EWP 2003 Wildfire Response Success Story: San Bernardino

Emergency Watershed Work Protects City of Highland

The northern edge of the City of Highland sits on the foothills of the San Bernardino Mountains.  The mountainsides behind many of the community’s homes were left bare by the Old Fire, which burned 91,000 acres in San Bernardino County in late October 2003.

"The fire created a situation where the land is now barren and subject to flash flood after a rain event," said Ernie Wong, engineer for the City of Highland.  "The city was worried about the imminent threat of flood."

That’s when the city received much needed technical assistance from the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS).

"NRCS came out immediately after the fire and walked all of the burned areas with me," Wong said.  "They identified potential problems and proposed protective measures at seven different locations.

Jim Earsom, NRCS district conservationist for San Bernardino County, said several homes in the City of Highland were at risk of damage from mud and debris flows.

Earsom said the city easily qualified for NRCS’ Emergency Watershed Protection Program (EWP).  EWP was created by Congress to respond to emergencies caused by natural disasters.  It is designed to help people reduce imminent hazards to life and property caused by fire or other natural disasters.  NRCS can pay up to 75 percent of the cost of emergency measures, and the remaining 25 percent comes from local sponsors.

Through EWP, NRCS and the city planned for the placement of k-rails to divert water away from homes and sandbag barriers to trap sediment and protect homes from flood water.  The cost for the work was approximately $21,000; potential damage estimates exceeded $710,000.

According to Wong, the city doesn’t have staff with the land management type of expertise needed to identify problems and find solutions.  "NRCS has much more experience with this type of work, and we were very thankful for their help," he said.

Grand Prix Fire

The Grand Prix Fire burned another 70,000 acres in San Bernardino County, leaving many communities exposed to potential damage by mud and debris flows.

"We talked to more than 100 homeowners and left information for probably 500 more, trying to let them know their home was at risk because the watershed above their home was impaired and that protective measures would help," Earsom said.

He also said something positive came out of the fires.  "Landowners are more knowledgeable now about their home and their land and what it takes to protect it."

But Earsom doesn’t want homeowners to relax just yet.  "I figure it will take two to five years before the vegetation in most of these watersheds will be ample enough to consider areas repaired."

Beyond San Bernardino County

According to U.S. Forest Service statistics, by the time the 14 major wildfires in southern California were extinguished in November 2003, 24 lives were lost, 3,710 homes were destroyed, and 750,043 acres were blackened.

When the fires were out and burned areas were safe to enter, NRCS responded in full force.  The agency detailed additional employees into southern California to respond to the requests for assistance.  "We wanted to immediately provide assistance to people who had lost so much and had the potential to lose even more," said Chuck Bell, NRCS state conservationist for California.  "EWP allows us to help communities avoid the disaster after the disaster by helping heal watersheds and prevent further loss of life and property."

< Back to California Emergency Watershed Program