Crime & Safety

Cal Fire Crews Clearing Santa Cruz Mountain Forests To Prevent Wildfires

With California's increasingly warm, dry and overgrown landscape, wildfire has become a perpetual danger.

The goal of the clearing is to protect mountain communities.
The goal of the clearing is to protect mountain communities. (Renee Fernandez/Patch)

SANTA CRUZ MOUNTAINS (CBS SF/AP) — Buzzing chainsaws are interrupted by the frequent crash of breaking branches as crews fell towering trees and clear tangled brush in the densely forested Santa Cruz Mountains.

Their goal: To protect communities such as Redwood Estates, where giant redwoods loom over the houses of tech workers who live in the wooded community just 20 miles from the heart of Silicon Valley. With California’s increasingly warm, dry and overgrown landscape, wildfire has become a perpetual danger.

Read more at CBS San Francisco

Find out what's happening in Santa Cruzfor free with the latest updates from Patch.