If there is a positive that can be taken out of the fires that have ravaged the county, it’s that help from the military is never far away.
“Everybody is working together,” County Supervisor Dianne Jacob said. “And the military. We have major assets that are partnering with the county and Cal Fire on the aerial attacks.”
She said Camp Pendleton has 22 helicopters in the air today to combat the fires – 12 of which will be used on county fires, the rest on the fire that has torched 6,000 acres on Camp Pendleton.
Other military assets have been deployed throughout the area.
Third Marine Aircraft Wing helicopters partnered with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection to conduct aerial firefighting against several wildfires ablaze in San Diego County.
Eight CH-46E Sea Knight helicopters and two CH-53E Super Stallion helicopters were deployed to help contain the fires at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton. A CH-46E helicopter can transport a water bucket with a capacity of 325 gallons, while a CH-53E can transport a water bucket containing 900 gallons of water to assist in the firefighting.
“We’ve got a lot of cooperation throughout California,” San Diego County District Supervisor Bill Horn said said.
