SILVERADO CANYON : Fire Prevention Open House Is Today

Since Capt. Erika Chamberlin moved to the U.S. Forest Service Silverado Canyon fire station in 1989, she’s seen the sea of red-tiled roofs quickly inching closer to Cleveland National Forest.

In firefighting circles, this ever-increasing phenomenon is known as “urban interface.”

And that, Chamberlin said, means that the public and firefighters must work harder than ever to prevent wildfires, especially during the dry summer season.

To help in that effort, Chamberlin and her six-member engine company will open the doors of their 1930s Depression-era Silverado Canyon Road fire station to the public today.

The public will be treated to a a fire prevention open house from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

A video show on protecting homes from wildfires, a tour of the station and a visit from Smokey Bear will be among the day’s activities.

The station is just one of seven in the 2-million-acre Cleveland National Forest.

“People just aren’t getting educated fast enough about what it’s going to take to live in the woods safely,” Chamberlin said.

“It’s a challenge for us. I don’t care if trees or structures are lost. But I worry a lot about losing lives. Plus, I don’t want to put my crew in any danger. It’s a Catch-22 situation.”

Chamberlin--the first female fire captain in Cleveland National Forest--has been fighting wildfires since she joined the U.S. Forest Service in 1978 at age 30.

Before that, she was a Head Start teacher in Texas, a social worker and a VISTA volunteer in Arkansas in the late 1960s.

“I was one of those people who answered (President John F.) Kennedy’s call,” she said.

Until 1988, most of her firefighting career was spent in the highlands of New Mexico, where she worked several years on “hot shot” crews, an elite cadre of firefighters who hike or parachute into remote areas inaccessible to fire engines.

She also worked briefly on a hot shot crew out of the El Cariso Station off Ortega Highway in South County.

“It was fun. I spent 10 years doing that. This is my retirement job now,” she said, laughing.

During her years on the hot shot crews, Chamberlin said she fought fires throughout the country.

Her tour of duty included a three-month stint in Northern California in 1987.

At worst, Chamberlin said, her longest shift was 37 consecutive hours, and her longest hike out of a burning area was 15 miles, which came after a 14-hour shift.

“It’s just such a challenge,” she said. “Every fire is different.”

In recent years, there have been no major brush fires in Silverado Canyon, despite extremely hazardous conditions that continue through this summer.

“It’s still real dry, although not as bad as last year, when even the prickly pears were shriveling and drying out,” Chamberlin said.

When the station crew members are not out on a fire, including those in other districts, they do maintenance work around the station, clear trails, participate in fire drills and take rigorous daily hikes and runs to keep in shape.

“It’s definitely not boring,” station firefighter Julie Echeverri said. “Every job or every fire is different.”

Crew members said they’re looking forward to the open house, and the chance to work closer with the public to protect the forest.

“If this canyon ever goes, it’s going to be real bad,” firefighter Carlos Beltran said. “We just want to get people aware of the fire danger.”