Fire Chief: ‘Very High’ Fire Danger Right Now

San Diego Fire Chief Javier Mainar, standing along Highland Valley Road in Rancho Bernardo which burned during the 2007 wildfires, warned residents to be on alert this fire season, saying he's "fairly worried."

"Our fire danger is very high right now," Mainar, head of the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department, said Wednesday. "Pray for rain."

There have already been five vegetation fires in the Rancho Bernardo area in recenth months, the chief said, though all were contained quickly due to swift attack from multiple agencies.

It may seem like overkill to have so many fire trucks descend on what looks like a small fire, said Fire Capt. Justus Norgord, but it's important to attack early to keep things under control.

Norgord, who is one of the captains at Fire Station No. 33 on Bernardo Center Drive, said several of the local fires have been set by kids who were just bored and playing around. Some kids even have been setting on fire clothes in a lost and found box behind Westwood Elementary School in RB, he said.

This year's fire season could be helped by a possible El Nino event meteorologists are keeping an eye on, said Roger Pierce of the National Weather Service. But for now, areas around San Diego County are pretty dry and residents should be cautious, officials said.

Here are some other tips: 

• Clear space around your home. Residents should have at least 100 feet of defensible space around their home, clearing dry vegetation. See an example here.
• Ask for help if your neighbors won't take precautions. The fire department can come out and check for code violations if neighbors won't take steps to make their homes (and thus yours) less vulnerable to fire. But if the neighbors aren't violating code, which is often the case, Norgord said, firefighters will educate them about the importance of being safe and hope they take the message to heart. How to file a complaint.
• Keep matches out of kids' reach. Children should be taught the difference between "tools and toys," Norgord said. But even after training them not to play with matches and lights, parents should take steps to keep matches out of their reach, he said.
• Don't think it won't happen to you—no matter where you live. "Even if you're far away, you're not immune from fire danger," Mainar said. During the 2007 wildfires, many residents lost their homes after embers drifted from other fire zones and ignited their houses.
• Make your home easier to save in a fire. Firefighters only have so many resources—from people to equipment—and have to assess which homes are most likely to be saved during wildfires, Mainar said. Homes that have defensible space and other precautions in place are better candidates than homes that have done little to nothing to prepare, he said.

Wildfire Safety Links

How to prepare (San Diego Fire-Rescue Department)

Evacuation checklist (RB Community Council)

Maintaining defensive space around your home (CAL FIRE)