Amador County – The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection’s Amador-El Dorado Unit announced Tuesday that it will be transitioning to the winter staffing levels at area CDF stations, beginning Monday, Nov. 7.
CDF spokeswoman Teri Mizuhara said Cal-Fire will transition into their “winter preparedness” level of staffing beginning at 8 a.m. Monday. She said “this will mean most seasonal fire fighting personnel will be laid off and some fire stations will be closed.” Amador County stations will be closed at Dew Drop, River Pines and Sutter Hill, and El Dorado County stations will be closed at Pilot Hill, Garden Valley, Mt. Danaher, and El Dorado.
Unit Chief Kelly Keenan said the Amador-El Dorado Unit’s “staffing levels are sufficient to respond to any local emergency and Cal-Fire is always prepared to call back additional resources if fire weather conditions change. We make these decisions based on our current and forecasted weather conditions.”
Keenan said CDF “is acutely aware of these challenging economic times and we believe that down staffing at this time is the best decision in order to manage our resources and responsibly administer our budget.”
Current weather conditions offer an excellent opportunity to work on defensible space, he said, to create the 100-foot barrier around homes and outbuildings as defense against wildfire. Keenan said “right now you can pile and burn the vegetation you generate, the time is now.”
Keenan, said burn restrictions have been lifted and, as of Nov. 7, CDF residential burn permits will no longer be required for four by four foot debris piles, of vegetation only.
Local air quality management districts govern burn day and no-burn day status, and Keenan recommended calling the burn information line immediately prior to burning. Also, local air districts may still require a county permit for burning.
For more info on burning safety, defensible space and other fire and life safety topics, visit the Cal-Fire website.
Story by Jim Reece This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
