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# Heavy rains has FD fired up
- URL: https://www.smdp.com/heavy-rains-has-fd-fired-up/
- Published: 2005-05-21T15:00:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-23T07:11:12.000Z
- Author: Ryan Hyatt
- Tags: local, Malibu, #archive-import

*Santa Ana winds could spark a rural inferno*

MALIBU — Officials warn the record levels of rain that pummeled southern California this past winter may serve as a catalyst for brush fires.

Los Angeles County Fire Department officials, climatologists and concerned citizens are spreading word that if current weather conditions persist, increased plant growth resulting from the 37.5 inches of rain received in downtown Los Angeles this winter may be a primer for brush fires in rural areas through the fall.

Bill Patzert, a climatologist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, said a variety of recent weather conditions could easily contribute to brush fires in the Santa Monica and Malibu area in coming months.

“We still have 50 million dead trees in the mountains from the brush fires two years ago,” Patzert said. “The bottom line is, if we get Santa Ana’s this year, one match and it will all burn.

Patzert explained that the record levels of rain received in Los Angeles County this winter has prompted the growth of plants in outlying rural areas, especially wild grass. The rainy season, which typically lasts though spring, ended early this year — in February — meaning all of this new growth from the rains could easily dry out, a condition that could add fuel to brush fires.

Patzert said these conditions, along with Santa Ana winds in coming months, all could easily spark an inferno in rural housing areas surrounded by dry brush.

“We’re definitely primed,” Patzert said. “The emerald state in three months is going to look like the browned-out state.”

Captain Mark Savage, LACFD spokesperson, said the county fire department has a jurisdiction of about 2,300 square miles that includes Malibu and Santa Monica Canyon.

“Brush fire season doesn’t have an official start date,” Savage said. “Last week, we had a brush fire in Palos Verdes, over 100 firefighters battling it, very early in what could be a significant fire season.”

According to Savage, the Palos Verdes brush required the use of 12 engines and three helicopters, in addition to the manpower, and scorched more than five acres.

> “‘Rain’ is a four-letter word, and it stands for ‘fuel.’”

“There have been some positives about the heavy rains received lately, since they’ve helped simmer the really dry fuels out there,” Savage said. “The down side is there is some potential for grass crop and different types of fuels that have grown from the heavy rain, and that fuel can create for some fast-moving brush fires.”

Savage said that, historically speaking, whenever the county receives 20 inches of rain annually, the resulting fire season turns out to be problematic for firefighters, so the 37.5 inches received this winter alone could certainly prove to be a problem for brush fires.

“Right now, we’re looking at double to three times the grass volume per acre, and that means the amount of fuel readily available is much more compared to what the average grass level would be,” Savage said.

Savage said those residents living in rural county areas can prepare for possible brush fires by making sure their homes are in compliance with local brush clearance ordinances.

To find out what those are, he suggests residents contact their local fire department.

“Most likely, residents would have received notices by now stating the requirements, and the firefighters are out doing the inspections,” Savage said. “The deadlines for compliance should be coming up in the next month or so.

“The key is to be prepared.” Savage suggested residents have an evacuation plan if there is a fire in their area. He also said if residents are asked to evacuate, they comply.

“Let the firefighters come in and do their job without them having to worry about people getting out of harm’s way,” he said.

Tony Morris, a Topanga resident, helps spearhead a nonprofit organization called the Wildfire Research Network, a group of concerned citizens interested in minimizing the impact of wildfires.

One of the WRN’s goals is to help create a fire research center which would help coordinate firefighting efforts in the Western United States — an umbrella organization that would help firefighting research and efforts at the local, state and national levels.

“Firefighting efforts require research and development,” Morris said. “Brush fires are a problem that’s not going to stop.”

*Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on May 21, 2005.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/052105.pdf?ref=smdp.com)