Chino Hills grateful and fortunate after fire fight effort
Below is a statement from Dough La Belle, City Manager for the city of Chino Hills:
"The City of Chino Hills is extremely grateful for the efforts of everyone involved, especially the firefighters and law enforcement personnel. We are so fortunate that 13,102 acres burned in Chino Hills and not one family lost their home. Coordination between the Fire District, the City, and the Police Department was effective. The City's new website tools gave our residents access to timely information on our website and through our E-Notify system.
Our City channel and hotline provided information as staff at the Chino Valley Fire District manned the phones throughout the incident. The Red Cross cared for people, the Inland Valley Humane Society cared for animals, and many residents came forward to help their neighbors. Surviving a devastating wildfire is never easy and we thank our residents for their patience as evacuation orders remained in effect.
There was much work to be done to patrol for hot spots, repair power poles, remove boulders, and debris from the roadway before Canyon residents could return home. The danger is not over when the smoke and flames die down. The historic neighborhoods in the canyon have narrow roads, flammable vegetation, and difficult access. Fire apparatus must have access in and out of those communities to ensure that the fire does not flare up. Sleepy Hollow is an island that survived in the middle of an area that was completed burned. The last devastating fire in Carbon Canyon was in 1990 when 16 homes were lost.
Now that the fire is over, we are in the process of gathering information to see what we can learn from this incident."
The fire fighters did a great job, however, the city did not. I contacted a reporter and complained about the lack of real time info. He posed the question at the press conference and said the official said they received many complaints. What is the official website residents are to go to to receive up to date info? The city? Not so. Some of the cities had nothing. I don't want to have to Google 20 different websites while the fire is racing towards my home. After 9/11 I thought disasters such as fires were supposed to be better cooridnated. There should be one website for all disasters where people can get info. It is important when time is of the essence.