More than 40 firefighters extinguish Oakland hills fire
OAKLAND — Even a small fire in the Oakland hills is enough to bring up bad memories for many in the community, especially given the city's looming budget crisis, which, at one point, shuttered some stations.
Nearly four dozen firefighters responded to this small fire on Thursday. Oakland Fire says that with any fire, teamwork is key.
"What really made the difference in this fire was having Cal Fire's air support as well as East Bay Regional Park's air support for this incident," said Battalion Chief Anthony Sanders with the Oakland Fire Department. "Without the air support, we would have a much harder time getting into where this fire is."
People in the community quickly got the alert about the fire in their backyard. Firefighters say if there was wind, it could have pushed it closer to homes.
"It's a pretty challenging fire," Battalion Chief Sanders said. "Given time of day and time of year, we got lucky on this one. Had the same fire occurred in August or September, we would be dealing with a whole different animal right here."
The summer months are what many in this neighborhood worry about. That's when the reality of cuts to fire safety comes to mind.
"It's worrisome," said resident Neda Ahmed. "This should be the last area, city, neighborhood where that would be an option. That shouldn't even be on the table."
Dave Geisser has lived in the area for 36 years, and Neda Ahmed moved into her home almost 20 years ago. With their homes surrounded by open space, fire danger is a big concern, especially after the fire in the Oakland hills last October.
"It was pretty scary," said Ahmed. "That was the scariest fire incident that I experienced here."
Both have done the basics. They created defensible space and have a plan if a fire comes dangerously close to their homes. They say the next step is to vote next week for a leader that plans on properly funding the fire department.
"I would hope that the new mayor is going to put something together that's going to make it happen," said resident Dave Geisser.