www.placer.ca.gov/envhealth

Placer County Provided Essential Public Health

and Animal Services for Camp Fire Recovery Now that the devastation of the Camp Fire in nearby Butte County is no longer in the news, have you considered the impacts to those who evacuated, even if their homes did not burn down? Sadly, almost 19,000 structures were destroyed and about 14,000 of those were residences. Placer County employees not only work to assist Placer County residents, when incidents like wildfires occur, they also respond and offer mutual aid assistance. Several of our HHS coworkers in Environmental Health and Animal Services answered the call for help and volunteered to deploy to Butte County to oversee environmental clean-up efforts and care for displaced and injured animals. How Did Placer Help? Four of our registered environmental health specialists (REHS) were deployed to areas in and around Paradise for periods ranging from two to 10 weeks. While Butte County employees continued to offer services to areas not affected by the fire, our staff oversaw debris removal at fire-damaged properties. Additionally, three volunteers from Animal Services deployed for up to three weeks. Two of our Animal Control Officers assisted with recovering and caring for many pets, livestock and wildlife displaced by the fire. One of our kennel attendants worked alongside veterinarians and their staff and tended to injured animals in emergency shelters. Below are their individual experiences. Environmental Health REHS who deployed to the burn area, met specialized training requirements in hazardous materials to qualify to participate. Their primary task was to oversee the removal of household hazardous wastes (HHW), which is the first step to abate health hazards and move homeowners along on the path to recovery and rebuilding. HHW items include:

oil anti-freeze diesel propane

gasoline fuel tanks pressurized

tanks

batteries vehicle heavy

equipment

paint and stain cleaners pesticides

In addition, specialists also identified, and marked hazards on the properties like damaged septic systems and unsafe wells. REHS Mike Mike DiPietro is one of the REHS who volunteered to help. His parents’ home, which was his childhood home, burned down as well as his sister’s home. Below, the first photo is of his kids with their cousins on the front steps of their grandparents’ home taken about three years ago in Paradise. The second photo below is from the same vantage point after the Camp Fire destroyed their grandparents’ home. All that remains is the concrete path and stairs.

 

 

This motivated Mike to want to help and communicate with fire victims that steps were being taken to clear their properties and move them down the path back to a normal life. Locating and removing HHW are required first steps before other debris can be removed and plans can be made to rebuild. Mike deployed to Paradise for two weeks in November.

REHS Susan “I feel fortunate to work for a county that recognizes the need and sees the value in reaching out to neighboring counties to assist with disaster recovery,” said REHS Susan Leland. Environmental Health and Animal Services Director Wesley Nicks visited the fire area and met with his employees, who voluntarily deployed to the area. Below he is pictured with REHS Susan Leland.

Susan described the devastation she saw when she arrived as incomprehensible. This is really saying a lot, as Susan volunteered last year with clean-up efforts for the fires in Northern California (Tubbs Fire in Sonoma County and Carr Fire in Shasta County). The number of damaged lots was triple the number in the Tubbs Fire, which was the largest fire catastrophe in California to that point. When she compared her experiences during fires last year to this year, many improvements were evident. She said overall processes were more organized than during the previous fires. Teams of environmental health staff from federal, state and local agencies worked efficiently and effectively from a headquarters in Chico. Each day began with a safety briefing, then teams were assigned specific areas to evaluate in designated zones. The teams went from parcel to parcel and recorded all hazardous items found on each property, removed what they could and marked larger items to be removed later.

They also marked hazards they encountered such as open holes in the ground from damaged wells and septic systems. The photo below shows septic tanks being marked.

The photo below shows pressurized cylinders that were devalved and then marked as empty and ready for recycling.

Signs were posted on each property when HHW removal was completed.

This hazard was marked with orange spray paint. This old well had a large, cavernous opening that spanned five feet across.

Susan reassured residents that she and the other government workers were there to help, and removing HHW is a required first step on the road to reconstruction. Additionally, she answered questions from property owners.

Susan stayed about an hour’s drive away from Chico, as hotel rooms closer were given priority to fire victims. On the weekends she returned to Placer County. This was her routine for about two and a half months that included the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays.

During her 10-week deployment, Susan connected with a fire victim who was a single mother who expressed a wish for a Christmas tree and ornaments, so she could decorate for her children. Susan decided to fill this request personally and took this mom on a shopping trip to buy a tree and ornaments. When Susan told her boss about the needs of this and other fire victims, he responded by organizing a giving tree event at the Environmental Health (EH) and Animal Services (AS) offices in Auburn. Many EH and AS employees purchased and wrapped gifts as part of their end-of-the-year staff meeting for both divisions. Below is a photo of the children from one of the families who received gifts.

“I’m so glad my coworkers and I had the opportunity to give directly to a family struggling to get by after their home burned down, said Susan. “We got to feel like we were part of the recovery process.” REHS Molly Molly Murphy, an REHS based at our Tahoe office, was deployed to Concow and other outlying areas near Paradise for two weeks in December and two weeks in January. She was assigned to a team from the California Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC) and oversaw HHW removal from burned properties. She described her role as a public liaison. The days were long, as they worked 11-12 hours. “I was struck by the complete destruction I saw of the forest in Concow,” said Molly. “It was challenging to hear the personal stories of those who evacuated, but I was glad to offer them a little comfort and reassurance that we were working to remove hazards from their properties.” The below photo shows the complete destruction of the forest and vegetation down to the soil.

Molly encountered several home-made septic tanks like the one pictured below. Many septic systems were damaged and will need to be rebuilt.

Molly has a friend who grew up in Paradise and this friend’s parents still live there and their home burned down. Molly was able to answer questions from this family and even helped her friend sift through the ruins.

“We put on protective suits and respirators and dug through the debris in the rain,” said Molly. They managed to find a few items of sentimental value, and then she and her friend stayed and watched the sunset from the burned property that had been purchased for its incredible views.

REHS Rebekka Rebekka Fine, REHS with our Tahoe office, began a two-week deployment the end of January, but her stay was cut short to only two days, as phase one clean-up was declared completed much earlier than anticipated. “It was very rewarding to learn that phase one was completed early,” said Rebekka. “I’m glad to see improvements in wildfire clean ups compared to last year when I was deployed to Sonoma.” Like the other REHS listed above, Rebekka was assigned to a team and oversaw the removal of HHW from burned properties, including businesses like the restaurant pictured below.

As a Tahoe resident, Rebekka is keenly aware that the possibility of a fire in Placer County is very high. This is one of the reasons why she wanted to go to Paradise to help. She saw her deployment as an opportunity to give back to a neighboring community. Animal Services In addition to the four environmental health employees, three from Animal Services were deployed. Two animal control officers and one kennel attendant assisted. The animal control officers (ACOs) assisted with recovery of displaced animals. Animals tend to run and hide during a fire and many survived. They also put out food and water for animals that were sheltered in place. The kennel attendant helped care for animals at the emergency shelters. ACO Kim Kim DeWoody has a background in disaster response, so she replied right away when the call went out for volunteers to help with animals affected by the Camp Fire. She deployed for three weeks in November to Magalia, Concow and nearby areas that were more remote. She was assigned to those areas, as she had a four-wheel drive vehicle, which offered better access to those areas. A typical day for Kim started with a morning briefing in Chico, as shown in the photo below, where she was assigned an area to patrol and a partner, typically an ACO from Butte County. Together they assessed areas with animals to determine if it was best to shelter them in place or if they should be removed.

They worked with firefighters and other volunteers to remove larger animals like the pot-belly pig, pictured below, being carried to a truck in a blanket.

“Initially 2,500 animal-related calls were received daily,” said Kim. “We responded to as many as possible as quickly as we could.” She also assisted the veterinarians and their staff with treatment when she returned to the emergency shelter with animals. Below, a cat was treated for burns to its paws.

Kim dropped food and water off for larger animals until someone with a trailer could bring them out like the fire-singed pig pictured below.

As shown below, Kim encountered several goats on one property. She contained them in a pen to keep them out of the road, and then called for a trailer. Later she helped a volunteer load the goats on a trailer.

“I found a woman’s cat alive and reunited her with it after three weeks,” said Kim. “The owner thought her cat did not survive, so it was a very rewarding experience.” ACO Brian “Navigating was challenging, as street signs were gone, and cell service was nonexistent,” said ACO Brian Graspointer. “But it was worth it when I reunited owners with their animals at the evacuation shelters.” Brian assisted for three weeks in December. He was dispatched to the last location someone saw an animal. Often, he was able to locate the animal and then call the owner at the evacuation shelter to arrange to meet. “Typically, a scared animal will return home in search of food and water,” said Brian.

His first days of deployment there were 350 calls for service a day. Three weeks later that number was down to about 100, which is quite a difference from the 2,500 calls per day a month earlier when his coworker Kim was in the area!

Kennel Attendant Caylea Caylea Anastasakes, a kennel attendant at Animal Services, lives in a high fire danger area in Foresthill and therefore felt compelled to help. “If I could not get to my animals during an evacuation, I would want volunteers who were experienced in caring for animals to be available,” said Caylea. In fact, she and her family were evacuated in 2014 during the King Fire, which was near Georgetown. She currently has three dogs and one cat and previously owned horses. Caylea worked alongside veterinarians and other staff to treat injured animals at the emergency animal shelter at the Chico Fairgrounds and the Del Oro Shelter in Oroville. She helped care for many cats and dogs with burns and worn out pads on their paws. She wrapped and put cream on burns, gave dehydrated animals fluids, administered vaccines and generally cared for the animals. At one point, she crawled through mud to clean kennels. When evacuation centers were consolidated, Caylea helped load animals in kennels in a large truck for transport. See below photo.

“I learned new ways to administer medication,” said Caylea. “I also learned new ways to handle scared, stressed and hurt animals.” Why Did Placer Help? The primary reason Placer County sent help was to speed up the processes to return life to normal for fire victims. Rebuilding cannot occur until the HHW are removed, and citizens were not allowed to return to the burn areas during and immediately after the fire to recover their pets themselves, for their own safety. Additionally, this experience better prepares responders to react to emergencies in Placer County. Those who volunteered for deployments reported back what worked well and what could be improved, which will improve planning for future events. Not only do our fellow HHS employees in Environmental Health and Animal Services work to protect the health and safety of Placer County residents and pets, but when disaster strikes, they also provide these services to neighboring jurisdictions. Wildfires do not observe jurisdictional boundaries, and neither do Placer County employees.