{"type":"rich","version":"1.0","provider_name":"Transistor","provider_url":"https://transistor.fm","author_name":"KZYX News","title":"Fire and water departments could use PG&E settlement funds","html":"","width":"100%","height":180,"duration":389,"description":"March 16, 2021 — The Board of Supervisors is facing the question of how to spend the $22.6 million of settlement money from PG&E for damage caused by the fires of 2017. Last week’s list of proposed projects, copied and pasted from the list of capital improvement projects in the mid-year budget review, did not include any projects that were specific to Redwood Valley or Potter Valley, where the wind-driven fires raged for days.\r\n\r\nDon Dale, who’s been the Redwood Valley/Calpella fire chief for about seven years, was expecting a grant for a siren, but the fire district ended up raising $64,000 to buy a solar powered siren that can be set up in different areas and activated from a distance. He’s expecting to receive the siren in about 60 days, and is considering setting it up in four different zones. If he got money from the settlement, he’d like to buy more equipment for that siren. He’d also like ongoing funding to keep the roadsides clear, and pay for fire breaks. And, with an aging fleet, he has his eye on buying some used engines from CalFire. Grants are theoretically available, but highly competitive, and often require a professional to apply for them, which is another expense small volunteer fire departments aren’t always prepared for.\r\n\r\nBill Pauli has been the chief of the volunteer fire department in Potter Valley, where the fire started, since 1997. He wa s the first incident commander on the night of October 8, 2017. He thinks the county should have a portion of the settlement, but he’d also like the affected communities to have their fair share. That includes the fire department, but also the irrigation and the schools, which provided some meals and counseling and other services to fire survivors. He says the fire department has never been reimbursed for hosting the agencies that came to help, providing meals, lights, bathrooms, and drinking water, much of it during a time when the power was out in the valley. “That’s what we do,” he acknowledged; “but...","thumbnail_url":"https://img.transistorcdn.com/xZpAumwbhFUpJUYcwaQ1-q6snzOyqAm13l7cW6AWPCM/rs:fill:0:0:1/w:400/h:400/q:60/mb:500000/aHR0cHM6Ly9pbWct/dXBsb2FkLXByb2R1/Y3Rpb24udHJhbnNp/c3Rvci5mbS9mMzkz/NjAwNjc2OWMyZmFk/YWY2YTdmYjI5M2Mz/YWMxNy5qcGc.webp","thumbnail_width":300,"thumbnail_height":300}