Local firefighters aid in L.A. wildfire battle

Paradise Valley firefighters returned safely to Boundary County Jan. 28 after two weeks in California fighting the most destructive wildfires to ever hit Los Angeles County.  

The fire district received a call to action from Idaho Office of Emergency Management on the afternoon of Jan. 8, a day after the fires broke out. By 5 a.m. the next morning, PVFD Deputy Chief Matt Solt and firefighters Marta Matthews and Ben Wilson had already begun their 1,400-mile journey to Southern California in a Paradise Valley fire engine. They were among the 104 firefighters — including four from Bonner County — and 25 fire engines across the state that deployed to support California’s response efforts. 

The group responded to the devastating Palisades wildfire, which ultimately destroyed more than 5,300 structures across 23,000 acres in West Los Angeles, according to Palisades News. Alongside other Idaho task forces, PVFD fighters protected vulnerable residential areas by preventing new fires from emerging out of lingering hotspots. California fire officials used an infrared drone to detect the hotspots. 

“It looked like a war zone out there,” Solt said. “There were entire blocks of destroyed homes.” 

The crew was able to protect some homes and assist locals by searching through the charred rubble of their homes for small sentimental valuables. But Solt said there wasn’t much left to find. 

Matthews said the locals were extremely grateful and welcoming, despite the life-altering circumstances many faced. 

“They were always offering us free food,” she said. 

The widespread destruction was fueled by fierce Santa Ana winds, which reached speeds up to 100 mph. Even with full preparedness, it’s practically impossible to contain such fires without serious devastation, said Paradise Valley Fire Chief Mike Glazier, who previously lived in California. 

Managing wildfire risk in Boundary County 

In September 2022, six wildfires broke out in Boundary County, two of which were near residential areas. The county considered issuing evacuation orders. In 2023, several regional wildfires burned up almost 3,000 acres of land.

As for this year’s fire season, officials say it’s too early to make predictions. While the snow water equivalent in the county’s mountains — one of several indicators of wildfire risk — has increased promisingly compared to last winter, it remains around the 30-year median, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. 

Glazier said the fire district is occasionally challenged by the county’s limited water supply. But the most critical factor in reducing wildfire damage is effective land management. Solt said inadequate land management played a significant role in the scale of destruction in the Los Angeles wildfires.  

“If you keep your land well maintained, but your neighbor doesn’t, chances are both properties will be destroyed in a wildfire situation,” Glazier said. 

The Boundary County Fire Prevention Cooperative has worked with the Idaho Department of Lands for years to offer advice to local landowners on how to prepare for wildfires. It offers free wildfire home assessments, information on general forest health and best practices and free smoke detectors for county homeowners. Community members are also able to request free wildfire home protection zone evaluation classes from IDL.  

The National Interagency Fire Center lists effective ways to protect homes. Using fire-resistant building materials, such as tile or slate roofs and treated wood, is the best preventative measure, it says. 

But other safety measures can be taken easily. Keeping a clean roof and gutters, cleaning debris from exterior attic vents and crawl space vents, removing low-hanging branches from trees, disposing stove and fireplace ashes after soaking them and keeping the area clear of flammable vegetation are just some of the precautions that can be taken today to mitigate wildfire damage. More information on wildfire prevention can be found on the Bonners Ferry Herald website or idahofirewise.org.