Stories

Johnnie James

As supervisor of the Idlewild Maintenance Station on State Route 199 near the California-Oregon border, Johnnie James and his crew have responded to more than their share of emergency situations and harrowing circumstances. But pe ...

Published:
Media coverage of the Glass Fire in Northern California got pretty close to the action. (Photo by John Huseby, District 4)

The cover story for the November 2020 issue of “Wired” magazine titled “The Fires Next Time,” quotes CalFire Chief Brian Estes who commands firefighting operations in three California counties as saying, “We’re running 400 to 500 ...

Published:
This accompanies the District 7 wildfire recap story from September 2020

The 2020 brush fire season so far: California forests burst into flames with more than 3 million acres burned. Six of the largest brush fires in California recorded history. All 18 California National Forests closed to recreation. ...

Published:
The Creek Fire along State Route 168 in District 6 (Photo by Carlos Lomeli)

Caltrans equipment operator Eric Gonzalez planned a weekend getaway to Mammoth Pools, a reservoir that borders Madera and Fresno County in the Sierra Nevada, with his nephew and family friends for Labor Day weekend. The weekend st ...

Published:
The Bobcat Fire along State Route 39 in District 7

The Bobcat Fire began for us on Monday, Sept. 7, which was Labor Day. We were notified at 6 a.m. that the Chilao Maintenance Station was being evacuated. We immediately went into action evacuating our resident employees and their ...

Published:
The El Dorado Fire off State Route 38 in District 8 (Photo by Ryan Dorsett)

The El Dorado Fire began Sept. 5 in the El Dorado Park region near Yucaipa, located within District 8. The 23-day fire burned about 22,600 acres in the San Gorgonio Wilderness Area of the San Bernardino National Forest and in the ...

Published: