Executive Summary of our Wildfire Plan
Approach
The Montecito Fire Protection District (MFPD) has recommended, and our Conditional Use Permit requires, that Westmont College use the Murchison Gymnasium complex to shield everyone who is on campus in the event of a wildfire threat. This recommendation is based upon MFPD’s expertise with wildfires and upon the cumulative experience of fire officials around the US and elsewhere. The approach is variously referred to as protect-in-place, shelter-in-place, or evacuate-in-place. The concept has been proven effective for years in urban/wildland interface areas in Australia.
The fire-resistant construction, size, prominence and location of our gym and its environs combine to render it well suited to this purpose. In fact, its generous capacity will enable Westmont not only to protect all those who are on campus on any typical day, but also to welcome nearby local residents in such an event. Adequate buffer from significant fuel sources (dense combustible vegetation) is provided, and several fire hydrants exist within the vicinity of the gym.
Mobilization
Using the Standard Emergency Management System (SEMS/ICS) as our framework, plus the expertise of Red Cross consultants and their training for shelter operations, we have defined the tasks necessary to activate the gym for this use. Roles have been delegated for command, logistics, operations, planning, and administration. The gym area will be set up for occupants, the lobby area for receiving space, and two adjoining classrooms as headquarters and infirmary. Support materials, including signs, power cords, 3,000 water bottles, and other supplies have been housed on the premises. Infrastructure investments, including backup power and communications systems, have been put in place. As soon as we become aware of a wildfire in the surrounding hills, we will start readying the gym to receive evacuees, a process that based upon our initial exercise we believe can be effectuated within about 45 minutes or less.
Once the immediate threat has passed, the college is poised to hand off ongoing shelter operations to the Red Cross, should loss of neighboring homes—or access to those homes—result in a local need for sustained temporary quarters.
Communication
Our students, faculty and staff—and even our summer conference guests—are routinely advised that if there’s a threat of wildfire they must go to the gym. The shelter team (a primary designee for each function, with at least three trained backups) will manage the operation there while our Public Safety staff secures the rest of the campus and directs people to the gym. Our ongoing readiness process includes periodic training and cross-training on the mobilization and operational tasks. Our Wildfire Evacuation Plan has been reviewed and adopted by the appropriate public agencies. We also apprise our neighbors by various means that the campus has been designated as a safety zone in case of wildfire.
Emergency Vehicle Access Routes and Response Times
The nearest MFPD station (Fire Station #2) is located on the south side of the intersection of Cold Spring Road and Sycamore Canyon Road, about a half mile from the campus, with a response time of approximately 2 minutes. The emergency vehicle access route will be from Fire Station #2 directly north up Cold Spring Road to the college’s southern entrance on Cold Spring Road, to the college gym, located on the main campus perimeter route. This immediate and direct access to the college campus allows emergency vehicles to respond very quickly and contributes to the viability of the plan. As was done during the Sycamore Fire in 1977, the Westmont campus will likely be used as a primary operational headquarters and staging area for firefighting equipment and personnel.
Benefits
This plan will reduce western Montecito’s dependence upon the few evacuation routes available to handle a mass departure of local residents. By keeping most of the Westmont community on campus we will not contribute to the inevitable traffic congestion, allowing the local roads to be available for evacuation of others. In fact, to the contrary, by offering a safer option for nearby neighbors we can actually reduce the congestion impact and thus also the danger to the surrounding community associated with being unable to safey depart the vicinity.
Official Agency Coordination
This plan has been reviewed by numerous public protection agencies. Representatives of the following agencies have participated in shelter drills at our gym: Montecito Fire Protection District, California Highway Patrol, County Office of Emergency Services, County Sheriff, City Office of Emergency Services, Santa Barbara City Fire Department, American Red Cross.