COUNTYWIDE : U.S. Grants to Help Fund Fire Education

The Ventura County Fire Department stands to receive $10,000 in federal grants to educate residents about wildfires and to train the public to spot arsonists and hazardous fire conditions.

The County Board of Supervisors voted Tuesday to accept two Federal Emergency Management Agency grants, which will provide Neighborhood Watch groups and disaster response teams with specialized training.

Individuals will learn how to recognize signs of arson and will study fire behavior in areas near residential communities.

“We’re hoping to train people what to look for,” said Sandi Wells, a Fire Department spokeswoman.

The department plans to use a $4,000 grant to purchase educational materials. A separate $6,000 grant will be spent on training.

Wells said the department’s education efforts will target fire-prone areas where wilderness reaches into residential neighborhoods, including Ojai, Thousand Oaks and Simi Valley.

Though wildfires burned only 200 acres in the county last year, fires scorched more than 100,000 acres in 1993. Fire Department documents showed a majority of such fires occur between June and December and that many are started by arsonists.

“People will learn some of the actions they can take prior to a brush fire, and actions they can take when they are actually threatened by a fire,” Wells said. Wells said the department will help selected residents in fire-prone areas install weather monitoring equipment on their property to detect extreme fire conditions.

For more information, call 389-9769 Monday through Friday between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m.