OAKLAND, Calif. (KRON) – Two fireplace stations closed in Oakland this week – Station 25 and Station 28, each within the Oakland Hills. Residents there have began a petition to have the stations reopen.
The terrain of the Oakland Hills is similar to the realm burning this week in Southern California. The Palisades Hearth sparked someday after the stations closed.
“These fires in LA are just a stark reminder of what can happen year-round,” mentioned Seth Olyer, president of the Oakland Firefighters Union.
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Olyer says the closures are troublesome to cope with for firefighters already coping with a heavy workload.
“We have structure fires every day. A building fire, kitchen fires, multiple car fires, encampment fires every day. The workload among our membership is immense,” he mentioned.
Residents are additionally upset with the closures. Alisa Rodriguez and Alan Mertens stay lower than a mile from Station 25. They’re involved that their neighborhood might be coping with an extended response if catastrophe ever strikes.
“Open country directly opposite on the other side of the highway, and around here there’s a lot of vegetation around here that could easily burn, and these events have happened before,” Mertens mentioned.
The Oakland fires in 1991 killed 25 folks and destroyed hundreds of houses. The newest blaze in October burned a number of houses and compelled evacuations within the Oakland Hills.
There are two examples of why residents have began a petition to reopen Station 25, 28 and Engine 10, which closed two years in the past within the Grand Lake neighborhood. The petition is gaining traction as a number of fires in LA have destroyed greater than 12,000 houses.
“Especially considering that the orientation of the Oakland Hills is exactly the same as some of those areas in Los Angeles. Really tight, windy streets with houses built into the hillsides. Limited access,” Olyer mentioned.
Flyers for the petition to reopen the Oakland fireplace stations have been posted across the metropolis. They’ve a QR code that folks can scan to signal that petition.
