As the once-green hills fade to brown and temperatures begin to soar, San Benito County is becoming a tinderbox waiting for the spark of wildfire season to ignite.
Mid-May is typically marked as an official start to wildfire season, but conditions such as the precipitation, wind patterns and the dryness of the landscape are a better gauge, fire officials said.
At CalFire's Monterey-San Benito base, Assistant Chief Reno DiTullio said he hired 67 seasonal firefighters on May 5 and will hire 78 more by June 9. Soon, each of his 34 fire engines will be staffed with a minimum of four firefighters - one to drive and work the radio and three to fight the fires.
"The biggest thing people can do (to protect their homes from wildfires) is make sure they clear vegetation at least 100 feet from their home," DiTullio said. "This gives our firefighters a defensible space to help them fight the fire."
He also recommended planting "green belts" of well-watered grass and plants and avoiding yard work in the hottest part of the day.
"You wouldn't think it, but we've had people using mowers and they hit a rock and make a spark - then you've got a fire," DiTullio said. "It's just important to be aware that things are already dryer than they usually are and to always be conscious of anything that might cause a spark."
Wildfires can be a cattle rancher's worst nightmare. In Hollister, Mitt French, manager of the French Ranch, said his first step in preparing for wildfire season is to "pray."
"There is not a whole lot we can do because we don't have a lot of road frontage," French said. "I'm thinking about discing (plowing vegetation) to try and keep fires from spreading, but I don't know if I'll be able to get everywhere."
French said his ranch stayed safe last year, but a few years back, an arsonist set a blaze that cost him dozens of acres and "burned cattle alive."
Last October, Southern California was ravaged by a series of wildfires that consumed more than 500,000 acres and destroyed more than 1,500 homes, according to the Associated Press. Around that same time, a Hollister firefighter died while driving a bulldozer in Monterey County fighting the October "Colorado" fire.
Matthew Will, a 30-year Hollister native and father of two, died when his bulldozer rolled down a steep embankment. Since then, CalFire has adopted a new training programs statewide to better educate firefighters on using heavy equipment, said CalFire Battalion Chief Curt Itson.
"The No. 1 cause of wildfires are humans," he said. "Generally, it's not arson - it's usually negligence. Cigarettes, equipment use, birds hitting power lines. There are a host of things that can set off a fire."
Curtis Cartier Curtis Cartier covers the City of Hollister and public safety for the Free Lance. Reach him at (831) 637-5566 or email him.
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