East County News Service

February 27, 2025 (Washington D.C.) -- U.S. Senator Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) joined 14 other Democratic Senators in urging senior Trump Administration officials to reverse the hiring and onboarding freeze of federal seasonal firefighters that they say threatens the safety of communities in California and across the nation. The Trump Administration’s January 20 hiring freeze of federal civilian employees inexplicably did not exempt federal seasonal firefighters, despite exempting other critical public safety personnel. 

Federal seasonal firefighters risk their lives to protect communities and save lives. According to a press release issued by Padilla, "This hiring freeze is particularly dangerous as we ramp up staffing and training ahead of peak wildfire season.”

While Padilla secured a temporary pay raise for wildland firefighters in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, recruitment and retention remain significant challenges as firefighters work long hours with insufficient pay.   The attrition rate of firefighters at the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) has been 45 percent over the past four years — making the hiring freeze at USFS, the Bureau of Land Management, and the National Park Service all the more dangerous.

“The Administration must not sacrifice the safety of the American people for the benefit of implementing a political agenda,” wrote the Senators. “We urge you to immediately reverse course, begin hiring and onboarding seasonal firefighters again, and continue supporting and growing the federal firefighting workforce.   The bottom line is this: pausing the hiring and onboarding of federal seasonal firefighters — while historic wildfires destroy communities and upend livelihoods across the West — is simply irresponsible and dangerous. We will be woefully unprepared to fight the fires to come and instead will continue to see record levels of damage, ultimately costing communities and taxpayers even more at a time when the cost of living is already too high.”

Wildfires are increasing in frequency and destructiveness in California and across the nation.  Last month, the devastating Southern California fires, including the Palisades and Eaton Fires, burned over 57,000 acres and destroyed over 16,200 structures, claiming the lives of at least 29 victims. Nationally, over 64,800 fires burned 9 million acres in 2024, up from approximately 56,500 wildfires and 3 million acres in 2023. The rise in catastrophic wildfires demands even more seasonal firefighter hiring — not a freeze.

In addition to Senators Padilla and Rosen, the letter was also signed by Senators Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.), Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.), Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.), Angus King (I-Maine), Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), and Ron Wyden (D-Ore.).

Senator Padilla has consistently pushed to protect our wildland firefighting force. Last month, Padilla reintroduced the bipartisan Wildland Firefighter Paycheck Protection Act to protect the pay raise he secured for wildland firefighters in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. In 2023, Padilla and a bipartisan group of Senators urged Senate leadership to avoid mass resignations within the wildland firefighter ranks by ensuring the prompt passage of their bipartisan legislation. Padilla and a bipartisan group of Senators also urged the Biden Administration to establish a special pay rate for federal wildland firefighters to prevent staffing shortages and strengthen wildfire response efforts in 2022. Following that request, the Biden Administration announced a temporary pay raise.  Additionally, Padilla’s Wildfire Emergency Act, announced last week, would establish a prescribed fire-training center in the West and authorize grants to support training the next generation of foresters and firefighters, among other important fire mitigation efforts.

Full text of the letter is available here.

By G. A. McNeeley 

February 15, 2025 (El Cajon) - The El Cajon City Council, city  staff, Heartland Fire Department and labor representatives came together on Wednesday to discuss possible short-term options, to staff a newly purchased fire engine, after a grant failed to fund. 

Last year, the City Council explored options to augment fire and medical response coverage throughout the city. The Council directed staff to acquire an additional fire engine and seek a grant to fund the staff to operate that engine. Although the engine was acquired, the City was not successful in obtaining the grant. Their intent was to operate the engine (E-208) out of Station 8 as a full service vehicle, staffed with nine new employees. The grant would have paid for the majority of those employees. 

On February 12,  a workshop was held at the El Cajon City Council Chambers to discuss options that the City Council may wish to pursue in light of not receiving the grant. As part of its presentation, staff provided an update on data presented in 2024. The staff also presented short-term options for the City Council to consider. 

Background Information 

Staff reported that call volumes have been going up for the fire department in recent years. 

For example, the fire department received 9,556 calls for response in 2003, 10,246 calls in 2008, 11,863 calls in 2013, 15,802 calls in 2018, 17,928 calls in 2023, and 17,574 calls in 2024. 

Between 9:00 a.m. and 8:00 p.m. are the busiest hours for Heartland Fire Department in El Cajon. 

El Cajon’s turnout time is an average of 2:00 minutes, with a total response average of 9:22 minutes. You can compare this to La Mesa and Lemon Grove, who have a turnout time with an average of 2:17 minutes and 2:05 minutes respectively, and a total response average of 10:47 minutes and 9:28 minutes respectively. 

Turnout Time & Total Response per Station: Station 6 (1:56 & 9.21), Station 7 (1:57 & 10:57), Station 8 (2:08 & 9:03), and Station 9 (1:58 & 10:23). 

2,512 calls were made in 2023, and 2,567 calls were made in 2024, into the city. That is a change of +2.2%. 1,743 calls were made in 2023, and 1,895 were made in 2024, outside of the city. That is a change of +8.7%. That is a difference of 769 calls in 2023, and 672 calls in 2024, or 2.1 calls per day in 2023, and 1.8 calls per day in 2024. 

Aid that was provided between 2023 and 2024 into the city included Station 8 (596 to 546), Station 9 (477 to 496), Station 6 (394 to 416), and Station 7 (276 to 437). 

Aid that was provided between 2023 and 2024 to other cities includes San Miguel (1,430 to 1,487), Lakeside (674 to 710), La Mesa (277 to 254), and Santee (131 to 116). 

The total number of calls made to Congregate Care Facilities in 2023 was 1,648, and the total number of calls made in 2024 was 1,506. That was an average of 4.5 calls per day in 2023, and an average of 4.1 calls per day in 2024. An average of 2.8 calls per day in 2023, and 2.6 calls per day in 2024 were made between 8 AM and 8 PM. An average of 1.2 calls per day in 2023, and 1.3 calls per day in 2024 were given to Engine 8, while an average of 3.2 calls per day in 2023, and an average of 2.8 calls per day in 2024 were given to Engine 6, Squad 6, and Truck 6. The daily average of homeless related calls was 3.7. 

In 2023, 2,540 calls were Low/Mid Acuity Medical (Squad Assessable), 1,286 calls were Complex Medical, and 918 calls were either Fire Related, Traffic Related, Hazard Mitigation, Equipment/Supervisor Required, or Rescue. 

The Response Comparison by Station in 2023 and 2024, included Station 6 (9,327 to 9,032), Station 8 (4,773 to 4,747), Station 9 (2,041 to 1,706), and Station 7 (1,566 to 1,170). 

Short-Term & Long-Term Goals 

The long-term goal for El Cajon is to build a fifth fire station. Their short-term objectives include continuing to reduce citywide calls by using regional nurse navigation, congregate care facilities, and education, and reducing Engine 8 calls to reduce the strain off of Station 6 and reducing the imbalance of Charge Aid. 

Their first short-term coverage option was to add an Advanced AMR at Station 8. The shifts would be 12 hours, and it would operate similarly to Squad 6, but with contracted staff. This would cost $612,149, and reduce calls by 1,750 (or $350 per call, and 4.8 calls per day). This also wouldn't help with training coverage. 

Their second short-term coverage option was fully staffing Engine 208, for 7 days a week, and 12 hour shifts. This would cost $1,733,000, and would reduce calls by 2,220 (or $788 per call, and 6 calls per day). This would also come with hybrid staffing challenges. 

Their third short-term coverage option was fully staffing Engine 208, with 24 hour shifts. This would cost $2,610,000, and would reduce calls by 3,050 (or $856 per call, and 8.35 calls per day). This would mean that the city would no longer be eligible for the SAFER grant. 

Their last short-term coverage option was the one-third option, which involved extra staff on the A-Shift, but no extra staff on B-Shift or C-Shift (they’d have the same amount they already have). However, this option is explained better, later in the article. This would cost $870,000, and reduce calls by 1,575 (or $552 calls per call, and 4.3 calls per day). This would also come with hybrid staffing challenges. 

Where might funding come from for any of the above? 

The staffer provided examples of some city expenditures, which might potentially be reduced: 

Code Enforcement and Online Permitting (2 Planners) costs $750,000. One Forensics Lab costs $1 Million. Four Recreation Centers cost $1 Million. Reducing Non-Public Safety Positions by 5% costs $1 Million. Fire Department Overtime costs $2.64 Million. The Finance Department costs $2.86 Million. 

Opinions 

Simon Garcia, labor representative for “The Local 46,” has been with the city since 2005. He said that they were inclined to go with the full engine staffing with city firefighters (not contracted with AMR). 

“However, as a labor group, we’d like to collaborate with the city council, city staff, and the fire department in order to get to that goal.” 

They were not in favor of the AMR unit, stating that this would be a disservice to the community. An AMR unit doesn't have the same training, and they can’t cover for city firefighters during their unit training. Garcia added, “Our department is very highly trained, and provides the best service to our community, and that would be a decrease in service in our opinion.” 

They were also not inclined to go with the 12-hour option, because it was 66% percent of the cost, with 50% of the coverage. 

However, they were also willing to compromise, by going with some partial staffing, and to try to reapply for the SAFER grant. With this option, they would start out with giving extra coverage to just the A-Shift. The idea they suggested was to slowly be able to hire extra coverage for the B-Shift, and then eventually the C-Shift. 

Most of the speakers were in favor of the full staffing option, and said  that the biggest obstacle is funding. Without going back to voters, for a quarter percent tax increase, the other option would be 5% cut  in staffing across many city departments.

The Council directed City Manager Graham Mitchell to “prepare a budget plan on how to fund the full staffing of Engine 208, with the realization that hiring one company at a time may be more of a reality than the three it requires to run 24/7/365,” according to Mitchell.

The City also hopes to reapply for the SAFER grant this fall.

By Fire Chief Sam DiGiovanna

February 12, 2025 (Temecula) -- Come join us on February 23 at the beautiful South Coast Winery Resort and Spa in Temecula Ca. This event is supported by the California State Firefighters' Association: CSFA.

Smooth Jazz legend Dave Koz will be cohosting this event with Michael Paulo who have added Rick Braun, David Benoit, Chris Walker and Richard Elliott to our lineup. This will be the biggest smooth jazz event of the year and all for a good cause. All artists are donating their time and effort so you can enjoy great entertainment and help those that lost their homes and businesses in the LA fires.

There will be live & silent action items. All fundraising & ticket proceeds will go to help local charities the fire victims. Please come and show your support showing we care and stand together while sending a message of hope to those communities that are trying to recover.

Reserved seating sold out! Limited amount of General Admission seats available . This will sell out. Don’t wait to buy your tickets.

For artist line up and ticket link: TIX.COM. If you would like to purchase please call 951-764-1726. Proceeds to go directly to nonprofit charity.

The South Coast Winery is located at 34843 Rancho California Rd Temecula California 92591 www.apauloproductions.net.

East County News Service

February 12, 2025 (San Diego's East County) -- An atmospheric river is moving into our region, bringing rain today with heavier rain late Thursday and Friday. A flood watch has been issued starting Thursday afternoon through Friday.  

The Pacific storm could bring up to 7 inches on Mt. Palomar, up to 5 inchesin Julian, 2-3 inches in valleys, and up to an inch in some desert areas,  with snow  at higher elevations, up to two inches above 6,000 feet. Strong wind gusts in mountains up to  70 miles per hour and up to 50 mph in deserts are forecast.

California Highway Patrol is warning of winter storm conditions this morning on I-8 east of Willow Road in Alpine.

The  County urges residents to be prepared. Check your home by clearing rain gutters, checking storm drains and if needed, pick up sandbags.  Go to http://AlertSanDiego.org to sign up for county emergency alerts and more tips.

Mudslides are possible in recently burned areas.

The rainfall is needed, since southern California is now in severe drought conditions, according to the National Weather Service.

Dry, warmer weather is expected over the weekend.

By Yvette Urrea Moe, County of San Diego Communications Office

February 11, 2025 (San Diego) - With rainy weather in the forecast, including the chance of flooding in some low-lying areas, emergency officials offer seven safety tips.

If you must drive during heavy squalls, allow yourself extra time, turn on headlights even in the day, and give plenty of space between your vehicle and the one in front of you.

1. When approaching a flooded roadway with moving water, do not attempt to drive through it. It only takes a few inches of water to get a vehicle to float away, and there’s no guarantee the roadway below hasn’t been washed out. You can report flooded roadways or other unsafe road issues in the unincorporated area by calling (877) 684-8000.
2. The same caution is true for pedestrians, if moving water can sweep a car away, it can easily do the same to people. Do not try to wade through a flooded roadway.
3. If your home gets an evacuation warning, or if you feel unsafe, evacuate.
4. Stay informed on adverse weather conditions, with official information from the National Weather Service or news outlets.
5. Visit AlertSanDiego.org for disaster preparedness tips including flooding.
6. To receive emergency alerts for your area, download the Genasys Protect app or in the App Store or Google Play.

East County News Service

Photo: Palisades Fire, courtesy of Lakeside Fire Dept. which helped battle the catastrophic wildfire in Los Angeles County in January

February 11, 2025 (Washington D.C.) -- As Southern California recovers from devastating wildfires, U.S. Senator Alex Padilla, a California Democrat, has introduced a package of three bipartisan bills to bolster fire resilience and proactive mitigation efforts.

The package includes the Wildfire Emergency Act, to support forest restoration, wildfire mitigation, and energy resilience; the Fire-Safe Electrical Corridors Act, to authorize the removal of trees or other vegetation within existing electrical utility corridors; and the Disaster Mitigation and Tax Parity Act, to further incentivize homeowners to proactively protect their homes from disasters.

The package of bipartisan bills comes as Southern California begins the recovery from one of the worst natural disasters in state history. The Palisades and Eaton fires in Los Angeles County burned over 57,000 acres and destroyed over 16,200 structures, claiming the lives of at least 29 victims, according to Cal-Fire.  

“The devastating fires in Southern California are a harsh reminder of the importance of proactive fire mitigation efforts to keep families and homes safe,” said Senator Padilla. “As these disasters become more frequent and more extreme, we need to find smarter solutions to strengthen fire resilience across the country. From expediting the removal of hazardous fuels near power lines, to supporting our wildland firefighting forces, to hardening homes and energy facilities, these commonsense bills would help reduce the threats of catastrophic fires to California communities.”

“Montanans see firsthand the effects that catastrophic wildfires have on our communities. These bipartisan bills will streamline forest management processes to mitigate the root causes of wildfires, improve community and home hardening efforts, and support our brave firefighters. I’ll work every day for more solutions to keep our state safe,” said Senator Steve Daines (R-Mont.), co-lead of the Wildfire Emergency Act and the Fire-Safe Electrical Corridors Act.

“This commonsense legislation takes a critical step toward empowering individuals and communities to better protect themselves from the devastating effects of natural disasters like Hurricane Helene,” said Senator Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), co-lead of the Disaster Mitigation and Tax Parity Act. “By excluding qualified catastrophe mitigation payments from income tax, we are incentivizing property owners to make the necessary improvements that reduce damage and save lives. This proactive approach to disaster preparedness not only helps families rebuild faster but strengthens our resilience in the face of future disasters.”

“We have seen how natural disasters have devastated communities around the country, and we must ensure we have the resources and programs in place to respond. Homeowners should not face additional taxes for wanting to protect their homes and our bipartisan legislation will provide the needed tax relief to help affected Americans recover from these disasters,” said Senator Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), co-lead of the Disaster Mitigation and Tax Parity Act.

“Louisianans understand the impact of devastating storms, but with the help of state and local programs, we have tools to rebuild and return to wholeness,” said Dr. Bill Cassidy (R-La.), co-lead of the Disaster Mitigation and Tax Parity Act. “If communities need tax relief, let’s give it to them!”

Wildfire Emergency Act

This sweeping legislation, co-led by Senator Daines, would reduce the threat of destructive wildfires through forest restoration, firefighter training, energy resilience retrofits, and wildfire-hardening home modifications in low-income communities. This bipartisan bill would take numerous steps to ensure that the Department of Agriculture (USDA), the Department of Energy (DOE), and the Department of the Interior (DOI) are better able to mitigate the risk and impact of wildfires. 

Specifically, the legislation would:

• Provide the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) with a pilot authority to leverage private financing to increase the pace and scale of forest restoration projects. The USFS would be able to expand up to 20 existing collaborative forest restoration projects using this pilot authority.
• Authorize funding for programs to expand the forest conservation and wildland firefighting workforce.
• Establish an energy resilience program at DOE to ensure that critical facilities remain active during wildfire disruptions, authorizing up to $100 million for necessary retrofits.
• Expand an existing DOE weatherization grant program to provide up to $13,000 to low-income households to make wildfire-hardening retrofits, such as ember-resistant roofs or gutters.
• Expedite the placement of wildfire detection equipment on the ground, such as sensors or cameras, as well as the use of space-based observation.
• Establish a prescribed fire-training center in the West and authorize grants to support training the next generation of foresters and firefighters.

• Authorize up to $50 million to support community grants of up to $50,000 for locally focused land stewardship and conservation.

A one-pager on the bill is available here.

Full text of the bill is available here.

Fire-Safe Electrical Corridors Act

This bill, co-led by Senator Daines, would allow the U.S. Forest Service to approve the removal of hazardous trees and other vegetation near power lines on federal forest lands without requiring a timber sale, reducing the risk of catastrophic wildfires through easier material removal. The legislation advanced last year through the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources as part of the Promoting Effective Forest Management Act of 2023.

Three of the largest and most destructive wildfires in California history — the 2017 Thomas Fire, the 2018 Camp Fire and the 2021 Dixie Fire — were started by electrical equipment. Together, these wildfires burned more than 1.2 million acres, destroyed more than 15,000 homes, and killed 87 people.

Currently, the USFS allows utility companies to cut down trees and branches in existing utility corridors, but some forest managers interpret the law to forbid removal of the material off the land. This creates uncertainty and can lead to an unnecessary buildup of dead, dry fuels directly under utility lines. This bill would help reduce the risk of wildfires on forest lands by ensuring the clearing of existing corridors and give certainty to utilities.

The legislation would also require any utility that sells marketable forest products from hazardous trees removed near power lines to return any proceeds to the USFS.

A one-pager on the bill is available here.

Full text of the bill is available here.

Disaster Mitigation and Tax Parity Act

This bipartisan legislation, co-led by Senators Tillis, Cassidy, and Schiff would provide a tax exemption on payments from state-based programs for homeowners to proactively harden their homes against natural disasters.

Specifically, the bill excludes from gross income calculations any qualified catastrophe mitigation payment made under a state-based catastrophe loss mitigation program. Qualifying payments are defined as any amount received and used for improvements to an individual’s property for the sole purpose of reducing the damage that would be done by a windstorm, earthquake, flood, or wildfire.

California, North Carolina, and Louisiana are among the states that provide funding to homeowners who take steps to protect their homes from natural disasters. These improvements can include removing trees, bushes, and other fire-prone vegetation close to homes that contribute to wildfires, strengthening foundations to protect against earthquakes, and installing fortified roofs to withstand hurricanes.

However, homeowners are currently required to pay federal taxes on these payments, unnecessarily limiting money available for critical disaster-related upgrades. This fix will bring parity to the tax treatment of disaster mitigation efforts and ensure taxpayers are able to put the full amount of these payments toward securing their homes.

Senators Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), Ted Budd (R-N.C.), John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.), John Kennedy (R-La.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), and Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) are cosponsoring the legislation.

Full text of the bill is available here.

 Last month, Padilla introduced another package of three bipartisan bills to strengthen wildfire resilience and rebuilding efforts through legislation including the Wildland Firefighter Paycheck Protection Act, the Fire Suppression and Response Funding Assurance Act, and the Disaster Housing Reform for American Families Act. His legislation to strengthen FEMA’s wildfire preparedness and response efforts, the FIRE Act, became law in 2022.

East County News Service

Photo, right:  Cleveland National Forest in San Diego County

February 11, 2025 (San Diego) – Congressman Darrell Issa, a San Diego Republican, has introduced the “Green Tape Elimination Act” that seeks to prevent wildfires by exempting all fuel reduction activities on federal lands from these environmental regulations for 10 years.

• The National Environmental Policy Act
• The Endangered Species Act
• The National Historic Preservation Act
• The Clean Air Act
• The Migratory Bird Treaty Act
• The Migratory Bird Conservation Act 
  

"For years, environmental rules have become regulatory ‘green tape’ — locking in dangerous conditions and contradicting common sense reforms," said Rep. Issa. “That’s why this is no time for tinkering around the edges. We can’t wait for the next deadly disaster."

The environmental regulations that would be waived are intended to protect wildlife habitat, natural resources, clean air, historic sites, and recreational uses on public lands such as national parks, national forests, and federal wildlife refuges.

Issa's bill would provide a decade for firefighters to clear brush, cut shrubs, prescribe control burns, and utilize other strategies to stop the fires we know will occur in the future.

San Diego County is home to multiple federal lands including Cleveland National Forest, Bureau of Land Management properties, and federal wlidlife refuges. California has many forested federal lands, including Yosemite National Park.

East County News Service

February 10, 2025 (Lemon Grove) - On Saturday, February 1, the spirit of community and compassion was on full display as Lemon Grove nonprofit organizations joined forces at Treganza Park for a heartfelt fundraiser supporting fire relief efforts in Los Angeles. Over $2,100 was raised, according to a press release from organizers.