Incidents: fire operations, wildlife rescue returns, planned roadworks

Police and fire officials shared case and activity details from the past week, as well as local roadwork planned for the coming week.

Last week's Foot Fire on Monday, October 14, destroyed a home in West Point and provided the Enterprise with an opportunity to meet with West Point Fire Protection District Chief Michael Downs, who has been at the helm for the past two months and allowed former Chief Terry Miller to “retire,” so to speak, by taking on the duties of deputy chief. Downs, who spent much of his firefighting career with San Andreas Fire, has also worked with the California Department of Forestry and Wildfire Protection (Cal Fire) and the Nevada Division of Forestry.

The chief said the cause of the fire occurred at Highway 26 and Rabbit's Foot

Street, is undetermined and could stay that way. According to the chief, the fire was reported by neighbors and extinguished shortly after 4 p.m. He arrived within 10 minutes, followed shortly by West Point District Engine 313 and West Point-Cal Fire Engine 4453 within 17 minutes of extinguishing the fire. The West Point water tender arrived shortly after the incident.

Upon arrival, the fire was visible from the middle of the building to the roof. The airstrikes included airstrikes, two fixed-wing aircraft and a helicopter. “The helicopter did a pretty good job of handling the structure,” he said. He added: “The house was unoccupied at the time. The first engines to arrive on scene conducted an aggressive interior attack. However, due to severe fire conditions and water supply issues, we transitioned from an offensive attack to a defensive attack for safety reasons. The incident lasted approximately six hours, but our district continued to inspect the structure for several days. “Most of the structure was lost.” He noted that the other responders were Central Fire, Mokelumne Hill Fire and San Andreas Fire.

“I couldn’t be prouder of the team I work with at West Point,” Downs continued. “The collaboration between Cal Fire and the West Point Fire Protection District has been excellent. Next-in resources help us reach West Point in approximately 30 minutes from the time of dispatch. The structure was a loss but was limited to the footprint of the structure through safe and aggressive firefighting. We’re on our own up here and have so many resources so far away.”

CHP San Andreas Unit Officer Valencia, pictured here, returned to a location on Highway 4 on October 15, 2024, where he found and assisted in the rescue of an injured great horned owl in early September. With the help of TriCounty Wildlife, which provided care during the healing period, the bird, nicknamed “Toby,” was released back into the wild near where officials first found him.
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West Point and Calaveras County's other fire districts will receive more funding in the coming months thanks to Measure A, which was approved by voters on the last ballot and took effect Oct. 1. Downs confided, “Although Measure A funds are not available Although the funds were distributed among the fire districts, planning for this funding allowed me to increase training levels, which directly impacted the Foot Fire. We were able to modify our response plan to be able to have our district’s water tank ready at the time of fire response.”

Owl release, Big Trees burns

As previously reported in the Enterprise, a Great Horned Owl lying on Highway 4 was rescued by the California Highway Patrol SAN in early September after an apparent collision with a vehicle

Andreas Unit (CHP) Officer Valencia and was subsequently turned over to TriCounty Wildlife Care.

Last Tuesday, Oct. 15, the officer was on scene to help release the bird, which he named “Toby,” back into the wild near where the two first met .

Calaveras Big Trees State Park officials will announce the park's fall 2024 prescribed burning schedule on Thursday, Oct. 24.

The meeting begins at 6:00 p.m. in the park's Education Resources Room. There is also a link for those who cannot attend in person to participate online. To register for the online version of the meeting, please visit bit.ly/3Y7MjSI.

It has been about 17 to 18 years since the last prescribed burns were conducted in the park's fire-prone South Grove of Giant Sequoias. Strategic prescribed burning is scheduled to begin on Monday, October 28, in collaboration with Cal Fire, the US Forest Service and the National Park Service. The focus areas include 1,300 acres in South Grove and 247 acres near West Moran and Love Creek. Officials noted that some trails will need to be closed during fire operations, including: South Grove Trail, Bradley Grove Trail,

Nothing but candy for the little ones as Calaveras Consolidated Fire delivers the treats in support of the 2024 Trunk or Treat event on Saturday, October 19, 2024 at Jenny Lind Elementary School in Valley Springs.
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the Beaver Creek area and the Walter W. Smith Memorial Parkway, south of the Stanislaus River.

Caltrans, county road work

The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) and Calaveras County Public Works shared their work schedule for the week.

Caltrans officials have planned utility work along Highway 4 and implemented one-way traffic control in two locations. The first is on Vallecito Bypass Road, where a crew will be working nights through Wednesday, October 23, from 9:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. There will also be a cone zone between Moran and Upper Moran streets every weekday until Friday, October 23rd. February 25, 2024, from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m

On Highway 49, motorists should expect one-way traffic control for utility work between the Calaveras River and Gold Strike Road every weekday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m

County officials said travelers should be aware that the annual road marking program is underway in the next few weeks. It began last Tuesday, October 15, and is expected to be completed by mid-November, depending on weather conditions and other variables.

The work, being carried out by Freemont-based Crews Chrisp Company, is scheduled from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily, with flaggers providing directions to motorists. Pedestrians in the affected areas are also urged to exercise caution when interacting with personnel and equipment in work areas. Work currently focused on Arnold will be moved to other areas in the county and may result in delays of up to 10 minutes. Anyone who has questions or needs to report urgent road-related issues should contact the Calaveras County Public Works Department at (209) 754-6401 during regular business hours, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Outside of these hours, contact the Calaveras County Sheriff's Office at (209) 754-6500 (non-emergency).