Lloyd Smith, President, Kern River valley Fire Safe Council - Special to the Sun

Kern County Fire Department Crew 87 from Democrat Hot Springs completed their first Chipper Day of the 2008 season in Walker Pass on March 29. Walker Pass community participants produced 400+ cubic yards of brush and limbs to create fuel breaks and defensible space on their property. The crew of 11 firefighters reduced this mountain of brush and limbs to chips.

Chipper Days, sponsored by the Kern River Valley Fire Safe Council, can be coordinated by any community or neighborhood in Kern River Valley. Chipper Days are intended to assist private property owners in creating defensible space around their homes and fuel breaks to improve access to their homes. Chipper Days supports the council’s vision, 'To create a wildfire safe community in Kern River Valley.' If your communityor neighborhood would like to have a Chipper Day log onto the council website krvfiresafecouncil.com and submit your request.

Kern County Fire Department Crew 87 makes small work of more than 400 cubic yards of brush and limbs to create fuel breaks and defensible space in the Walker Pass area on March 29.

The folks in Walker Pass offer a tremendous thank you to Kern County Fire Department Crew 87 for their extraordinary effort.