The Los Osos Town Hall meeting was held on Saturday to teach people about wildland fire protection and prevention.
“As we look at coastal San Luis Obispo County we tend to think we might be in a mild climate and fire isn't a threat but the reality is very different,” said Bruce Gibson, San Luis Obispo County District 2 Supervisor.
Community members learned how to be prepared for a wildfire and about areas in Los Osos that are more prone to fire than others.
“Adjacent to what they call the ‘wild-land-urban interface area’ we have a lot of flashy fuels, medium fuels, and heavy fuels," said Jose Torres, San Luis Obispo County Fire Safe Council Focus Group chair. "Under the right conditions, this could propagate a wild-land fire and of course, we’re adjacent to Montana de Oro, which is full of eucalyptus and a lot of brush."
Speakers shared how to prepare your property, reduce fire fuels, and harden homes.
“Home hardening is increasing your structure survivability,” Joseph Torres, All-Risk Shield owner said.
This includes protecting spaces where embers can get in.
“If you have traditional vents or void spaces or openings you can fill those with flame and ember resistant vents or retrofit them with flame and embers vents or DIY mesh 1/8 or 1/16 in size,” Torres said.
Torres has worked as a firefighter in Los Angeles for over 20 years. He started a home hardening business after witnessing what he says is a major issue in California.
“It was kind of born out of that necessity to inform and educate people and to take my skill set outside of the firehouse so to speak,” Torres said.
Wildfires are taking off throughout the state this year.
“As of August 3rd, California has exceeded the amount of acreage that's burned in all of 2023," Cal Fire San Luis Obispo County Chief John Owens said. "The number of fires has increased more than the amount of all the wildland fires we've had in the state of California in 2023."
County leaders are urging community members to prepare.
“Fire threat is real and it is in the best interest of the community to take that seriously,” Gibson said.
Be prepared, be informed, and know before you go is the motto of Saturday's town hall meeting.
