Wake-up call

To the Editor:

County agencies teamed with Cal Fire to successfully contain the recent Washington Fire that threatened to wipe out most of downtown Sonora. Fortunately, wind conditions were not a major threat. This fire was a wakeup call to the wildfire threat and the need to maximize prevention by proper home defense and fuel reduction. This can only be achieved by individual property owners. On a nationwide basis, it has been proven that the Firewise USA program has been the most effective way to do this. It has achieved results by education and encouraging neighbors to help neighbors. Some insurance companies offer discounts to Firewise communities.

Unfortunately, the program here in Tuolumne County lags far behind other counties in California and elsewhere. I started the first Firewise community nearly three years ago. There are now 10. I would have expected at least triple that number with proper county support. The county received a $97,000 grant to help Firewise get started. In my opinion, it was mostly wasted.

Now, we are back to a situation where we do not have a source of funding to do even a simple mailing. Going forward I believe that the program can still become successful. The first step would be for the various Firewise communities to come together and coordinate their activities. The second step would be to create a nonprofit fund probably administered by the Sonora Area Foundation that would encourage tax deductible donations that could be used for ongoing expenses including promotion.

Ed Fernandez

Sonora