Local firefighters battle Topanga blaze

Firefighters from Costa Mesa and Newport Beach spent Wednesday night

and most of Thursday battling a wildfire some 75 miles away from

their coverage area.

Although the Topanga fire raging in north Los Angeles County

wasn’t a threat to Newport-Mesa, local firefighters were called in to

help.

It’s all part of a statewide mutual aid agreement among California

fire agencies. Whether it is fighting a brush fire in the Inland

Empire or sifting through floodwaters for hurricane survivors in the

South, local firefighters give help wherever they are needed.

“No agency has enough resources to handle the major, major

incidents,” said Newport Fire Battalion Chief Dave Mais.

When an emergency overwhelms a city’s resources, backups are

called in, starting with nearby agencies, said Newport Fire

Department spokeswoman Jennifer Schulz.

Depending on the incident, resources can be pulled from agencies

within the region, state and, in some cases, across the country,

Schulz said.

Firefighters from Newport-Mesa were dispatched to the Topanga fire

late Wednesday, said Costa Mesa Fire Battalion Chief Keith Fujimoto.

Both cities sent one engine, equipped with four firefighters, as part

of a five-engine strike team.

The strike team will stay together until it is no longer needed at

the fire, Mais said. The cities and counties have the capability to

communicate on one radio frequency during the emergency, he said.

The deploying of resources comes at a time when the fire danger in

Newport-Mesa is at its peak -- but fire officials from both cities

said that local agencies remain fully staffed and ready to handle any

emergency that may happen at home.

“We don’t deplete our own resources in order to help out,”

Fujimoto said.

In Newport Beach, the fire threat is greatest in Newport Coast,

due to the amount of dry vegetation, Mais said.

A brush-heavy spot on the Westside above the Santa Ana River has

proven a persistent problem for firefighters, Fujimoto said. When

Santa Ana winds stir up, like they did on Wednesday, firefighters

also worry that power lines will become entangled in trees and cause

a roof fire, he said.

Costa Mesa firefighters tackled a small debris fire Thursday

afternoon near the on-ramp to the Costa Mesa Freeway (55) at

Paularino Avenue, Fujimoto said. Firefighters do not know what caused

the fire, he added.

Besides the fire danger, hot weather also means an increase in

medical aid calls, which is another reason to keep a full staff,

Fujimoto said.

When Newport firefighters left for the Topanga fire from the

Newport Coast station, reserve firefighters stepped in to fill the

void, said Newport Fire’s Schulz.

Similarly, Costa Mesa immediately called in backups after its

engine was deployed, Fujimoto said.

To stay prepared for local emergencies, cities and counties

typically do not send more than one-third of their resources to

assist in a mutual-aid request, Mais said.

Assisting a neighboring agency in an emergency happens on a daily

basis in Newport-Mesa, fire officials said.

“We automatically respond in Costa Mesa if we’re the closest

station,” Schulz said.

Both cities have an automatic aid agreement, and the dispatch

system determines which unit is closest to the scene, in either city,

Mais said.

“It actually is a great system because we get there quicker and

start initiating care,” Mais said.

The engines from Newport-Mesa could be out as many as five days

fighting the Topanga fire, officials said.

Newport-Mesa firefighters are concentrating on protecting homes

from burning in the Topanga blaze, Fujimoto said.

Fujimoto said the Costa Mesa firefighters did not sleep Wednesday

night. After several days, a replacement team could be sent if the

firefighters are worn out, he said.

“We start to think of the fatigue factor,” Fujimoto said.

BY THE NUMBERS

* 1: Number of fire engines Costa Mesa and Newport Beach each sent

to Topanga

* 4: Number of other cities in the strike team with Newport-Mesa

firefighters

* 4: Number of firefighters on each engine

* 5: Number of engines in the strike team that includes the

Newport-Mesa vehicles

* 5: Number of days Newport-Mesa firefighters may stay fighting

the blaze

* LAUREN VANE covers public safety and courts. She may be reached

at (714) 966-4618 or by e-mail at [email protected].