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WEST VALLEY CITY — Utah firefighters are on their way to California to help in the effort to suppress raging wildfires in the Golden State.
Firefighters from Salt Lake City, Draper, Murray, Lone Peak, Provo, Uintah City in Weber County and West Valley City gathered at the Maverik Center Thursday morning to begin their journey. They are expected to be deployed for two weeks, and possibly be gone as long as three weeks.
"Utah firefighters will join the 12,000-plus firefighters throughout the country who have been traveling from as far as Florida and New Jersey. Crews have been attacking 17 major California wildfires, 12 of which are still active, and there seems to be no end in sight to the epidemical blaze that has claimed eight lives, burned 240,000 acres, and destroyed more than 1,000 structures so far," according to a statement from the Salt Lake City Fire Department, which deployed 11 firefighters and three engines.
Salt Lake Fire Chief Karl Lieb expects they'll be sent to Northern California, where the Carr Fire has devastated the region.
"This is what we train to do. We’re well-trained, well-equipped, we’re well-staffed. And I feel good about being able to offer assistance and still maintain the highest level of readiness in Salt Lake,” he said.
Utah firefighters have traveled to California three times since October to help with wildfire efforts.
"According to CalFire officials, fighting wildfire will be a year-round activity in hot, dry states. Years of drought have created volatile conditions, prime for an onslaught of outdoor fires," the Salt Lake City Fire Department statement says.
Riley Pilgram, chief of the Wildland Division for Unified Fire Authority, has been in California several times and was part of Utah's deployment to the state in December. He described fighting fires in California as a "different experience."
"Different fire behavior, different environment, different fuel. And the conditions they have in California right now, they’re not common as far as what we experience out here. Really dry, really hot, fast active fires with thousands of homes threatened,” he said. "They’re in pretty rough shape."
In December, between 80 and 100 firefighters from 16 agencies in northern Utah as well as firefighters in southern Utah went to Southern California, where they helped battle the Lilac Fire in San Diego that burned about 4,100 acres and destroyed or damaged about 200 structures.
"When I was there in December, the level of gratitude that we felt was amazing,” Pilgram said. "I imagine any fire department that shows up is a huge relief to them.”
