This story should make County residents question Brad Mitzelfelt's use of a County helicopter and County resources to see how close the LA County "Station" fire is to Mitzelfelt's home in Wrightwood.( 16 Miles away) While 2 fires were currently burning in San Bernardino County in Yucaipa and Oak Glen. When did the fires distance from Wrightwood become more important then the communities that were already on fire? How did a helicopter tour help the situation? How was this the best use of fire resources?

Officials: Wrightwood not in immediate danger
Public meeting on wildfires slated for today
NATASHA LINDSTROM 
STAFF WRITER VV Daily Press 9-2-09


WRIGHTWOOD
• After surveying the massive Station Fire by helicopter, San Bernardino County officials said Tuesday the blaze is not an imminent threat to Wrightwood community — but under certain conditions the blaze could threaten the mountain town within the next few days.
    “We feel confident that there is no immediate threat to Wrightwood due to the numerous canyons and mountains between the Station Fire and Wrightwood, including several areas that have burned recently and would serve as fuel breaks,” said San Bernardino County Fire Chief Pat Dennen. “Nevertheless, residents will likely continue to experience heavy smoke and ash, which serves as a reminder to always be prepared.”
    The worst-case scenario as of Tuesday afternoon would be wind and weather conditions that could bring the wildfire to Wrightwood within three days, officials said.
    A round noon on Tuesday 1st District Supervisor Brad Mitzelfelt took off with Dennen on a helicopter to survey the damage of the Station Fire — which as of early Tuesday was reported about 16 air miles away from Wrightwood, according to David Zook, chief of staff for Mitzelfelt.
    Officials flew amid thick plumes of smoke up to about 5 miles out from the Station Fire in the Angeles National Forest, said Mitzelfelt, but were pleased to see the fire hadn’t spread significantly outside its perimeters.
    “It was encouraging because it just didn’t seem to be moving east as quickly as it once was,” said Mitzelfelt. He said he was struck by how much area had already burned in the forest from the 2002 Williams Fire, and he was interested in viewing some of the controlled-fire and fuel reduction areas that aim to prevent the spread of wildfire.
    “The wind’s not here and so I think, unless that changes and the wind suddenly starts coming in, west to east in huge gusts, I don’t think that the fire’s going to get out of control in San Bernardino County,” Mitzelfelt said. “However, weather and fires are by nature unpredictable.”
    Mitzelfelt and the Station Fire incident command team will be hosting a community meeting at 7 p.m. tonight in Wrightwood to provide local residents with updated reports on the Station Fire, which has consumed more than 100,000 acres in the Angeles National Forest. San Bernardino and Los Angeles county officials will be available to address residents’ concerns and discuss community preparedness.
    Earlier Tuesday Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger visited Yucaipa to proclaim a state of emergency because of fires burning in the region. San Bernardino County Board Chairman Gary Ovitt also signed an emergency proclamation Tuesday in response to the fires.
    At least three San Bernardino County battalion chiefs and a captain have been sent to the incident command center for the Station Fire in Los Angeles County to monitor the fire’s progress toward San Bernardino County, Zook said.
    County Fire personnel will continue to monitor the progress of the Station Fire from the air as well as from the incidents command center.
    At the command center for the Yucaipa and Oak Glen fires at Yucaipa Regional Park early Tuesday, Zook said there was “a constant flow” of more than a dozen aircraft flying out to the fires.
    “It’s like a war-zone — there are helicopters coming in and out filling their water tanks from the lake at Yucaipa Regional Park,” Zook said.
    Natasha Lindstrom may be  reached at 951-6232

Firefighters try to gain upper hand on Yucaipa, Oak Glen fires

Photo Gallery: Pendleton Fire

Evacuee holdouts watched in horror Tuesday morning as strong winds whipped a two-day fire into the ridges above Avenue E and flames barreled toward dozens of hilltop homes.

The Pendleton Fire in Yucaipa, which firefighters struggled to get a handle on overnight, quickly ballooned to 860 acres. Officials ordered hundreds more to evacuate from the Fremont and Wildwood Canyon areas, bringing the total to 1,100 homes.

Evacuations orders for the twin blazes, which closed Calimesa and Yucaipa schools Tuesday, are expected to be re-evaluated this morning. Hot spots continued

Doug Dreager, a firefighter for Cal Fire in Santa Cruz, pulls a hose to douse hot spots Tuesday from the Pendleton Fire near Avenue E in Yucaipa. The fire more than doubled in size since Monday but was 70 percent contained near the end of the day. (Al Cuizon/Staff Photographer)

to flare up Tuesday on Pisgah Peak but the Oak Glen III Fire was 60 percent contained at 1,012 acres. Although the Pendleton Fire gained more ground, containment was 70 percent by late Tuesday.

Fire officials and residents said the morning started quiet. The sight of charred and smoky hills above Avenue E actually brought some a sense of comfort.

"All of a sudden, this wind came up and you could hear what sounded like a hurricane," said resident Jeff Beaulieiu. "Then it came raging over the edge in a whole horseshoe of flame."

Fortunately, there were about 200 firefighters assigned to protect homes in the area and they busied themselves lighting backfires and attacking 50-foot flames that were carried about a half mile. The fire burned within 100 feet of several homes, but none were lost.

"This started with a little puff on the hill," said Tim August, an East Bay Regional Parks Fire Department battalion chief. "Once it came over the top, that's when it went squirrely on us."

Flames ran downhill and stopped just outside the Fremont Heights Mobile Home Park, which was partially evacuated Monday. A handful of air tankers made drops on the blaze as hand crews worked to cut a line around the fire.

Oran King, who initially left his mobile home but decided to return hours later, sat on a grass median in a plastic chair watching the fire assault.

"It's been an experience watching them fight this thing," he said. "I was really worried about it. The fire was right here. These mobile homes would have gone up like bombs."

Residents began posting handmade signs Tuesday thanking firefighters and law enforcement officers for their hard work in protecting both Yucaipa and Oak Glen.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger expressed the same sentiment Tuesday morning when he visited the fire command post at Yucaipa Regional Park to be briefed on firefighting efforts on eight blazes statewide.

Joined by local, state and federal officials at a short news conference held afterward, Schwarzenegger declared a state of emergency in San Bernardino County, which allows fire officials to recoup a majority of costs associated with fighting the fires.

Before leaving, the governor walked down to the lake and waved at air tankers who were flying in and out to load up.

The fire laid low Tuesday afternoon and could rarely be seen in the steep hills and canyons around Oak Glen and Yucaipa. Two firefighters were reportedly injured, one from the extreme heat and another with severe poison oak.

Higher humidity and moderate winds aided firefighters in their stand-off with the blazes though they are carefully monitoring the weather. Expected thunderstorms could bring dry lightning and down drafts, where the wind is pushed straight into the ground and then spreads in all directions.

Ten helicopters also assisted 1,952 firefighters from throughout California as they fought the fires.

"It was a busy day but it held," Cal-Fire Operations Chief Craig Conklin said at an evening briefing. The fire is "testing us, it's pushing us."