C.A.S.T. MEETING THURSDAY NIGHT AT THE FIRE STATION

A C.A.S.T meeting will be held at 7:00 pm, Thursday, at the Hwy 108 fire station.

Contact your neighbors, friends and family, who might be interested in this program. We all know how much it takes to support our Community and Fire Department and provide assistance to assure that we get the biggest bang for our tax dollars.

When our department goes on a call or needs assistance during storms and/or power outages, we can help by answering phones, going to the scene, when directed, to provide transportation of equipment or personnel, etc. When we have major storms or power outages we can assist by manning warming centers or advising where road problems are.

We can't help if we are not trained and know how to handle a situation.

The CAST program (Community Assistance and Support Team) is one way we can be prepared, trained and ready to assist.

This may be the last time we can show that there is interest in the Community to get this program off the ground and functioning. Hope to see you and other interested people at the meeting.

Kirk Wallace is heading up this effort.  Russ and I will be out there for the meeting, and hopefully you will be too!

HIGH WIND -- NO BURNING -- ADVISORY!

INFORMATION
The National weather service has issued a Fire Weather Watch for our area. 

The wind advisory is now in effect until 6 pm pst this evening.

Winds: Northwest to north wind 15 to 30 mph with gusts to around 40 mph.
Timing: Strongest winds will occur from late this morning through mid afternoon with the wind starting to decrease by this evening.

Strongest wind will be along western portions of the sacramento valley towards the coastal mountains and into the delta and will include Sacramento International Airport, Vacaville and Fairfield.  (comment from Blythe:  I heard on the TV news that that wind area does include the Sonora area.)

Precautionary/preparedness actions: 
A wind advisory means that sustained wind of 25 to 39 mph are possible with gusts to 40 mph or greater. Winds this strong can make driving difficult, especially for high profile vehicles. Use extra caution. Residents should secure outdoor items that may be affected by the wind.

Please do not discard any fire place ashes out side unprotected. TODAY IS A NO BURN DAY. Don't plan on burning till we see a significant amount of rain or snow.

Stay Safe
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MY INFORMATION CAME FROM FIRE FIGHTER NEIL GAMEZ WHO IS ADMINISTRATOR OF THE FOLLOWING FACEBOOK GROUP PAGE.  

MI WUK SUGAR PINE F.P.D


Neil frequently posts articles/comments of interest to our area so if you are on FaceBook, put that name, MI WUK SUGAR PINE F.P.D  (<<--no period after the D) in the search box at the top of each FB page and ask Neil to 'friend' you. 

Have a great and safe weekend.

HAPPY NEW YEAR---A DAY LATE ALREADY!

I hope you have all enjoyed a safe and sane New Year and that you're ready for 2012.  I don't think we are!

I got some good information from our neighbor Bob Feretta in an email today:

After being down for 13 months, Weather Underground MiWuk weather is back on line.  There are also links on this site to Cal Trans road info, Cal Fire info and the Dodge Ridge snow report.  There is also a web cam for the area of the station.  Info is updated every 30 minutes.

Check it out here.  It looks like it's going to be partly cloudy all week.  That's depressing.  The url is http://www.miwukweather.com

Bob and his wife and Russ and I finally actually MET at the MAHA Holiday Gathering at the Mi Wuk Library and Community Center early in December.  After chatting for a few minutes, we started to connect the dots and realized that HE was BOB and I was BLYTHE from the Mi Wuk Blog!  Just like old home week!!!

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL OF MY MI WUK BLOG READERS AND FRIENDS

It's been a wild and crazy year for the Klipple household but we're finally slowing down for a day or two to relax and enjoy a little Christmas coziness.

I want to wish you all a Very Merry Christmas.  Thanks for following our blog, offering ideas and incident updates, and just being good neighbors!

 

SAFETY INFORMATION FOR THE HOLIDAYS!

The following was posted by Mi Wuk / Sugar Pine and Sonora Fire Fighter of the Year, Neil Gamez on the Mi Wuk Fire Protection District FaceBook home page.  Just put Mi Wuk Sugar Pine F.P.D in the FB search box and click to "add as a friend".  Neil is always posting good information for all of our benefits.

If you are thinking of burning gift wrap paper, ribbons, cardboard boxes, scrap lumber in your fireplace DON'T. 

Christmas tree can create excessively large and hot fires, which can damage fireplaces and chimneys—or suddenly flare out of control. Each year, people lose their homes to these unexpected, fast-moving fires. 

Burning improper items can also create embers that bypass missing or damaged spark arresters. These embers cause roof and attic fires that can destroy your home and everything in it. Burning improper items in a fireplace can also create fumes that make people ill and harm the environment, according to the fire department. 

The winter holiday season is also time to pay special attention and care to the lighting, placement and disposal of candles. Leaving lit candles inside a home packed with flammable items and holiday decorations is an invitation to disaster. Anyone or anything can knock over a candle—including a pet, a wayward toy, or a distracted adult.

Have a very Merry Christmas everyone.  Be safe.  Ask for snow for Christmas (yeah, really).

WHEN IS IT A BURN / NO BURN DAY?

From our FireFighter of the year, Neil Gamez:

The number to call for Burn Day information is Air Pollution Control 209-533-5598. Also please remember that the county has not seen rain in some time now.  We need to be very careful about keeping an eye on burn piles and making sure they are completely out before we leaving them unattended. Also if you are going to discard your fire place ashes, make sure they are in a metal container and not a paper bag or other flammable container. The department has been to a number of structure fires with that being the cause. 

 

Keep Safe!   Thanks Neil!  :)

WINTER'S COMING

And with that flash bit of information, here is a paraphrase of a comment Fire Fighter Neil Gamez, this year's fire fighter of the year,  posted on FaceBook today:

With the up coming snow season now would be a great time to check the batteries in your flashlights, smoke detector and carbon monoxide detector.

Also with the high volume of fire calls lately it is a good time to get your chimney cleaned and checked and clear all leaf litter from gutters and roof.

Have a safe holiday season from the Staff of the Mi Wuk Sugar Pine Fire Protection District.

Good advice for sure!