BREAKING NEWS – October 30, 2019 Bay Area Firefighters are on the move from the Kincaid Fire and headed to the Easy Fire in Southern California

Menlo Park Fire Protection District

Once the Kincaid Fire reached 30% containment today and favorable weather conditions were predicted for the next 7 days, Bay Area Fire Strike Team 2278TF (TF -Task Force) was immediately released from their Napa pre-positioned location and re-deployed to Simi Valley, in Southern California.  The “Easy Fire” in Ventura County has burned several thousand acres, is threatening at least 6,500 homes and 30,000 people have already been evacuated. The fire is at zero containment and expected to grow.

Strike Team 2278TF prepare to leave Napa - Bay Area Fire Agencies from (L – R) Gilroy, Woodside, Menlo Park, Santa Clara and Palo Alto – Credit Menlo Fire

Getting there won’t be as “easy” as it sounds. It takes time to drive five large fire engines and a command vehicle, with a total of 22 personnel from Northern to Southern California, about 8 hours straight through, if you exclude fuel stops, to be exact, in order to quickly cover the 400 mile trip across the State. Such is Fire Season in California!

       

On the move – “We’re headed to the Easy Fire in Southern California” said Menlo Fire Division Chief Ben Marra, the Strike Team Leader for 2278TF

Fire Chief Schapelhouman said “The blending of the Strike Team fire agency composition, that includes scarcely available units and personnel from two different Counties, represents a “pairing “once frowned upon in years past, but shows a new normal in the California Fire Service due to enormous demand for resources that are also coming from all over the Nation. I just got off the phone with the Strike Team Leader, they are currently on Interstate 5 and hope to arrive at the base camp around mid-night, Wednesday and get checked in. They have already pre-requested to be put into the morning rotation out into the field, they are itching to get into the fire fight. You have to love and respect that, it says a lot about the dedicated men and women who choose this career!”

NOTE: All Menlo Park Fire Protection District Stations are fully staffed and operational

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