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Written by: Elizabeth Larson

Created: 23 August 2025

At the direction of Gov. Gavin Newsom, the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services, or Cal OES, on Friday approved the predeployment of 13 fire engines, seven water tenders and two dispatchers in Sierra, Nevada and Plumas counties through Tuesday ahead of expected high temperatures, low humidity and dry lightning.

This is on top of resources predeployed earlier this week  in response to elevated heat and critical fire weather forecast to impact Southern California lasting through Sunday. 

A total of 64 fire engines, 17 water tenders, nine bulldozers, five helicopters, 10 hand crews, 16 dispatchers, and two Incident Management Teams, are predeployed to 10 counties including Inyo, Kern, Los Angeles, San Bernardino, San Diego, Santa Barbara, Ventura, Sierra, Nevada and Plumas counties. 

Local fire agencies identify when conditions in their community may require additional resources and submit a request to the state for support. The staging locations and response assignments are coordinated by local officials.

These efforts ensure that resources are ready to respond quickly, minimizing the potential impact of new fires. This proactive approach has proven to be a critical component of California’s wildfire response strategy, reducing response times and containing fires before they escalate into major incidents. 

The preposition program is in addition to California’s Fire and Rescue Mutual Aid System, which remains available for emergency response support throughout the state where resources are needed.

With extreme heat forecast for much of the state, California entered Phase 2 of its extreme temperature response plan on Wednesday — ramping up state and local coordination of resources to prepare for extreme heat. 

At the governor’s direction, the State Operations Center at the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services is on an enhanced watch for both heat and fire conditions. Cooling centers to protect vulnerable residents are also open in communities across the state.

“I've directed the state to mobilize resources to communities to help protect against catastrophic wildfire and potentially record-high temperatures. Please continue to check your local forecast and follow the guidance of local authorities,” said Newsom.

Aggressive statewide fire response

Aggressive aerial firefighting operations have helped firefighters with initial attack on several fires in the last few days, including the Pickett Fire in Napa County, the Coyote Fire in El Dorado County and many others across the state. 

In the 24-hour period ending on Friday, Cal Fire aircraft have flown more than 175 hours combined, including 19 hours of helicopter night operations. 

Cal Fire helicopters have dropped over 380,000 gallons of water and fixed-wing aircraft more than 151,000 gallons of retardant. 

Across the state, Cal Fire reported 23 new wildfires in the last 24 hours, bringing the 2025 year-to-date total to 5,673 fires and 374,023 acres burned, slightly above the five-year average for incidents but below typical acreage totals for this time of year. 

Cal Fire remains committed to its goal of containing 95% of wildfires at 10 acres or less and encourages the public to do their part too.

Residents are urged to stay vigilant during this heightened heat and fire weather period. Californians are reminded to:

• Prepare a wildfire action plan, including planning evacuation routes and packing a go-bag with essentials.
• Sign up for local emergency alerts to stay informed about changing conditions.
• Visit CalHeatScore.CalEPA.ca.gov to find heat safety information specific to your area.
• For more information on fire safety and general preparedness, visit Ready.ca.gov. 

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Written by: Elizabeth Larson

Created: 23 August 2025

As part of the ongoing investigation into the July 1 fireworks facility explosion in Esparto, Cal Fire – Office of the State Fire Marshal has taken action to revoke the various pyrotechnic licenses of the individuals and companies involved with the facility. 

Following a thorough administrative investigation, the State Fire Marshal determined there was evidence that Kenneth Chee, his company Devastating Pyrotechnics Inc., and Craig Cutright, and his company Blackstar Fireworks had violated California’s firework laws and regulations. 

“Since the explosion, our arson and bomb investigators and deputy state fire marshals have been laser focused on not only determining the circumstances leading up to the incident, but also whether or not the operators were working with their state issued licenses,” said Chief Daniel Berlant, California state fire marshal. “While this concludes our administrative license investigation, we continue to make progress in the post blast investigation.”

The decision to revoke the operator’s licenses was based on the Office’s determination that several fireworks laws and regulations were violated including not filing proper importation documents to the office, not reporting lost fireworks, possession of fireworks without a local fire permit, and numerous additional allegations that remain part of the criminal investigation still underway.

This week’s action follows the recent announcement that the State Fire Marshal will be convening a Public Safety Fireworks Enforcement Task Force to thoroughly review existing fireworks enforcement efforts and state fireworks regulations. 

The Task Force will be asked to provide proposed amendments to the state’s regulations to enhance compliance and public safety. 

The group will also be tasked with creating a plan aimed to improve coordination among local, state, and federal agencies, increase public awareness and education, and strengthen penalties for violations. 

The Task Force’s work will be sent to Cal Fire – Office of the State Fire Marshal General Fireworks Advisory Committee to get industry and stakeholder feedback.

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Written by: LAKE COUNTY NEWS REPORTS

Created: 22 August 2025

On Thursday, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced that the state’s Sites Reservoir infrastructure project is advancing forward and has received a nearly $219 million funding increase from the California Water Commission to ensure the project moves forward as quickly as possible. 

The additional funding is needed as a result of added costs from delays — including inflation and expected construction cost increases.  

“We can't wait to protect our state from water shortages – there are 40 million Californians depending on us,” said Newsom. “I am pleased to see the Sites Reservoir project move forward with additional funding, and urge the Legislature to continue to make our state’s water future a priority. Each day that we delay these projects costs our state more money. The Legislature has an opportunity to make history by fast-tracking critical water infrastructure that will ensure we are resilient against droughts and can continue delivering necessary water – a basic human right — to all Californians.”
 
Sites Reservoir is a key component of the governor’s water strategy and will capture water from the Sacramento River during wet seasons and store it for use during drier seasons — holding up to 1.5 million acre-feet of water, enough to supply over 4.5 million homes for a year. 

The project will help California maintain a resilient water supply in the face of climate change, weather extremes, and water scarcity.

With this new infusion of funding, Sites is eligible for $1.094 billion in Proposition 1 funding. The total project cost is estimated at up to $6.8 billion, of which roughly $780 million will be financed through the federal government. 

Gov. Newsom previously streamlined the project, allowing the project to swiftly defeat a CEQA legal challenge. More information about the project can be found at build.ca.gov. 

Preparing California’s water infrastructure 

Over the last few decades, the California climate has warmed, with the effects felt strongly in water resources. 

The state has already experienced a marked increase in the variability of precipitation, with wild swings from drought to flood. These threats were outlined in a recently released State Water Project Adaptation Strategy which assesses and details over a dozen different state actions to protect the state’s water supply through the State Water Project. 

Completing water infrastructure projects quickly is more important than ever. Through Newsom’s streamlining efforts, the administration said it is working to mitigate future cost increases and prepare California for a new climate reality. 

Conveyance infrastructure will also be needed to move that water to where it is needed to take advantage of fast-moving storms. 

This is why Gov. Newsom has also announced a legislative package to fast-track another key water infrastructure project, the Delta Conveyance Project, which will also help offset and recover California’s future climate-driven water losses. 

The Delta Conveyance Project would expand the state’s ability to improve water supply reliability, while also maintaining environmental and water quality protections. 

During atmospheric rivers last year, the Delta Conveyance Project could have captured enough water for 9.8 million people’s yearly usage — further enhancing California’s ability to provide water to its 40 million residents, in conjunction with other water infrastructure projects like Sites Reservoir.