Community expresses gratitude to firefighters

JANN HENDRY/Acorn Newspapers BIG DROP—A Cal Fire DC-10 Air Tanker releases fire retardant in a canyon northeast of Moorpark College last week as 1,800 firefighers battled the Guiberson fire. Once last week’s Guiberson fire was under control, life quickly returned to normal for most people affected by it, but the army of firefighters assigned to Moorpark to extinguish the 17,500-acre blaze didn’t rest until it was fully contained last Sunday.

The Santa Ana wind-driven blaze broke out about 10:30 a.m. Sept. 22, south of Fillmore.

It reportedly started in a mulch pile at a ranch near Guiberson Road and Calumet Canyon, but the exact cause is still unknown, said Bill Nash, a spokesperson for Ventura County Fire Department.

“There’s an ongoing investigation into the origin of this fire and the area where it started. The department had responded the night before to a mulch fire in a different area of the property,” he said.

Mulch, manure and compost piles are common in agricultural areas.

They’re not dangerous as long they’re well-managed to prevent prevent heating, Nash said. However, if a pile does ignite, it’s difficult to extinguish because the blaze is smoldering and deep-seated.

Many homeowners also maintain compost piles for environmental reasons, and those can also catch fire if they aren’t spread around and turned to prevent heat buildup, he said.

Once ignited, the Guiberson fire swiftly moved north. It reached the fringes of Moorpark within a few hours and threatened about 1,000 homes by Wed., Sept. 23.

“We had very high heat and very low humidity, but only light to moderate Santa Ana winds. This allowed firefighters to make very good progress as they established a line around the fire,” Nash said.

At the height of the blaze, Wed. and Thurs., Sept. 23 and 24, more than 4,000 emergency responders and support personnel were fighting the wildfire.

The few brushfires occurring elsewhere in California allowed Ventura County Fire Department to use all of the resources it needed to successfully fight the fire, Nash said.

While outside resources were being demobilized Sunday and Monday, local firefighters continued to mop up burn areas to prevent recurring flare-ups.

The blaze caused road and school closures, as well as evacuations in several neighborhoods north of Los Angeles Avenue and in nearby rural unincorporated areas.

Ten firefighters sustained minor injuries while fighting the local fire, Nash said. One outbuilding was destroyed, but no residents or animals were harmed. The county is currently assessing damages to agricultural areas.

At least 3,000 orchard trees were damaged, said Hugh Riley, assistant city manager for Moorpark, who spent most of last week at the makeshift fire command center in Arroyo Vista Community Park.

According to John Brand, senior management analyst for Moorpark, several groups of trained volunteers rallied to help authorities with public safety and with animal evacuations in rural areas threatened by the blaze.

Neill Humphrey was one such volunteer. A Community Emergency Response Team member, the Moorpark resident took time off from work to help, and 40 other CERT volunteers showed up as well.

Fire trucks and equipment filled Arroyo Vista Community Park.

In addition to supplying food and sleeping accommodations for firefighters, the temporary command post also housed a 600inmate labor crew.

Volunteers helped escort students on their way to and from nearby Moorpark High School and controlled vehicle traffic around the command center to minimize disruptions and keep people out of harm’s way, Humphrey said.

“It was very rewarding . . . giving back to the community in emergencies,” he said.

Firesuppression costs were estimated at more than $9.8 million, but total losses associated with the Guiberson fire will be 30 times that amount, fire officials said.