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The Mendocino County Cooperative Aerial Fire Patrol (Co-op) hires pilot Mike Smith every summer to fly over the region in his Cessna 172 during the hottest part of the day, scouring the skies for signs of smoke. Last year, the Co-op recorded seven “first reports” of fire.

The newly formed Round Valley Prescribed Burn Association held its first burn on May 30, scorching 55 acres of grass at the airport just outside town. Since grant funds became available through the county about a year ago, the PBA has been offering trainings and spreading the word about the benefits of controlled fire.

Last fall, neighbors working with the Mendocino County Fire Safe Council pitched in to help a landowner maintain a strategic fuel break that did exactly what it was supposed to do – provide an opportunity to safely stop a wildfire from getting into the larger community.

Upcoming Fire Safety Townhall for Mendocino County residents will be on May 19th from 6 - 8 pm.

The 2025 LA fires served as a stark reminder of how quickly urban-wildland blazes can escalate under extreme weather conditions. One key lesson was the critical importance of early evacuation warnings and clear communication channels between agencies and the public. The fires also underscored the need for long-term investment in vegetation management and resilient infrastructure.

A federal grant for large-scale fuels reduction and home hardening in Brooktrails has been canceled, along with the entire program that funded it, as part of the government’s cost-cutting efforts.

The Mendocino County Fire Safe Council (MCFSC) has teamed up with the University of California Hopland Research and Extension Center (HREC) to teach fire-science and wildfire-safety basics to about 800 students from 16 schools across the county this spring. The program is free to students, parents and schools, with MCFSC covering all the costs of materials and transportation.

Spring is short, and fire season is long, in the highly combustible landscape of rural Mendocino County. Neighborhood Fire Safe Councils are a great way to prevent disaster by sharing information and resources, organizing workdays, and providing many other ways to help homes withstand wildfire. Communities can take their efforts even further - and receive substantial benefits - by becoming designated as Firewise USA® Communities by the National Fire Protection Association.