Local fire districts rely on each other to fight bigger fires

California is seeing some of the most destructive fires in state history this year.

CBS News reports the cost the Carr Fire alone is about $1.5 billion in damages, and in a state experiencing dry conditions, any fire has the potential to turn big no matter where.

While most have been to the north and south of the Central Coast, KION wanted to take a look at what would happen if one of these devastating fires sparked here.

“At first you could tell that there’s a lot of incidents going in the state because there was just resource depleted,” said Justin Reyes, the captain at Monterey County Regional Fire District East Garrison Station 7.

Reyes was one of the 22 personnel from Monterey County who battled flames up north, including the Mendocino Complex Fire – the largest fire in modern California history.

The MCRFD sent up eight people total, including two engines. Reyes says what is happening up there could happen here.

“The potential lies that that can happen anywhere,” he said. “I mean, basically you had an urban setting in Napa, which they lost a lot of homes, which to that time we had never seen that.”

Structure protection, backfiring operations and defensive burning are all things Reyes and his team did while fighting fires up north. That experience helps them prepare to fight a potential large-scale blaze in our area.

The MCRFD has seven fire stations across the region complete with traditional type 1 engines, water tinders and wildland engines used for vegetation fires. And if the flames become too big to handle…

“We always know Cal Fire is going to be coming behind us and they’re going to bring the aircraft, they’re going to bring the bulldozers, the hand crews, the additional engine resources and things like that,” said Reyes.

And if Cal Fire is not enough, the Master Mutual Aid agreement compels other local fire departments in the area to help out if need be.