Indianapolis, IN – “Things could have gone a lot better. It was a real eye opener, a reminder of our core mission,” Jeff L. Frazier, deputy chief of operations of the City of San Diego (CA) Fire Department, told Thursday’s FDIC General Session audience, as he reviewed the department’s experience at the Cedar Fire, the largest wildland fire in San Diego history, and the insurmountable odds the department faced.
The fire started in Cleveland National Park and spread through unincorporated and inaccessible areas until it reached the San Diego interface area. Fire growth was spurred by severe drought conditions and Santa Ana winds. Mutual aid was not available; the state’s firefighting resources had been assigned to battle 14 other ongoing wildfires. As commanding officer, Frazier had to depend on the individual company officers to help protect the interface areas. A significant contributing factor was massive development and population growth in the interface zones while fire department resources remained static.
Many lessons were learned from this incident, in which 28,000 acres and 335 homes were lost. Firefighter Steve Rucker of the Novato (CA) Fire Protection District perished in this fire. But, Frazier emphasized, he was proud of his department’s performance in the face of the overwhelming odds. There were no area deaths and only minor injuries. He said he will long remember meeting hundreds of his firefighters in the staging area after the fire was under control. “It was the most moving moment of my career,” he explained, “as his firefighters exuded pride in the fact that they were able to achieve what they did without any outside assistance.”
Frazier said it is important in such incidents to distinguish independent action from freelancing. One way to do this, he said, is to institute standard operating procedures that will enable the firefighters to operate efficiently until “command catches up with them.”
Among the other lessons learned from this experience were the following:
- Line personnel must receive more training in interface firefighting, and chief officers need additional training in incident command. The department already has planned to implement National Wildfire Coordinating Group training; training will be in-service on a rotation basis as well as at a centralized training facility. Multi-company drills are also planned.
- There is a need for technology to track fires and more efficiently deploy resources to the incidents.
- The department needs it own air fire-attack equipment, an apparatus replacement program, and reserve apparatus. In this incident, Frazier noted, he had personnel but no apparatus for them to use.
Citizens have donated about $1 million for equipment, Frazier said in a live interview. The money will be used to maintain helicopters and purchase brush engines and gear (fire shelters) and systems that will help firefighters stay hydrated. - Interagency communications and planning are needed.
- Codes must be updated to include at least 100 feet of defensible space between structures.
Other areas in need of improvement, according to Frazier, include the following: building logistics more rapidly, judicial laying of supply lines, improved structure triage, employing remaining citizens to help with perimeter control, employing fire to control the fire, a fully-staffed information officer position, and improved mobile command vehicles.
