Summer fires highlight need for prevention education

It was a busy month for the Southeast Thurston Fire Authority. After responding to 12 wildfires from January of this year through June, the department responded to an additional 34 in July alone.

These numbers include natural vegetation and/or brush fires and go up to July 30.
The season is far from over. Kelly Corey, the department’s wildland coordinator, says the chances of wildfires could increase heading into August.

“Now we’re getting into the spontaneous weather,” Corey said in a conversation with the Nisqually Valley News on July 30. “For the next month, we’ll see heavy winds, cooler mornings, but hotter afternoons with different winds because different weather patterns are going to happen. So, bigger, larger brush fires tend to happen now because all of our fuels are all dried out. So, you add the wind and the dry fuels, now we have larger brush fires if all the right ingredients are there for that.”

Corey added that August and September are crucial months for fire growth and behavior — and it all depends on the weather. Relative humidity will play a large factor, as will wind. The local season typically goes into October.

Back in April, SETFA presented its fire-ever Wildfire Ready event at the Yelm Community Center, which served as a kickoff for Wildfire Ready Neighbors, a Department of Natural Resources (DNR) program that offers homeowners a free survey to determine their unique Wildfire Ready Plan.

Around 56 people have signed up for the program to date, according to Corey, with about 80 percent of those having already received their personalized survey and unique plan. While the education is ongoing, the main priority right now is combating active brush fires in the area.

“Obviously, we really want to capture people in the off-season, so they can prep their homes and burn their brush piles in the right time of the season,” Corey said. “Right now, it’s just not a good time.”

That hasn’t stopped SETFA from providing education when the timing is right. Thanks to the Wildfire Ready Neighbors program, the fundamental tools are now there for citizens who once yearned for information on how to make their properties more defensible against wildfire.

To that end, Corey has already received valuable feedback.

“I went out and did a survey on (someone’s) property and she actually emailed me back and there was a brush fire not too far away from her house,” Corey said. “And she goes, ‘Thank goodness for the education that you gave us, because we felt comfortable in our home because of the prep work that we did and the information you provided us.’”

Much of the Yelm and Rainier area has been described by SETFA as a wildland-urban interface (WUI), which consists of large stretches of undeveloped land in between homes, developments and other structures. That undeveloped land is prime fuel for a fire that can quickly approach a community. These fires are often aided by fences or trees in the near vicinity of one or multiple structures.

A recent example is the brush fire that occurred off 93rd Avenue Southeast across from Yelm High School’s stadium. That fire went all the way up to a resident’s fence line. Fortunately, no structures were damaged.

Lt. Gabe Lakin indicated that even one success story resulting from the Wildfire Ready Neighbors program is enough to show that it works.

“We want to have as much visibility because we want to connect with as many people as we can,” Lakin said. “And just participating in more events, being present in the community, that’s our job, right? And so, we’re trying to make sure we’re doing that.”

SETFA also travels beyond its community, serving as part of statewide mobilizations to combat wildfires.

“The (state) mobilization is a pre-approved, predetermined state-and-DNR agreement that we have with the Washington State Patrol and DNR,” Corey said.

The “strike teams” consist of preset groups, according to Lakin, and typically consist of four to five brush trucks and one tender. For recent mobilizations, SETFA brought its new brush truck, Brush 24.

The department also participates in the Emergency Management Assistance Compact, known as EMAC, which is a national mutual aid agreement shared among states.

The two agreements allow for members of SETFA to mobilize within the state of Washington, as well as travel to Oregon and California to combat wildfires. This past month, SETFA contributed to state mobilizations at the Hope Fire in Stevens County and the Burdoin Fire in Klickitat County. Last year, they responded to two fires in Oregon, and one in California.

SETFA’s mobilization season goes all the way through January. The department noted that funding for the rigs and personnel is reimbursed.

“So, the rig is covered for everything it needs to do on the fire and the personnel is covered,” Corey said. “It doesn’t cost (local) taxpaying citizens any money at all. The staffing is covered completely, even if they’re on shift, it gets filled.”

Corey and Lakin emphasized that, despite the practice of mutual aid, especially for more distant mobilizations, SETFA’s first priority is staffing its local rigs.

“Just because we send something out, it doesn’t mean we’re not taking care of priorities at home,” Lakin said.

Part of that focus includes the addition of Smokey Bear fire danger signs posted around town, including two along state Route 507 and another along state Route 510. The signs now include burn-ban notices.

SETFA has also utilized the internet to continue its outreach and fire prevention education, finding notable success through Facebook. Lakin handles much of the social media and online advertisements for the department. He said a recent post about the signs garnered nearly 10,000 views.

“How many people are liking and sharing that to other friends and stuff just to get the word out there,” Corey added. “It doesn’t stop in Yelm and Rainier. I think it has an echo effect to the citizens in Nisqually and Lacey that either work out here and travel home, or anybody that’s driving through.

“Look how many times I-5 is backed up and people come through Yelm and Rainier just to get around the traffic. They see our signs and at least it gives them some bit of awareness of what’s going on in Thurston County.”

Corey noted that SETFA’s fire chief, Mark King, and its commissioners, have been fully supportive of the department’s outreach with the citizens of the area. Not only that, but they’ve actively attended events like the Wildfire Ready event and have met and engaged with community members.

Minutes after saying that, Corey, along with Lakin and the rest of Station No. 24, received a call for a residential structure fire off Tipsoo Loop, just down the road from one of their fire danger signs.

The firefighters responded in seconds.