by Burt Graeff
The recent wildfires in California were gut-wrenching to watch on the nightly news. Some numbers: 85 dead; 459,000 acres burned; 14,000 homes destroyed; one town of 27,000 – Paradise – virtually leveled. It was the deadliest, most destructive fire in California history.
A key question in the aftermath: Could anything like this happen here in the Rincon Valley? Highly unlikely, said Vail resident Paul Summers. If anyone is an authority on this subject it is Summers. Summers, 69, became a full-time firefighter 50 years ago in Orange County, California. He retired in December 2007 as a division chief of San Bernadino County, California, the largest county (20,105 square miles) by area in the country. “The topography around here dictates there will not be the types of fires as seen in California,” he said. “It’s pretty much lowland in this area. The fuel density is not as high. Even in drought times, there is still a lot of green.”
Perhaps the most noteworthy fire in this area occurred in mid-2003, when 84,000 acres were burned and 340 of 700 homes destroyed in the town of Summerhaven near the top of 9,155-foot Mount Lemmon in the Catalina mountains. The fire was fueled by winds as high as 60 mph that destroyed thousands of pine, aspen and fir trees. Summers said that the high winds have a dramatic impact on the fires. In California, it is the Santa Ana winds that come into play. “They generally occur from the end of August through Thanksgiving,” Summers said. “They will blow anywhere from 30-70 mph and dry out the fuel as they blow.”
Summers said he loved his time as a firefighter. “I was in love with firefighting right away,” he said. “The camaraderie, the excitement. Everyone loves a firefighter. Firefighters are the only people I know who can walk into a house and no value judgements are made.” Firefighting, of course, has its dangers. “There were numerous times when I feared for my life,’’ Summers said. “In those situations, you try to keep your wits about you. “I’ve had a shotgun pointed at me by an emotionally-charged guy. He was eventually taken down hard.”
Summers moved from Calimesa, California to Vail in January 2009. He said it was initially difficult being retired. “I missed it,’’ he said. “I missed not being able to confront the devil and beat him. Then, I came to my senses to realize this is a young man’s occupation.” He paused, then added, “No matter how bad my golf is, I am very happy to be here.”
