October 21, 2007

On October 21, 2007, a fire that would later be called the most disastrous wildland fire in Orange County in over 30 years, began at the intersection near Santiago Canyon Road and Silverado Canyon Road, east of Irvine Lake.  The Santiago Fire continued to burn for 19 days until it was finally contained.  As in the Windy Ridge Fire, AmeriCare had the unique opportunity to provide BLS assistance and transportation for the County.  However, because of the many wildfires burning across California, resources were spread thin.  AmeriCare was fortunate to be able to fill the much needed role of running the Medical Unit.  The Medical Unit is primarily tasked with providing everything from basic first aid to advanced life support to incident personnel. The After Action Report for the Santiago Canyon Fire provided by the OCFA noted our efforts by stating, “The incident benefited from a local ambulance and its supervisor filling the Medical Unit Leader role in early stages of the incident.”  AmeriCare had two (2) ambulances staffed full-time and placed at two (2) strategic locations, and one (1) Strike Team Leader assigned to the fire the entire 19 days of the fire. 

On October 22, AmeriCare was again called upon when 12 firefighters were caught in a serious near miss episode, while on foot and suppressing a spot fire on the east side of Santiago Canyon Road, north of Modjeska. This turned out to be a significant life threatening event. The crew had been advancing on the fire when their hose line ruptured leaving them in a precarious situation.  The firefighters were forced to deploy their emergency fire shelters as a protective measure. AmeriCare responded 5 ambulances into the fire to help bring the 12 firefighters down the hill to be evaluated and treated.  Fortunately none of the firefighters received serious injuries. 

AmeriCare is committed to providing any assistance necessary to our EOAs and the County of Orange.  To demonstrate this, we maintain full strike teams that are ready to deploy at a moments notice.  We also maintain several Strike Team Leader vehicles that are stocked and ready to meet and disaster’s needs.  Additionally, we teach our EMTs and Paramedics ICS 100, 200 and 700 in our orientation.  Our Strike Team Leaders are trained by FEMA in ICS 300 and 400.