Marin Firefighter News

More than 2,400 Santa Cruz Co. residents were forced to evacuate Thursday, as the fast-moving Lockheed Fire threatens more than 1,000 homes in two communities. The blaze, which erupted Wednesday evening about 10 miles south of Santa Cruz, had burned close to 3,000 acres by Thursday, and remained at 0% containment. The fire is one of more than half a dozen that are burning at various levels of containment throughout Northern California.

The three-day-old La Brea Fire continues to build strength in the Los Padres National Forest in Central CA. The fire has consumed more than 20,000 acres at last report, with containment still listed at 0% and hot, dry conditions expected to continue.

A new study shows that firefighters are at high risk for developing cancer. Researchers at the University of Cincinnati said firefighters have a 100 percent higher risk of developing testicular cancer, a 50 percent higher risk for multiple myeloma and non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and 26 percent increased risk for prostate cancer.

California City Firefighters Local 3903 has partnered with the California Fire Foundation to bring public service announcements and evacuation planning materials to elderly individuals at their hosted disaster preparedness workshops. 

Firefighters and first responders up and down the state have been training for terrorism incidents since the California Fire Fighters Joint Apprenticeship Committee (CFFJAC) rolled out its new Terrorism Consequence Management (TCM) Train-the-Trainer course earlier this year. The CFFJAC is co-sponsored by CPF and the California State Fire Marshal.