California Governor Orders Additional Resources and Personnel to Prepare for Dangerous Fire Season

With California's fire season off to an early start, Governor Schwarzenegger took action today to boost the state's preparedness, raise public awareness and mobilize the state's firefighting personnel and resources by signing an Executive Order at the State Capitol in Sacramento.

While the state's response to last year's devastating fires in Lake Tahoe and across Southern California showed why the state's emergency response system and emergency responders are among the nation's strongest, the state has a responsibility to aggressively prepare for the next, inevitable round of wildfires. Today's action ensures that with rising temperatures, high winds and dry vegetation threatening California, we will be ready to respond.

Today's Executive Order follows last week's letter to the President requesting that federal Modular Airborne Fire Fighting System (MAFFS) capabilities be made available for this wildfire season. Earlier this week, the Governor issued a proclamation declaring May 4-10, 2008 "Wildfire Awareness Week."

The Governor's Executive Order mobilizes critical firefighting resources and personnel to save lives and homes statewide. This order directs the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE) and the state's agencies to take immediate action to protect and prepare our state by:

• Increasing firefighting staffing. CAL FIRE will staff additional fire crews, fire engines, helitack crews, fire bulldozers and equipment, deploy additional fire inspectors, assign additional lookouts and increase staffing for command and control functions.

• Mobilizing aerial resources. CAL FIRE will staff additional aviation resources and make the Supertanker aircraft immediately available.

• Coordinating military resources. CAL FIRE will coordinate with the Office of Emergency Services (OES) and the California National Guard (CNG) for those military resources that may be available for assistance during emergencies.

• Helping local governments prepare. CAL FIRE will continue to expedite the processing of federal contracts and grants to local communities and will also work with OES, Resources and Cal EPA to initiate local government preparedness and training efforts.

• Boosting public awareness and preparedness. CAL FIRE will utilize staff to support a heightened level of fire prevention public awareness and education, including providing information to homeowners on defensible space and California Building and Fire Codes ignition-resistant building materials.

• Enforcing fire prevention laws. CAL FIRE will develop and implement aggressive interdiction plans for enforcing arson and illegal fireworks laws and will also conduct vigorous defensible space inspections.

• Directing inter-governmental coordination and action. In addition to directing collaboration between CAL FIRE, OES, state, federal and local governments, bordering states and Mexico to maximize fire prevention and firefighting capabilities, the Governor orders that:
  • OES deploy their fire engine strike teams as fire threat conditions warrant.
  • CNG prepare its aviation assets and pre-position ground support equipment.
  • CDCR make low-risk inmates available to staff Conservation Camp Fire Crews.
  • Cal EPA and Resources oversee the Climate Action Team's development of measures for wildfire fuels reduction and biomass utilization
  • DGS in coordination with OES, establish short and long-term procurement mechanisms to secure the goods and services that may be required to support communities in an emergency.