PLEASANTON, Calif. (KRON) — The SCU Lightning Complex fires burning throughout multiple Bay Area counties has now burned over 360,000 acres — marking it the second largest fire in state history.
The fire started on Aug. 16 with multiple fires within the complex and have since merged into one major fire.
“If you look at some of the other in the other areas like Santa Cruz and the LNU Lightning Complex, they’re a higher priority because we’re losing homes, structures and livelihoods of the public,” said David Janssen, Cal Fire Public Information Officer.
“Here we have a lot of ranch lands and for the ranch land the grass is very valuable to cattle ranchers there’s a high priority for them to have grass for their cows otherwise they have to bring it on in.”
The fires have been broken into three zones: Canyon, Calaveras and Deer.
Fire crews have been working around the clock to limit damages but with lacking resources and a higher priority given to surrounding fires throughout the Bay Area — crews continue to be short handed.
“Being such short handed by our personnel right now, we only have about 1,300 personnel on this fire and if we do start getting amber cast we strictly go to saving homes, that’s our primary function,” said Janssen.
“What’s affecting our firefight is the numerous fires we have burning right now, resources are very thin and when resources are thin we have to put them in the higher priority areas.”
Despite being short on personnel and resources, Janssen tells KRON4 News fire crews got some help from the recent weather change.
The region dodged a bullet this week as red flag warnings were lifted as projected additional lightning storms passed the area.
“We just got out of the red flag warning when we’re talking about a red flag warning that means the relative humidity goes down, the temperature goes up and we also have wind on it,” said Janssen.
“When we have a red flag warning of the potential of having ambers being cast about three quarters of a mile ahead of the fire.”
The region the SCU Lightning Complex fires have engulfed is another major challenge that crews will continue to monitor in the coming days.
Janssen says grassland fires are one of the most difficult to battle — prompting a new fire unit to set up base in Gilroy to attempt to put out the fires from the south.
“There’s such a dry ecosystem out there when you’re looking at the grasslands and the grasslands are some of the hardest fires to fight … they’re the fastest moving ones,”
“The ecosystem out here we have Oak Woodlands and under-story grass and brush.”
from KRON4 https://ift.tt/2ExYDXh
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