Local fire agencies called to fight fires across state

A strike team from multiple Monterey County fire departments are now helping with fire fighting efforts up north in Tehama County.

Local agencies including Monterey Fire, Seaside Fire, North County Fire and the Monterey County Regional Fire District have been called up through the state mutual aid system to fight the Red Bank Fire.

“Generally, when a strike team is requested, it’s pretty much understood that you’ll receive either three or four persons on each engine,” said Dale Williams, a captain with the MCRFD.

A total of five engines from Monterey County have been sent. Departments can be called up by incident commanders anywhere in the state, if they are needed.

It is a next-man-up basis in the county, where departments are picked based on who was sent up last.

“There will be a rotating list here so not just one agency is being asked to go over and over again,” said Williams.

Monterey County has about 12 agencies that go around the state, but no agency will ever send out more staff that would leave their own district in trouble.

It was only a few years ago with the Soberanes Fire when the help had to come here.

“We’ve seen engines from all across the state here all the way from LA County and even way further northern California for some of our bigger incidents like the Soberanes Fire and the Basin Fire,” said Williams.