BACK-COUNTRY FIRE PROTECTION
WHERE WE ARE TODAY
SUMMARY
San Diego County Officials have made great strides improving the firefighting capability
in the unincorporated or “back-country” areas of the County. The 2014/2015 San Diego
County Grand Jury (Grand Jury) believes that work is worthy of commendation. More
needs to be done.
In 2003 and again in 2007 major back-country wild fires that started in San Diego County
made it clear to officials that reorganization was paramount. County leaders, working
with the San Diego Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO), created the San
Diego County Fire Authority (SDCFA).
The SDCFA provides support for unifying the administration, communications, training
and equipping of rural fire agencies. It also extends around-the-clock protection to those
areas of the backcountry that previously had either limited or part-time on-call protection.
In addition, the SDCFA has contracted with the California Department of Forestry and
Fire Protection (CALFIRE) to extend the scope of its fire protection services and
contracted with various agencies to augment existing aerial firefighting assets.
There are still some missing pieces:
 During the fire-fighting effort for the Cocos fire in 2014, fire crews
encountered a hydrant that was reported as “not working.” The hydrant
was fixed after the fire but that raises questions as to why it wasn’t
identified and repaired before the fire.
 One of the underlying concepts of establishing the County Fire Authority
was to provide support to backcountry fire agencies. Currently 131 of the
282 agencies that provide fire protection to the backcountry have not
entered into agreements with the County Fire Authority. These agencies
cover approximately 500,000 acres3 or about 22% of the unincorporated
area of the County.
The Grand Jury recommends that, in order to improve the fire-fighting capability of the
County Fire Authority, the County should partner with all back-country fire agencies that
haven’t signed agreements (including those on Indian tribal lands) to determine how best
to consolidate their organizations under the governance of the County Fire Authority.

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San Diego County Fire Authority Fire Master Plan dated July 2013
San Diego County General Plan Update Environmental Impact Report (EIR) of August 2011
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San Diego County General Plan Update EIR of August 2011
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SAN DIEGO COUNTY GRAND JURY 2014/2015 (filed May 11, 2015)

 INTRODUCTION
The Grand Jury explored two issues:
 How did the new organizational approach work during the 2014 wildfires and
what were the lessons learned?
 What is the status of the consolidation effort to improve firefighting by bringing
backcountry fire agencies under the governance of the County Fire Authority?

PROCEDURE
The Grand Jury interviewed:
 Senior County Fire Authority personnel;
 Personnel from backcountry fire agencies;
 Senior staff from a backcountry water district; and
 A member of the San Diego County Board of Supervisors.
The Grand Jury visited:
 A backcountry fire station; and
 The County Emergency Operations Center.
The Grand Jury reviewed the following:
 The May 2014 San Diego County Wildfires After-Action Report;
 The May 2014 City of San Diego Bernardo Fire After-Action Report;
 San Diego Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO) reports on
Reorganization of Structural Fire Protection and Emergency Medical Service in
Unincorporated San Diego County;
 The July 2013 Fire Master Plan for the San Diego County Fire Authority;
 The San Diego County General Plan Update Environmental Impact Report of
August 2011;
 The County Fire Authority web site; and
 Previous Grand Jury Reports.

DISCUSSION
Progress to Date
1. The County has made significant progress in improving the firefighting capability
since the 2003 and 2007 wildland fires. It has adopted the strategy of leaving
backcountry fire agencies in place and supporting them in a manner to bring fire
protection service to a standard level across the backcountry. This approach is
intended to improve fire protection while at the same time minimize the cost to
taxpayers. Some of the actions taken to date are:
a. Established the County Fire Authority and consolidated backcountry fire
agencies covering approximately 78%4 of the unincorporated land.
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San Diego County Fire Authority Fire Master Plan dated July 2013

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SAN DIEGO COUNTY GRAND JURY 2014/2015 (filed May 11, 2015)

 b. Entered into a contract with CALFIRE to extend its existing services to
provide more support for the back-country fire protection effort. The
contract with CALFIRE expanded its services year-round and allowed
CALFIRE to augment fire stations that were previously operated on an
“on-call” basis.
c. Entered into a contract with CALFIRE to provide senior staff for the
County Fire Authority. This allows CALFIRE, with its expertise in
fighting wildland fires, to oversee the training and equipping of
backcountry fire stations.
d. Added volunteer firefighters to provide around-the-clock protection for
fire stations that were operated on an “on-call” basis.
e. Purchased firefighting equipment to augment existing equipment at
backcountry fire stations.
f. Provided funding to improve physical conditions at backcountry fire
stations.
g. Purchased aerial firefighting assets for direct use by the County Fire
Authority.
2. In addition, the County has entered into agreements with the City of San Diego,
San Diego Gas & Electric and the Military to make available their aerial assets as
needed. This greatly increases the capability to combat fires as they start to grow.
Lessons Learned
1. During the fire-fighting effort for the May 2014 Cocos fire, crews were told not to
use a hydrant in the area of the fire since it was “not working.” The hydrant was
working but it only produced “high pressure” water and needed fire-fighting
equipment capable of reducing the pressure before it was safe to use. This
situation was known to the fire agency for many years but never addressed to the
water district that it needed to be fixed or labeled as high pressure. The fix was
accomplished after the fact.
a. This is an example of the type of problem the County Fire Authority can
discover and correct before the next fire.
b. The County Fire Authority should survey all backcountry fire agencies to
see what kinds of problems they face and determine if there are
improvements and/or assistance needed.
2. Both San Diego City and County After-Action reports for the North County fires
of May 2014 made reference to problems with their communications systems. For
the County, this involved excessive busy signals.
Status of Consolidation Effort
1. The County Fire Authority has signed agreements with or consolidated 15 of the
28 back-county fire agencies to operate under its governance. This covers
approximately 78% of the unincorporated County area. Even though the fire
agencies that make up the remaining 22% all have mutual aid agreements with the
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SAN DIEGO COUNTY GRAND JURY 2014/2015 (filed May 11, 2015)

 County and each other, consolidating under the County Fire Authority umbrella
has some distinct advantages for both:
a. During a fire the ground and air attack could be better coordinated under
one organization.
b. All fire agencies could receive the same training.
c. All fire agencies could have appropriate equipment for their area of
responsibility regardless of their fund raising ability.
d. The County Fire Authority could pre-position equipment at any
appropriate location.
e. There could be one database of water sources, equipment, labor, and other
assets available at each agency so the County Fire Authority could
develop plans and deploy a coordinated effort when needed.
f. The County Fire Authority could provide specialized services that are
burdensome for small agencies, such as:
i. Purchasing and contracting;
ii. Standardization of equipment;
iii. Dispatch services;
iv. Data collection needed to determine locations for new fire stations
County-wide rather than by individual fire agency;
v. Efficient allocation of specialized equipment that could be shared
with other fire agencies based on need;
vi. Business services for paying invoices, tracking budgets, etc.; and
vii. Vehicle maintenance.
g. The County Fire Authority could develop and implement a plan to cover
those “islands” of the County that are unserved by any fire protection
agency.
2. The County Fire Authority should also consider entering into agreements with
Indian tribal fire agencies to take advantage of the added coordination available
during a wildland fire.

FACTS AND FINDINGS
Fact: The County Board of Supervisors established the County Fire Authority to provide
firefighting services for the backcountry.
Fact: The County Fire Authority added assets and capabilities to backcountry fire
stations.
Fact: The County Fire Authority added aerial assets and as-needed agreements for
additional aerial assets.
Finding 01: San Diego County significantly increased its ability to fight fires in the
backcountry since the 2003 and 2007 wildfires.

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SAN DIEGO COUNTY GRAND JURY 2014/2015 (filed May 11, 2015)

 Fact: Thirteen (13) backcountry fire agencies representing approximately 22% of the
unincorporated area of the county have not agreed to consolidate or enter into agreements
with the County Fire Authority.
Fact: Back-country fire agencies are typically not staffed to perform certain specialized
services such as purchasing and contracting, vehicle maintenance, business services, etc.,
that could be performed more effectively by the County.
Fact: The May 2014 Cocos fire identified a problem with water availability from
backcountry fire hydrants that could have been corrected before the fire.
Fact: The May 2014 San Diego County Wildfires After-Action Report lists problems
with communications.
Finding 02: The County Fire Authority still has work to do to complete the
reorganization and improve backcountry firefighting capability.

COMMENDATION
The 2014/2015 San Diego County Grand Jury commends the San Diego County
Board of Supervisors and the Chief Administrative Officer for making significant
improvements to date in the ability of the County to fight fires in the
unincorporated areas while at the same time minimizing the cost to taxpayers.

RECOMMENDATIONS
The 2014/2015 San Diego County Grand Jury recommends that the San Diego
County Chief Administrative Officer:
15-03:

Consolidate or establish agreements between the County Fire
Authority and all backcountry fire agencies (including Indian Tribal
agencies if possible) in order to maximize fire protection services to
the backcountry.

15-04:

Identify and offer specialized services (such as vehicle maintenance,
purchasing and contracting, business services, etc.) to backcountry
fire agencies for the benefit of existing partners and to encourage
other agencies to join the County Fire Authority.

REQUIREMENTS AND INSTRUCTIONS
The California Penal Code §933(c) requires any public agency which the Grand Jury has
reviewed, and about which it has issued a final report, to comment to the Presiding Judge
of the Superior Court on the findings and recommendations pertaining to matters under
the control of the agency. Such comment shall be made no later than 90 days after the
Grand Jury publishes its report (filed with the Clerk of the Court); except that in the case
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SAN DIEGO COUNTY GRAND JURY 2014/2015 (filed May 11, 2015)

 of a report containing findings and recommendations pertaining to a department or
agency headed by an elected County official (e.g. District Attorney, Sheriff, etc.), such
comment shall be made within 60 days to the Presiding Judge with an information copy
sent to the Board of Supervisors.
Furthermore, California Penal Code §933.05(a), (b), (c), details, as follows, the manner in
which such comment(s) are to be made:
(a) As to each grand jury finding, the responding person or entity shall indicate
one of the following:
(1) The respondent agrees with the finding
(2) The respondent disagrees wholly or partially with the finding, in which
case the response shall specify the portion of the finding that is disputed
and shall include an explanation of the reasons therefor.
(b) As to each grand jury recommendation, the responding person or entity shall
report one of the following actions:
(1) The recommendation has been implemented, with a summary
regarding the implemented action.
(2) The recommendation has not yet been implemented, but will be
implemented in the future, with a time frame for implementation.
(3) The recommendation requires further analysis, with an explanation and
the scope and parameters of an analysis or study, and a time frame for the
matter to be prepared for discussion by the officer or head of the agency or
department being investigated or reviewed, including the governing body
of the public agency when applicable. This time frame shall not exceed
six months from the date of publication of the grand jury report.
(4) The recommendation will not be implemented because it is not
warranted or is not reasonable, with an explanation therefor.
(c) If a finding or recommendation of the grand jury addresses budgetary or
personnel matters of a county agency or department headed by an elected officer,
both the agency or department head and the Board of Supervisors shall respond if
requested by the grand jury, but the response of the Board of Supervisors shall
address only those budgetary or personnel matters over which it has some
decision making authority. The response of the elected agency or department
head shall address all aspects of the findings or recommendations affecting his or
her agency or department.
Comments to the Presiding Judge of the Superior Court in compliance with Penal Code
§933.05 are required from:
Responding Agency
San Diego County Chief
Administrative Officer

Recommendations
15-03, 15-04

Due Date_________
08/10/15

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SAN DIEGO COUNTY GRAND JURY 2014/2015 (filed May 11, 2015)