Fire season starts today

With recent wildfires already raising concerns and readiness among local responders, the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection is officially declaring today the start of the 2008 fire season.
The proclamation bans all burn permits within CAL FIRE’s Sonoma-Lake-Napa unit, which oversees the counties of Sonoma, Lake, Napa, Solano, Colusa, and Yolo. Agricultural, forest management, and other industrial-type burning may proceed if a CAL FIRE official inspects the area and issues a permit. Campfires will be allowed in designated campgrounds with permission of the jurisdictional authority.
“Experience has shown that suspending debris burns is an effective way of preventing wildfire escapes, especially as California enters a period of hotter and drier weather,” CAL FIRE spokesperson Colleen Baxter said in a statement released Thursday. “Although all fires cannot be prevented through a burning suspension, their numbers can be significantly reduced.”
In addition, CAL FIRE stations are staffed — including the Sonoma Air Attack Base in Santa Rosa — and seasonal firefighters have been hired to augment CAL FIRE’s permanent workforce.
For more information on fire safety, visit http://www.fire.ca.gov.