Volunteers keep an eye out for smoke, sparks
People are aiming to help fire departments get ahead of brush fires
The coronavirus is keeping most people at home this weekend, but Pat Barrett has his own plans for the Fourth of July.
Barrett and his wife, Penny, will be spending Saturday at a fire station by Foothills Park in Palo Alto, face masks and binoculars handy. From their perch, they’ll be able to spot any smoke or sparks that could lead to a brush fire in the hills and radio it in so fire crews can snuff it out.
Volunteers like Barrett are chipping in as fire departments across the Bay gear
up for the holiday and the fire danger that typically comes with it. This year, complaints about illegal fireworks are already at an unusual high. Between the fireworks and the hot, dry conditions, some departments already are seeing an increase in fires.
“It’s incredibly challenging,” said Robert Lipp, an assistant chief at the Oakland Fire Department. “We’ve had several fires that have been either directly threatening or nearly threatening homes due to the fireworks. And this is happening earlier than it has in the past.”
Just last Sunday, 56 Oakland firefighters battled a 2.5-acre blaze in the Oakland hills, believed to have been sparked by illegal fireworks, and the department will have roving patrols looking for signs of trouble during the long holiday weekend.
Fire departments are doing what they can, but monitoring large stretches of hills, parks and open space for brush fires is a tall task. That’s why some cities are working with teams of volunteers to get more eyes and ears on their parks. Many of them, including Barrett and Jim Duarte in Oakland, are hobbyists — amateur radio operators whose interests are perfectly suited to aiding emergency services.
“It’s extremely valuable,” said Kenneth Dueker, chief of Palo Alto’s Office of Emergency Services, of the volunteers. “We do not have enough … paid professional first responders to cover what needs to be covered. We have some limited cameras, but nothing beats humans … to detect an unsafe condition and report that back.”
As part of Palo Alto’s Emergency Services Volunteer team, Barrett has been called on to help the city in numerous ways. Many of the public events that the volunteers normally assist with have been canceled amid COVID-19, so they’ve spent the downtime checking in on neighbors sheltering in place.
“We might be spotters in a parade who report back to their central group as to how large the crowd is or whether there’s an incident going on,” Barrett said. “We’ve gone out on creek watches … when water is getting too high.”
In Oakland, Duarte organizes patrols for the Radio Amateur Communications Services (RACES). He’ll be spending Saturday on the road, patrolling the hills for signs of fire.
According to Lipp, fireworks-related fires have increased significantly in Oakland in recent weeks, most recently a blaze in Oak Knoll/Golf Links area. Complaints about illegal fireworks have increased as well.
He stressed the importance of spotting and reaching fires early, which RACES has helped with.
“It’s a (big help),” Lipp said. “Instead of not finding out about it until there’s significant fire growth, we can get there either before it even occurs or at the very least get there as the fire is still in its smaller stages so we have a head start on it.”
Duarte and Barrett aren’t expecting very much trouble this year because many people are staying home, and most public fireworks displays have been canceled. But the glut of illegal fireworks changes everything, and the volunteers know the risk of letting a fire go unnoticed. Amid the COVID-19 lockdown, they’re happy to get out of the house and help.
“It’s very scenic,” Duarte said. “If the fog doesn’t roll in we should have extremely good views … we enjoy getting out and going for a ride in the country, and keeping the city safe at the same time.”