Calif. Blaze Sparked By Power Tools

Equipment Used To Clear Brush Along Jesusita Trail Caused Wildfire, Investigators Say

(CBS/AP)  The wildfire that has scorched 13 square miles and destroyed dozens of homes in the hills above this scenic coastal city was apparently sparked by a power tool being used to clear brush, investigators said Sunday.

Fire officials said someone, or possibly a group of people, was clearing vegetation on what appeared to be private land near a trail around the time the fire erupted Tuesday.

"Any time you use any power tool, there's always a possibility, especially if the conditions are right," said Joe Waterman, the overall fire commander from the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.

Some Santa Barbara County residents recently received annual notices advising them they had until June 1 to clear potentially hazardous brush, county fire Capt. Glenn Fidler said.

It was not immediately clear whether the blaze originated in an area targeted by such a notice.

Officials declined to comment further about the type of power tool that may have been used, or if anyone could face charges.

The fire has destroyed 77 homes, damaged 22 others and forced the evacuation of approximately 30,000 people to safer ground.

By late Sunday, all but 375 residents from 145 homes had been allowed to return home and firefighters had the blaze 65 percent contained, aided by cooler, more humid weather.

Relieved to see their homes still standing, grateful residents paid tribute to firefighters by tooting car horns in their honor and posting large thank-you signs on their front lawns.

More than 4,500 firefighters worked to contain as much of the blaze as they could before the hot, dry "sundowner" winds that pushed flames on homes earlier in the week return, possibly as early as Tuesday.

"We have a window of opportunity right now to get our lines tied in and to get hot spots mopped up as good as possible, because the next couple of days the wind is going to resurface again and we need to be prepared," said Kelley Gouette, deputy incident commander for the state Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.

Fire officials over the weekend had lauded residents' removal of brush and fire-prone plants from their properties to bolster the defensible space needed to protect a house from a wildfire and keep firefighters safe while working in the region.

Santa Barbara County Fire Chief Tom Franklin recalled that a 1990 blaze took out 500 homes, although it did not burn across as wide a swatch of land as the 13 square miles covered by this week's fire.

"More homes would have burned had they not done their defensible space work," Franklin said of the residents who gave firefighters the best conditions to work in.

Richard Martin, a 73-year old retired University of California, Santa Barbara, chemistry professor, rode out the worst of the firestorm from a five-by-seven-foot concrete bunker he built to store important documents.

Martin and his wife, Penny, ducked in and out of the bunker to battle spot fires on the oak trees surrounding their four-level home tucked away near the Botanic Garden. But he also credited rooftop sprinklers, clearing brush and planting low, fire resistant plants around the edge of his home with its survival.

"All the trees the leaves are all dead because they've been scorched," Martin said, pointing out the glass door of his wooden deck. "But those plants haven't been scorched. They look normal."

In 2005, California extended the required clearance around homes in an effort to bolster the defensible space needed to protect a house from a wildfire and keep firefighters safe while working in the region.

In Santa Barbara County, officials can also clear brush from unkempt property and charge homeowners for doing so. Franklin said they usually need to enforce that regulation on no more than a couple of homes a year.

Firefighters say they are more likely to hunker down and try to save a home that has good defensible space because they have a better and safer shot at getting a handle on the blaze.

In recent years, many residents have gotten rid of more volatile plant life, replacing it with fire-resistant gardens or just clearing it out entirely. Some have built fire safety into the construction of the homes themselves.

[yo_marc]

The muffler would be the hottest part of a gas powered power tool... I suppose it could potentially start a fire if a hot device was put down carelessly.

Mufflers are also supposed to have spark-arrestors; Hot pieces of built up carbon can occasionally dislodge from the exhaust system and get carried out with the exhaust gas - at some point in the past this must have been determined as a potential source of fires. I know that are required for off-road motorcycles, I would think they would come pre-installed on most gas powered tools. I recall having one older tool that had you install the spark arrestor yourself - I would venture to guess someone could have neglected to install theirs.

Still though. I don't see someone choosing to use a power tool over a hand-tool as a means for condemnation. I thought I recall reading somewhere that someone had been clearing brush with a tow-behind device... which could explain why someone was unsure they had started a fire until it was a bit too late...

[goosfraba2]

michelle4021 at 8:43 AM : May 11, 2009

But Michelle,

Don't you think that requiring prisoners to earn their lodgings is a good idea?

:-)

[goosfraba2]

Doesn't this county have a prison?
Posted by nancy_naive at 6:40 AM : May 11, 2009

IN THE HOPES THAT THEY MIGHT PUT PEOPLE LIKE YOU INTO IT?
pythoncharly at 6:57 AM : May 11, 2009

-----

Not sure of your meaning, pythoncharly.

I interpreted Nancy's comment as ,meaning that prisoners could be used to clear some areas from dangerous brush to prevent fire threats to homes, etc. That's a good idea, prisoners earning their keep (room & board, meals, medical care, recreational equipment, and so on). I believe that a fair number of prisoners would want to help other citizens in small ways such as this.

But then, you probably just dislike Nancy from some of her earlier posts and ignored her comment all together.

[YCantWeAllGetAlong]

The residents receive notices to clear brush and vegetation with a deadline well within a season known to be hazardous for fires. Are they supposed to use a SICKLE to do this? If the county insists on it being removed AND they want it to be done safely, then they need to realize that people are going to use electric and gas powered equipment to do so. Facing charges? What is that going to prove? "I was following county directions and now the county is charging me for following the directions that would have given me a fine had I not followed them". The oxymoron here is unreal.

[brianbwb-2009]

Odd, it would seem that a person using power tools, who causes a fire to start, even accidentally, would be aware of it.

Why then was it necessary for investigators to spend money trying to find out what should have been reported?

The owner of the tools in question should have some explaining to do, and should be fined for not alerting the proper authorities about a life-threatening incident. Even if he rented the tools to a third party, proper records should show who was in possession of the tools at the time, thus making it easier to find those responsible, and failure to provide those records should constitute aiding and abetting the evasion of lawful process..

[gravyboat45]

Yes...fire needs to be regulated in California. Californians have proved time and time again they are not competent with fire, flames or things that get extremely hot.
Posted by sky_five

Fire regulation took a back seat to gay marriage.

As we speak, there are people saying I do with flames all around them!

[brentcox4]

Areas like the Painted Cave community should be abandoned by the firefighters. They should always focus on areas where homeowners have made a real effort to protect their homes from fire.
Insurance companies should not insure homes where the owners have not made these efforts to protect their homes from fire.

[debinok1]

deb...*** are you talking about?

Oh, power tools? Get rid of 'em, confiscate all power tools and arrest anyone who doesn't comply!

Signed, the knee jerk association of Caleeeeeeeefoynia.
Posted by gravyboat45

The original title to the story was different, rofl. They changed it. Sorry about that.

[gravyboat45]

deb...*** are you talking about?

Oh, power tools? Get rid of 'em, confiscate all power tools and arrest anyone who doesn't comply!

Signed, the knee jerk association of Caleeeeeeeefoynia.

[debinok1]

Ah, climate change.
Changing the landscape of the world once again.
All of those industrialized countries involved in the IPCC are having fits.
The real problem is not the climate change, because that has always been there.
The problem is that it is making warm areas cooler and making cooler areas warmer. Which means that unless the major countries involved in the IPCC can find a way to stop it, they will no longer be in control of their own food and water supplies.
The third world countries that have suffered from lack of sustainable farming and lack of clean water will be in control of the food and water supplies for the industrialized world. The industrialized countries do not like that.