"Prevention, Planning & Preparation"

23 August 2008

Greetings friends and neighbors,

First, on behalf of the WRA Board of Directors, I want to thank everyone who made donations to the WRA to support the WRA-San Marcos Pass Volunteer Fire Department Gap Fire efforts and SMPERS 1040-AM. Your financial support is greatly appreciated.

The WRA has been very busy over the last month following the Gap Fire with public meetings and follow-up after action reviews. A significant meeting is scheduled for September 11th by Supervisor Janet Wolf and Supervisor Brooks Firestone at San Marcos High School at 6 p.m. This meeting will cover the fire as well as issues for this winter. Flooding is serious concern this winter. A formal announcement is on the WRA home page.

Rehab work continues on both East and West Camino Cielo. Fuel breaks are being modified and cleaned up. Currently, three machines are working behind Rosario Park from Stagecoach to West Camino Cielo. Additional FireSafe grant work continues in Rosario Park and San Marcos Trout Club. The crew also returned to the WRA radio site in early August to clean up in the area of the equipment.

The WRA is working with KZSB-AM 1290 to develop a community based public safety program that would include local guests. A program demo was recently recorded with that included Janet Stanley (Red Cross) and Charlie Johnson (EPIC). I will keep you posted as this project unfolds. This program is an outgrowth of local suggestions for SMPERS 1040-AM.

The WRA has joined with the Santa Ynez Valley Visitors Association to help local businesses here and in the valley. The Association includes local San Marcos businesses and venues.

SMPERS has become a critical asset to the community. The controller has been upgraded to provide for expanded programing and live broadcasts. In conjunction with Santa Barbara County and CSBTV-20, the WRA will start rebroadcasting the recent board of supervisors meetings on Saturday and Sunday at 9:00 am. Because the county cable television network does not reach the San Marcos Pass communities, this service will allow for expanded coverage. Technical arrangements are underway to bring the meetings live to SMPERS. This will also provide for live audio feeds from the county during emergency situations.

The WRA annual meeting will be in September. Please watch for the date and time on the home page. If you are interested in running for office, please give the office a call at 964-7194. Officers are elected from the general membership. Directors are elected by the officers. All positions serve for one year.

As always, I welcome your comments.

Michael S. Williams
President-Executive Director

California
Fuels and Fire Behavior Advisory
Mitigation Measures

Local and inbound fire personnel need to develop situational awareness of the conditions represented in this advisory. Details on site specific conditions regarding low fuel moistures or disease and freeze-killed vegetation should be covered during briefings.

Ensure firefighters have good anchor points, escape routes, and safety zones.

Consult the latest Fire Weather Forecasts, Monthly Fire Weather / Fire Danger Outlooks, Pocket Cards, and the recently updated California Fire Season Assessment (July-October) posted at:
http://gacc.nifc.gov/oncc/predictive/index.htm http://gacc.nifc.gov/oscc/predictive/index.htm

Area of Concern: The area of concern covers most of California. A map showing the areas of concern described in this advisory can be found at:
http://www.nifc.gov/nicc/predictive/fuels_fire-danger/fuels_advisories.htm

Santa Barbara County Public Health Department
Pandemic Influenza: Best Practices and Model Protocols
FLUWIKI HOME PAGE
USFA-DHS Chief-Corner
USFA-DHS Pandemic Flu Planning Resources

http://blog.pandemicflu.gov/?p=17