San Bernardino County Fire Battalion Chief Scott Tuttle was barely home from working the Apple Fire in August when he was sent out again to augment firefighters working on the El Dorado Fire. Managing editor Tami Roleff files this report from the fire captain, who talks about fighting the fire in the Angelus Oaks area…
“This morning we told our firefighters, if this was your house, prep it like it was your house.”
Fire Battalion Chief Scott Tuttle was with a strike team of firefighters that was charged with structure defense in Angelus Oaks. Crews are creating defensible spaces around houses.
“Defensible space is an area clear of vegetation that gives us a chance to go direct on the fire before it actually impacts the house. It gives us that buffer, that gives us a safety zone space to work in and keep the fire off the house.”
Tuttle explained why defensible space is so important when working with wildfires.
“A house without defensible space is a threat to the houses around it, and it becomes a domino; once one house catches, it’s more likely to catch the houses around it.”
And finally, Tuttle repeated his admonition that residents should evacuate if necessary.
“When we have residents in area, and we’re trying to get equipment up here, it hampers our efforts. the sooner folks can get out and let us get to work, the better off we’ll all be.”
