The Firebreak
The Newsletter of the Olivenhain Fire Safe Council
June 2022
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From the Chair
Welcome to the June issue of The Firebreak. It’s been an eventful couple of months, and here we are at the cusp of summer. Fire season is upon us—to the extent that there’s a fire “season” anymore—and we all need to get prepared.
To that end, the Olivenhain Fire Safe Council held our second Community Wildfire Preparedness Fair in May, featuring first responders, community organizations and vendors/professionals, plus three presentations on topics of interest to the community. (See article below for more details and photos.)
Our evacuation brochure has gone to the printer and should be arriving soon in the mailboxes of everyone in Olivenhain (see article below). We produced this brochure in partnership with the Encinitas Fire Department and hope you find it useful. (Remember—preplanning is critical! So is leaving early in case of a fire.)
And speaking of evacuation. the Encinitas Fire Department will be having three community meetings on evacuation at the Meeting Hall, on June 20 and 21 from 6-8 pm, and on July 9 from 10 am to noon. Please plan on attending one of the sessions for the sake of your family, neighborhood and our community. See Events, below, for more information.
Also looking ahead, this summer, we’re planning to begin developing a Community Wildfire Protection Plan (or CWPP) for Olivenhain. This is a critical document that details fire-related issues in the community and establishes priorities for addressing them. Please get in touch if you’d like to be part of this important effort. We’d like to hear from people throughout Olivenhain to get a handle on the concerns in different neighborhoods. In addition to laying out a roadmap for fire safety-related activities, a completed CWPP will be crucial for future grant applications, as we seek funding to help mitigate the issues we find.
And last, but far from least, we’d like to welcome two new board members, Jeff Dasch, who will serve as treasurer, and Hector Paredes, who will be a director at large. We’re thrilled to have them!
Have a wonderful, fire-safe summer!
—Sarah Lifton
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OFSC rolls out expanded Community Wildfire Preparedness Fair
The OFSC’s second Wildfire Preparedness Fair took place May 7 at the Meeting Hall, with booths from 15 organizations and vendors, three special presentations, and lots of good discussions and giveaways. The presentations covered evacuation (presented by the Sheriff’s Department), disaster preparedness with animals (presented by the San Diego Humane Society) and firewise landscaping with native plants (presented by Greg Rubin of California’s Own Native Landscape Design). Olivenhain residents of all ages attended the fair, taking away valuable information and souvenirs.
The OFSC would like to thank all the participants, including the Encinitas Fire Department, San Diego County Sheriff’s Department, San Diego Humane Society, Olivenhain Municipal Water District, the Nature Collective, SDG&E, Red Cross, CERT, United Policyholders, Encinitas Trails Coalition, Danny Glessner of Wildfire Home Hardening Specialists, All-Risk Shield, Realtor Shelley Linde, the Olivenhain Town Council and Greg Rubin, as well as all the members of the community who attended. We appreciate your support!
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Greg Rubin's presentation on landscaping with firewise native plants | |
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Coming soon to a mailbox near you: the OFSC’s new evacuation brochure
Last fall, the OFSC received a mini-grant from the Fire Safe Council of San Diego County to produce and distribute an evacuation brochure to help residents prepare for a possible wildfire evacuation. The brochure has now been completed, with input from the fire department, and as of this writing, is about to be printed and mailed to all Olivenhain residents.
The brochure, which was modeled after one that the Scripps Ranch Fire Safe Council produced, consists mainly of checklists to help you focus on different aspects of preparedness and check items off as you complete them. It also includes advice for packing a Go bag to grab in case of an evacuation warning or order. Preplanning is essential, as is leaving early in the event of a wildfire. (Note that the route you are instructed to take will depend on where the fire is located and where it is headed. If you smell smoke or see flames, you shouldn’t wait for an evacuation order but just leave!)
Many thanks to FSCSDC for making the funds available to produce the brochure, and to Olivenhain’s own Vertical Printing and Graphics for a stellar job with the design and printing.
In addition to snail mail, the brochures should be available at the fire department’s three evacuation meetings, along with brochures on home hardening, defensible space and disaster preparedness in general. (See Events, below.)
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The Encinitas Fire Department will be presenting three community meetings on evacuation at the Meeting Hall, on June 20 and 21, from 6-8 pm, and July 9, from 10 am to noon. Plan to attend one or more to learn what you need to know about evacuating from Olivenhain in the event of wildfire. (All sessions will include the same content, though naturally, audience questions may vary.) Representatives of Fitch & Associates, which produced the updated evacuation report that was presented to the city council in January, will be on hand as well. | | | |
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Save the date(s)!
The Encinitas Fire Department will be conducting two workshops on home hardening on Saturday, July 30 and Saturday, August 13, from 10 am to noon at the Meeting Hall. These will provide valuable information that could help save your home in case of wildfire, so you’ll want to attend to learn how best to protect your property. More information to come.
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On the morning of Friday, June 10, a fire broke out in Elfin Forest as weeds were being mowed on a parcel with dead citrus trees. The work sparked a fire, which spread to brush along the parcel. The fire was stopped at three acres, but if the weather had been different (think Santa Ana conditions), it could have quickly gotten out of hand and headed for Olivenhain. (Two years ago, on July 4, a fire started on Dove Hollow Rd. in Olivenhain under similar circumstances.)
This is a timely reminder never to perform vegetation management on hot days—and always do it very early in the morning and have on hand a fire extinguisher and hose connected to a water source. CalFire recommends the following guidelines for fire-safe equipment use, noting that the agency responds to more than 1600 fires a year that were started by equipment used incorrectly.
- Do all yard maintenance that requires a gas or electrical motor before 10 am, not in the heat of the day, or when the wind is blowing!
- Lawn mowers are designed to mow lawns. Never use lawn mowers on dry vegetation.
- Use a weed trimmer to cut down dry weeds and grass.
- Remove rocks in the area before you begin operating any equipment. A rock hidden in grass or weeds is enough to start a fire when struck by a metal blade.
- In wildland areas, spark arresters are required on all portable gasoline-powered equipment, including tractors, harvesters, chainsaws, weed eaters, mowers, motorcycles, and all-terrain vehicles (ATVs).
- Keep the exhaust system, spark arresters and mower in proper working order and free of carbon buildup. Use the recommended grade of fuel and don’t top off.
- Keep the engine free of oil and dust, and keep the mower free of flammable materials.
- In wildland areas, a permit may be required for grinding and welding operations, and spark shields may be required on equipment. Be sure to have 10 feet of clearance, a 46”round-point shovel, and a back-pump water-type fire extinguisher ready to use.
- Hot exhaust pipes and mufflers can start fires you won’t even see until it’s too late!
- Don’t pull off into dry grass or brush.
- Keep a cell phone nearby and call 911 immediately in case of a fire.
Source: CalFire
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There are many ways you can help make our community safer from wildfire by becoming an Olivenhain Fire Safe Council volunteer. Bring your ideas, talents, skills and connections!
Opportunities include:
EVENTS AND PROGRAMS: Brainstorm with us to create, plan, set up and staff events.
FUNDRAISING: Help with outreach to businesses and neighbors. Identify grant opportunities, promote employer matches, develop and assist with fundraising events.
NEIGHBORHOOD COORDINATORS: Be the point person in your neighborhood to identify unique needs and vulnerable residents and keep your neighbors informed in the event of a wildfire or other emergency.
HOA LIAISON: If you live in a community with an HOA, leverage the HOA structure to make your community safer through structure hardening and defensible space projects.
SUBJECT MATTER EXPERTS: Do you have special skills and knowledge of relevant industries? We could use your help when there is a need for information, services or referrals (e.g. , insurance agents, lawyers, accountants/bookkeepers, Realtors, contractors, tradespeople, handymen, videographers, writers, PR professionals, artists, graphic designers, etc.).
OTHER IDEAS? Let us know!
Click here to find out more or sign up as a volunteer.
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The Olivenhain Fire Safe Council relies on donations to carry out its mission of enhancing fire prevention, safety and preparedness for all residents, through ongoing outreach, education and collaborative interventions, projects and activities. Help us build capacity by making a generous contribution. Make checks payable to Fire Safe Council of San Diego County, and write “Olivenhain Fire Safe Council” on the memo line. Mail to Olivenhain Fire Safe Council, 2240 Encinitas Blvd., Ste. D, #165, Encinitas, CA 92024. | |
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