Special Meeting On Wildfires Planned In Lafayette

LAMORINDA, CA — The Lafayette City Council will devote an entire special meeting next week to the early-arriving 2021 fire season.

The meeting comes less than a week after the city's Emergency Preparedness Commission met to discuss the coming drought and what will likely be a long year of wildfires in California. Along with utility providers and other governmental agencies, the commission will present information to the council Monday.

Lafayette is seen by many as a prime spot for a major suburban wildfire, something the city has managed to escape in recent years. Much of the community was constructed on the hillsides adjoining, and between, already dry Las Trampas Regional Wilderness and the Briones hills. The East Bay Municipal Utility District has already declared a stage one drought in the area, with last season's rainfall the region's lowest since 1977.

The council will also hear presentations from the Contra Costa County Fire Protection District, LaMorinda Community Emergency Response Team, PG&E, EBMUD, and Lafayette Police Department.

The discussion will revolve around each agency's role within emergency response, how they will work together, and how they're preparing for the 2021 fire season. There will also be discussion on what has become annual planned power outages when conditions are ripe for wildfires.
The virtual meeting starts at 7 p.m. Monday and can be found on Lafayette's YouTube channel.

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