Watch: Fire Goats Clearing Vegetation In Orange County

ANAHEIM, CA — The day was calm and cool when Anaheim Fire and Rescue brought about 100 baby goats out to play and meet the public over the weekend. That weather, completely at odds with the howling winds and heat that blasted Anaheim Hills during October 2017's Canyon Fire and Canyon Fire 2.

On Saturday, June 30, Salomeh Yadianpour was one of many parents who brought children to Anaheim Fire And Rescue's baby goat party, to meet the goats who are curtailing an overgrowth of brush in the steep hillsides.

While others learned about the importance of clearing property, and how to take preventative steps in the event of fire, Yadianpour lived it. Her home was badly damaged from smoke and fire that raged up the slopes of Orange County during the Canyon Fire 2. They are still waiting for reconstruction to finish so that they can return.

The rebuild for Yadianpour and for many is a "long process," she told reporters from Behind The Badge OC.

The "kids" out at the event are only part of the flock working to control wildfire spread. Nearly 200 goats, of the Nubian variety, are living in the hills of northeastern Orange County.

After a record fall wildfire season, the city of Anaheim has returned the flock to gobble up the hard to reach bushes on steep terrain, where boots are difficult to tread. Over time, the goats ingest tons of dry brush that spreads wildfire so quickly during Santa Ana wind events.

This environmental land management, with the goats, is just one phase of controlling wild plants, clearing about a half an acre of brush a day, Anaheim Fire & Rescue Spokesman Sgt. Daron Wyatt said. The next phase is to trim up, remove dead trees and invasive plants such as palm trees that don't normally grow here.

"They clean out the brush on the steep hillside, clearing about a half an acre of brush a day," Daron Wyatt said. Clean up by crews comes next, including taking down dead trees, and anything non-native to the area.

According to Johnny Gonzales, Anaheim flock's Goat herder. They don't eat everything in their path, he said, but they do eat the invasive plants, leaving space for native plants to return and grow.

The people that live here also must do their part, keeping a defensible space around their homes, including closed eaves and no crowning trees, according to Wyatt.

For Yadianpour, the goats are a positive sign in returning to life as usual, hopefully by October, one year after the event that nearly destroyed their neighborhood. It's good knowing they'll have been there to make the firefighter's job easier.

"I really appreciate (Anaheim Fire & Rescue)," she said. "They're amazing and brave and I'm happy the goats will be eating the bushes behind our home."

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Photo: Alyssa Loncaric, 6, left, and her friend, Olivia Parrott, 7, both from Anaheim Hills, mingle with the goats in front of AF&R Fire Station 10 during the department’s “Baby Goat Party.” Photo by Steven Georges/with permission fromBehind the Badge OC