The OC fire situation improves

GRAPHIC OF 5 DAYS OF THE SANTIAGO FIRE:

Found this excellent graphic in this morning’s LA Times. (As of Friday, 4:30 p.m.)

THE LATEST:

From the OC Reg “fire central,” as of 12:08 today:

Flames menacing Silverado Canyon have not moved closer and "may not be as threatening as they once were," said Orange County Fire Authority Battalion Chief Kris Concepcion. The Santiago fire continues to burn in the Maple Springs road area above the town. Fire officials stressed that the town was still threatened and still under a mandatory evacuation order.

CONTAINMENT IN SIGHT?

In this morning’s OC Register: Firefighters report progress toward containment of Santiago fire:

After a week of fierce battles with unruly flames that raced through 27,521 acres of Orange County land and defied firefighter attempts to contain it past the 35 percent mark, fire officials said the Santiago blaze could be 100 percent contained in the next three days.

“We are cautiously optimistic that we will have the fire fully contained in 72 hours,” said Phil Rawlings, fire captain with CAL Fire.

Rawlings stressed that fire would continue to burn even after firefighters dug a ring around it to prevent it from spreading. And, he said the prognosis could change depending on the weather and the thick and abundant “ancient fuels” – old growth forest – of Cleveland National Forest, where the fire is burning.

…Cooler weather helped fire crews make dramatic progress in fighting the fire overnight.

…Rawlings said that the temperature this morning was 62 degrees, relative humidity was 35 percent and winds were at 3 m.p.h. Last Sunday temperatures were nearing the 90s, Santa Ana winds gusted at up to 65 m.p.h. and humidity was in the single-digits.

…The break in the weather helped firefighters get a handle on the formerly out of control blaze. Fire officials said 18 bulldozers crews dug about five miles of firebreak lines overnight near the Orange County and Riverside lines but had another ten miles still to dig. Air drops of flame retardant reinforced about 2.5 miles of fire lines near the county border.

But fire officials said residents in Orange County’s canyon areas should remain vigilant.

The fire along the ridgeline near Silverado was still burning this morning but had not descended into town.

…To the northeast, the fire was still feasting on acres of parched forest as it moved through the Cleveland National Forest towards the main divide and the Riverside County line.

But as of this morning, the flames had not yet crossed county lines.

…Silverado remains the front line of Orange County’s efforts to combat fire in residential areas.
But fire officials said that they are seeing "up-canyon" winds during the day that tend to push the flames up and away from town….

THE REPUBLICANS DOTH PROTEST TOO MUCH, METHINKS

From yesterday’s OC Reg: Pol[itician]s, voters said no to fire funds:

Two of the Orange County politicians now complaining about the lack of air support for the Santiago Fire opposed firefighters' effort to purchase new helicopters and trucks two years ago. ¶ In fact, county officials today are sitting on more than $80 million in excess revenue from a statewide public safety sales tax adopted 13 years ago. ¶ That surplus has been a longstanding sore spot for OC firefighters, who at times this week were so overwhelmed they had to seek refuge inside fire retardant tents. ¶ The firefighter's 2005 ballot initiative would have redirected a small portion of the ½ cent sales tax, providing $8 million for new helicopters and $33 million for new fire trucks.

But the entire Board of Supervisors, the sheriff and district attorney opposed the measure, saying it was an attempt to pick the pocket of county law enforcement. County voters rejected the initiative, with 73 percent voting no. ¶ This week, State Assemblyman Todd Spitzer, R-Orange and Orange County Supervisor Bill Campbell joined Orange County Fire Authority Chief Chip Prather in blaming state fire officials for not sending enough air support during the early hours of the fire. ¶ Spitzer called the lack of resources being delivered by the state "unconscionable."

That rankled firefighters, who remember that both Campbell and Spitzer campaigned against their funding measure and signed the ballot arguments against it….

(Above: Campbell with his pals SOCCCD Chancellor Raghu Mathur & Trustee John Williams)

(Campbell and SOCCCD Trustee Dave Lang at the recent opening of ATEP. Spitzer was there, too.)

CREEPS.