SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — With wildfires like the ones we've seen this week in Rancho Bernardo and Fashion Valley, is the City of San Diego ready for the next one?
City officials said they're ready to give even more support for the fire department, but there might be a problem with a more than $250 million deficit.
Staffing, strategies and what's expected for the 2025 fire season is what the City of San Diego Fire-Rescue Department presented to the Public Safety Committee Wednesday, and with multiple fires hitting San Diego County this week, Dan Eddy with San Diego Fire said firefighters are still ready to fight back.
"On the multiple fires over this last week, whether they be the Lilac, whether it be the Mission Valley fire, the fire today in Rancho Bernardo, we had multiple strike teams already pre-positioned that we were pulling from that could get there right away," said Eddy.
Right now, Eddy said there are 1,000 personnel who are on the job, but with the multiple fires breaking out throughout the area, members of the committee suggested funneling more resources into the fire department.
This as the City of San Diego currently has a more than $250 million deficit.
Eddy said he's grateful for any additional support.
"Any time we can add fire stations, of course that covers the growth of our area, quicker response times, our key is that we want to be there in under 8 minutes and 30 seconds to your house once you call, so the more fire engines that we can gather, the more stations we can gather," said Eddy.
San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria said locals can do proactive thins to prepare in case a fire happens.
"The best thing that an average San Diegan can do is to make a plan today, right now when there isn't a fire around for what would happen if there was one," said Gloria.
Eddy said along with larger wildfires, San Diego fire still gets about 600 calls a day about fires, which includes high rise fires, structure fires, and normal interior fires.
