Residents Responsible for Own Fire Prevention

As wildfires ripped homes in Riverside County, Los Angeles fire officials said Tuesday thousands of property owners will be responsible for their own fire prevention this season because the city is too overwhelmed to clear brush and trim trees for them.

Armed with an ordinance that requires property owners to clear heavy brush within 200 feet of all structures, the city Fire Department can issue warnings and even hire contractors to do the work for landowners who don’t comply.

But this year, as a bumper crop of dry brush and new vegetation sprouted in the wake of El Nino-powered rains, there is too much work for too few city contractors, Fire Chief William Bamattre said.

Members of the city Fire Commission worried that will leave ample fuel for fires in residential areas.

“I think we’re faced with a real disaster in the coming months if something is not done,” said Fire Commissioner David W. Fleming. “We just don’t have the capability to do this for them.”

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Fire officials have already issued notices to owners of more than 20,000 parcels this year. Owners of about 11,000 parcels have not complied, Bamattre said.

The department will “triage” the remaining parcels to determine which pose the largest threat, and will use the city’s 10 contractors, the local Conservation Corps and youth groups to handle as much work as possible, he said.

The city can recoup the cost of the work in the property owner’s taxes, Bamattre said, and can charge another $454 in fees for owners who fail to comply.

Despite the flurry of notices and contract work, owners of at least 2,000 parcels will be left to clear the brush on their own, fire officials said.

Owners who have already received notices may be legally liable for damage to neighbors, officials said. Last year, nearly half of the 16,000 parcels that received notices last year never complied, officials said.

Word of the rising workload Tuesday came as the Fire Department struggles to revamp its helicopter fleet as part of its review of a March 23 crash that killed four people.

A new report to be presented to the City Council’s public safety committee recommends the department replace its 25-year-old Bell 205--the same model that was involved in the fatal crash--”immediately,” in order to save money on maintenance costs and to allow the purchase of a newer model with more safety equipment.

“Items such as shoulder belts, seat mounts and fuel tanks have all been improved, but the changes have not been ‘grandfathered’ into the older ships,” the report said.

Bamattre said it was not clear whether the crew on the Bell 205 involved in the crash used all the restraints available. He said they did not meet a department protocol requiring all crew members to wear helmets. A full report on the crash is expected within four weeks.