From the desk of Seth Schalet, Chief Executive Officer

Fall Is Here. Keep Your Wildfire Guard Up!

Now that the calendar has turned to fall, many might think that this year’s relatively mild wildfire season (in Santa Clara County anyway) is a thing of the past—in the rear-view mirror. While true, we were fortunate thus far, we are not out of the woods yet as fall is typically still a busy time of year for wildfires, with Northern California’s peak fire season typically starting in June or July and extending through late October or November. That said, in our new normal, nothing is typical anymore. Keep Your Wildfire Guard Up!

We have much to share in our October Newsletter. In conjunction with our partner, N5 Sensors, Santa Clara County FireSafe Council completed the installation of 10 wildfire sensors as part of our early wildfire detection and response network with San Jose Water, protecting 6,000 acres in the Los Gatos Creek Watershed & beyond.

We will be participating in the Cupertino Public Safety Forum on October 19th, starting at 5:00 PM. Click Here for Event Info. CEO Seth Schalet will lead a panel discussion and presentation with San Jose Water and N5 Sensors about the early wildfire detection and response network we are creating with San Jose Water and starting with our recent N5 Sensors’ wildfire camera installation. Thank you to Cupertino’s Tom Chin, Emergency Manager, for the gracious invitation.

Our Forest Health Grant Team, led by Stephen Harrington, is beginning the work on our latest Forest Health Grant project, our most recent $6,500,00 award. All this while we continue efforts on our original $7,500,00 Forest Health Grant project. More to follow on both of these later in this Newsletter.

We have begun our County Chipping program through our partnership and funding from Santa Clara County Fire Department. We are off to a terrific start. See more and register for the remaining available slots at our Chipping Event Webpage.

As you may know, the Santa Clara County FireSafe Council Board of Directors decided to postpone our scheduled inaugural FireSafe Summit on October 10th at the Mountain Winery. We will look to reschedule this event in 2024. Stay tuned for more information as we firm up plans. We are grateful to our sponsors and donors and look forward to your continued support in 2024.

There is much more to cover so, let’s hear less from me, and more from our wonderful Santa Clara County FireSafe Council team.

Best,

Seth Schalet

CEO, Santa Clara County FireSafe Council

Halloween Fire Safety Tips!

• Use a battery-operated candle or glow stick in your pumpkin
• Choose costumes that do not have long billowing fabric
• Keep decorations away from flames and other heat sources
• Do no block escape routes with decorations

Learn More

Chipping Program

Fall Chipping Event!

Our fall chipping event registration will be wrapping up soon with a few remaining spots available! Check our website for details on how to prepare and how to register. Learn More

Zaid Ortiz

"I recently joined the Santa Clara FireSafe Council as an HFR Project Manager in late August of 2023. I have a B.S. in Environmental Studies, and a continual understanding of fire science. My goal is to further contribute and meet the expectations of the council as well as the communities I serve to strengthen. I have been given the wonderful opportunity to work closely with our partners in Los Altos Hills for leading projects such as Escape Route Planning and Maintenance, HIZ assessing, and assisting with our very successful Chipping Program." 

Photo: "Me and my girlfriend out for a stroll in San Francisco with our wonderful dog Waffle! "

The FireSafe Council is working with Annex holders to finalize those that are near completion, and working with Annex holders that need more support. There is currently no timeline to have Annexes complete, as they are all in different phases of completion. The Hub Site and CWPP Story Map are up and running, and we are scheduling a training session with partners to start adding data to the project tracker.

Crews finished their first full month in Santa Clara County Parks (SCCP) and completed just over 57 acres, a new record month for the project. We anticipate working in SCCP project areas over the next 6 months, depending on winter conditions. 

Additionally, we are beginning to plan for work on our latest Forest Health Grant, we are calling the "Second Collaborative." We will be working with two of our current partners, San Jose Water Company (SJW) and Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District, and two new partners, Lupin Lodge and Aldercroft Heights Firewise Community to treat a total of 841 acres over 4 years with a mix of manual treatments and mechanical treatments. Learn More

Before and After photos of work done in the area. Photos: Stephen Harrington

The project introduction letter and right of entry forms (ROE) were sent to the property owners along the route with few responses so far. We have been following up on the ones we have received. We continue to go through the process of getting encroachment / use permits from Santa Clara County Parks, and Santa Clara Valley Water. We have received permits from the City of Morgan Hill and Santa Clara County Roads and Airports.

There is signage at the beginning and end of the project to notify the community of the upcoming project. Learn More

The Magdalena Summerhill Evacuation Route in Los Altos Hills is set to start October 23^rd. Right of Entry forms are due back by October 10^th. Traffic control will be in place with one lane being operational, and one lane will close for vegetation management work as crews proceed through the project area.



Please join the virtual meeting Wednesday, October 11^th at 7:00pm where you can learn about the project and have your questions answered. Learn More

Last week we installed the first 10 wildfire sensors as part of our early wildfire detection and response network with San Jose Water, protecting 6,000 acres in the Los Gatos Creek Watershed & beyond.

The AI will calibrate and learn baseline air quality metrics over the first week and then, report/alert on changes in parameters to keep the watershed safer from wildfires and to monitor environmental health.

Tip of the hat to the team--from left to right:   N5 Sensors, Inc. Daniel Slovich, field engineer par excellence, David Fernandez, CEM, MSQMS, PMP (Emergency Response Manager & Safety expert extraordinaire with San Jose Water), Seth Schalet, SCCFSC CEO, and San Jose Water's install team of Michael Barton and Brent York (all true professionals)."

The Santa Clara County FireSafe Council joined partners on Saturday, September 30^th, for Senator Dave Cortese's inaugural Picnic by the Lake in San Jose. We spent the day spreading awareness of the risks that catastrophic wildfire poses to our community. Whether you are in the mountains or the valley, wildfire affects us all. From fire and embers to smoke and economic impacts, we all need to prepare for wildfire in advance, and we are here to provide resources and support.

Photo: SCCFSC Program Director, Amanda Brenner Cannon with Senator Dave Cortese.

The Santa Clara FireSafe Council announced a strategic alliance with Allied Disaster Defense to provide wildfire related home hardening and disaster mitigation services for its customers, partners and stakeholders throughout the Wildland Urban Interface (WUI) areas in Santa Clara County. The alliance will begin with a pilot referral program roll-out to customers that have received previous Home Ignition Zone (HIZ) Assessments from the Santa Clara County FireSafe Council. There are many steps homeowners can take to reduce the risk of catastrophic loss from wildfire, with the two most important steps being maintaining safe defensible space practices, and investing in Home Harding to better protect homes and structures from flames, heat and embers.

Learn More

• Be Ready: Be Prepared for Disasters
• Wednesday, October 25^th -- 4:45 - 6:00pm 
• In-Person - Saratoga Senior Center - Free
• Estar Listo: Estar Preparado - Spanish
• Thursday, October 26^th -- 6:00 - 6:45pm
• Curso por Internet - Gratis
• Crime Prevention & Home Fire Safety
• Wednesday, November 8^th -- 11:00am - 12:30pm 
• In-Person - Los Altos Community Center - Free
• Fire Safety for Young Children - Come Learn with Us!
• Tuesday, November 14^th -- 3:30 - 4:30pm 
• Online - Free

Learn More