East Contra Costa: The latest plan to stop the Marsh Fire? Drown it with 10 million to 20 million gallons of water

Firefighters and air high quality specialists are cautiously optimistic {that a} plan to flood the cussed Marsh Hearth with 10 million to twenty million gallons of water might lastly finish a two-month nightmare for a number of jap Contra Costa County cities perpetually shrouded in a fog of acrid smoke from the long-simmering blaze.

ConFire crews flipped on three extra water pumps Wednesday, bringing to 5 the variety of pumps pulling water from close by Mallard Slough onto the 200-acre property outdoors Pittsburg, which has been burning since late Might. However a number of main questions stay, together with how lengthy it is going to take to sufficiently saturate deep layers of peat within the drought-stricken marsh, and whether or not it could actually lastly carry a measure of aid to close by residents.

“We’re re-introducing water into this space that hasn’t seen it in fairly a while,” mentioned Capt. Steve Aubert, a spokesman for the Contra Costa County Hearth Safety District, referred to as ConFire. “We’ll want extra time to get water to all of the completely different areas earlier than it lastly soaks in.

“We’re optimistic that finally we’ll get sufficient water onto the property to have the ability to mitigate it,” he added. “We simply don’t understand how lengthy it’ll take.”

The plan quantities to a Hail Mary by firefighters to lastly snuff out a blaze that’s spent practically two months creeping underground and chewing by way of the peat — decomposing natural matter that’s usually present in marshlands, that means it could actually burn low and sluggish.

The hearth started burning in late Might on land simply north of Bay Level, when a homeless encampment fireplace unfold to the close by marshland. Whereas crews managed to carry the flames underneath management comparatively shortly, lastly extinguishing the long-smoldering blaze within the marsh proved vexingly tough.

The bottom within the marshland was too mushy and porous for firefighters to drive on, leaving them to battle the hearth from the air. However that’s been frustratingly inefficient, as a result of the blaze has branched out throughout the marsh — slowly consuming away at peat is 5 to 10 toes deep in some sections.

All of the whereas, the blaze despatched up a gentle curtain of smoke that’s choked the close by cities of Pittsburg, Oakley, Antioch and Brentwood for weeks. A flare-up per week and a half in the past additional worsened air high quality within the space.

The Bay Space Air High quality Administration District has routinely issued well being advisories for the jap portion of Contra Costa County previously couple months — recommending folks with respiratory diseases or issue respiration to stay indoors. The smoke has been most acute within the evenings and in a single day, when offshore breezes from the coast die down, leaving the air to grow to be stagnant with smoke, mentioned Aaron Richardson, an air district spokesman.

The issue is so dangerous {that a} automotive present each different week that sometimes brings a whole bunch of individuals to downtown Pittsburg was lately cancelled, together with some youth sporting occasions, mentioned Wolfgang Croskey, CEO for the Pittsburg Chamber of Commerce. Because of this, companies within the space say gross sales slowed in current weeks as folks opted to stay house, slightly than eat out at eating places.

“It’s fairly irritating, as a result of enterprise are nonetheless making an attempt to get well from the closures they noticed from COVID,” Croskey mentioned.

ConFire is coordinating the hearth response on behalf of the property proprietor, who will finally be answerable for the price of the blaze, Aubert mentioned. The hearth district consulted with a number of native, state and federal companies, together with the Environmental Safety Company, earlier than the marsh was flooded with with non-drinking water from the Delta.

The California Division of Fish and Wildlife is advising firefighters on keep away from impacting protected species present in Bay Space marshes — birds such because the endangered California clapper rail and the endangered salt marsh harvest mouse.

The flooding additionally prompted issues about a rise in mosquitos throughout the world — a selected concern, given the seasonal presence of West Nile Virus in Contra Costa County. The Contra Costa Mosquito and Vector Management District is working with the property’s proprietor to deal with the world for mosquitos as soon as the hearth is out, mentioned Nola Wooden, a district spokesperson.

Early returns on the plan are encouraging, Richardson mentioned. Smoke ranges Monday night time into Tuesday morning appeared to dip significantly in comparison with earlier nights — signaling that the hearth could also be shedding steam.

“It look’s like that’s having some constructive results,” Richardson mentioned. “The smoke signature was smaller final night time. And it appears like we’re headed in the precise route by way of getting the hearth extinguished.”

Nonetheless, Aubert cautioned that fireplace crews are removed from declaring the hearth snuffed.

“Everybody simply must know that it’s a really difficult fireplace,” Aubert mentioned. “It’s not simply a simple, one cease reply.”