Federal Response to Southern California Firestorms

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is coordinating the federal government's response to the multiple wildfires burning across Southern California. As of the evening of October 23, over 900,000 people had been evacuated ahead of at least 16 wildfires driven by relentless Santa Anna winds.

FEMA's wildfire response so far has included:

• Approval of seven federal grants that will pay 75 percent of California's eligible fire-fighting costs, some of which include cost for equipment, supplies, and emergency work.

• Opening a Joint Field Office in Pasadena on Monday, October 22, 2007 to coordinate federal, state, tribal and local response operations throughout Southern California. The interagency center is comprised of federal agencies including the Department of the Interior, Department of Transportation, United States Forest Service, United States Army Corps of Engineers, Department of Health and Human Services, and The Department of Homeland Security's Infrastructure Protection.

• Established a staging area in Southern California in order to mobilize necessary federal assets as identified for emergency operations across the state.

• Identified and staged a federal Emergency Response Team to be deployed to assist California as needed.

Other federal agencies employed to assist California include the Department of Defense and the National Guard, the Department of Transportation, U.S. Fire Service, General Services Administration, Health and Human Services, Environmental Protection Agency, Department of Homeland Security and the U.S. Coast Guard.

Over 8,000 firefighters from across California are battling the fires, which are not expected to be brought under control for several days.

More details on the federal response to the Southern California wildfires is available on the FEMA Web site.

Also See: Blogging the SoCal Wildfire Disaster (San Diego)