From: Governor's Office of Emergency Services

SACRAMENTO - Following a tour of the fire scene in Weaverville today,

Governor Gray Davis recognized the heroic efforts of the men and
women that have been deployed to fight the Oregon Peak Fire and
numerous other fires that have plagued the state in recent weeks. 

'The men and women fighting this fire here today, and the thousands
of others that have been on the fire lines this season, are heroes,'
Governor Davis said. 'I commend you for commitment to leave your
families and help fight these brutal fires.'

Currently, 996 firefighters are battling the 1,680-acre blaze in
Trinity County. Approximately 200 of the firefighters are from local
departments outside Trinity County. They were dispatched yesterday by

the Governor's Office of Emergency Services (OES) through the
California Mutual Aid System.

Over the past two weeks, the Governor has directed OES to dispatch
more than 1,700 firefighters from 51 of California's 58 counties to
help battle blazes throughout Northern and Central California. Not
since the Southern California Fire Siege of October 1993 has OES
dispatched more firefighters in a single month. This month, OES has
called out nearly 400 engines to battle 189,839 acres in 35 fires.

In June, the Governor outlined his fire action plan for what was then

expected to be a landmark fire season. The resources announced then
that are helping today include:

?Assignment of 27 new OES fire engines to local fire departments
throughout California; 
?Four retrofitted S2-T air tankers that are the critical component of

the CDF's initial attack capabilities to keep fires small. The S2-T's

carry 50 percent more water and travel 50 percent faster than the
earlier S2-A models; 
?An additional firefighter added to 180 California Department of
Forestry (CDF) fire engines;
?Activation of five additional conservation camp crews, adding 100
firefighters to CDF's hand crews;
?Ten previously closed lookout towers are now staffed round the
clock;
?A Forward Looking Infra Red (FLIR) aircraft added to the CDF fleet
enabling CDF to map large fires in smoky conditions. The technology
can also be used to detect wildfires from the air while they are
small; and
?Participation of the California National Guard to ready its aircraft

and ground support equipment for immediate response to major wildfire

incidents.

State OES pulls together local government and state fire fighting
resources through the California Fire & Rescue Mutual Aid System. The

neighbor-helping-neighbor system is designed to assist the California

Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, federal wild land fire
agencies, and local departments whenever their resources are
committed or insufficient to fight a fire. 

As directed by the Governor, OES will continue to operate its command

center in Sacramento 24-hours a day to coordinate overall statewide
response to the California wildfires. 

###


For more information contact:
Steve Maviglio - (916) 445-4571

EDIS-08-30-01 1534 PDT


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