San Bernardino County's part: in California's Fire Siege 2003.(Cover Story)

Public Management, March, 2004 by Goss John

Probably the hallmark of San Bernardino County's successful response to its share of California's Fire Siege 2003, which included the Grand Prix and Old Fires, was significant amounts of long-term, advance planning. It became clear when the county board of supervisors declared a local state of emergency in April 2002 that the county's mountains were a tinderbox, ready to explode into flame.

The pine trees had suffered four years of drought, a lack of thinning, and an infestation of various pests, including the bark beetle. It also was clear to local elected leaders and staff that the bark beetle was spreading throughout the forest, with the number of dead and dying trees numbering in the hundreds of thousands. It was estimated that more than 1 million...