Wildfire Safety Consultant out of Boise, Idaho gave attendees an overview of wildfires and the challenges that they pose for both homeowners and firefighters. He stated, "Various factors such as budgetary constraints, ever-increasing population growth, and continuing drought conditions are making it harder and harder for firefighting agencies to do their job," Durland said. "As a result, homeowners must take on the responsibility of making their homes fire safe."

He shared valuable information on the 'little things' such as, creating a defensible space around your home and property, reducing hazardous fuels around your property, installing and maintaining firewise landscaping, that homeowners can do to make a huge difference in protecting their homes and surrounding property from a wildfire. Building or remodeling with fire safe building material is recommended, Durland added.

Interested citizens roamed around inside the station looking at informative displays, collecting free materials and asking questions of the representatives of agencies and organizations participating in the event. The May 3 workshop was put on free of charge by the Kern River Valley Fire Safe Council (KRVFSC) in conjunction with the Kern County Fire Department (KCFD), the United States Forest Service (USFS) and the Bureau of Land Management (BLM).

Event Coordinator, Gordon Ehmann then led the participants by car caravan through Lake Isabella to Bodfish to view the ongoing Bodfish Fuel Reduction Project alongside Bodfish Canyon Road. After enjoying lunch in a field overlooking Bodfish Canyon, it was time to go on a guided tour to view a local Defensible Space Demonstration Lot and the Meyers Canyon Fuelbreak. Durland and Deborah Santiago of BLM, then took participants through the process of conducting hazard assessments on several local homes whose owners had been kind enough to offer access to the group.

Ehmann stated that KRVFSC hopes to put on a similar event again next year. He added, "Everyone who attended today's workshop now has some hands-on knowledge that they can put to good use and easily share with others. You could say that they now have an educated eye when it comes to assessing potential wildfire hazards." If the enthusiastic response by the participants is any indication, they'll surely be back again next year with friends and family in tow.

Kern County Fire Department Station 72 in Lake Isabella was the first stop on Sunday's "Keep Your Home Safe from Wildfire" workshop. Additional properties in the area were assessed for the creation of a defensible space around the property, reduction of hazardous fuels, and planting firewise landscaping.

By Barbara Likens

Kern Valley Sun, 4/28/2009

With the fire season upon us and the state telling us there are limited funds to fight fires, it behooves us all to know more about Chipper Days. We can't "prevent" all wildfires; they will always happen, but we can minimize the destruction and do much to keep our homes safer, one of which is defensible space treatment.

Chipper Days can be a community, fun event. On a "Chipper Day" the Fire Safe Council Chipper is brought to a community neighborhood. A joint effort of the Kern River Valley Fire Safe Council and the Kern County Fire Department, the chipper will turn branches and shrub materials into small piles of chips. The chips will be left behind so that individuals can use them in garden projects.

By Robin Little

By Robin Little

Keyesville Chipper Day

By Barrie Mann