Three strike teams of local firefighters are leaving for California early Friday morning to bolster the efforts to contain the wildfires in the state's wine country. Two Type - 1 teams made up of the fire engines normally seen in fire stations, and one Type - 3 team of wildfire apparatus will meet at a staging area 13 miles south of Olympia to begin the 750-mile trip. A total of 50 firefighters and support personnel comprise the teams, which plan on being deployed for 18 days, including three to four days of travel.
The three teams are comprised of crews from many Puget Sound region fire departments, including Seattle, Vashon Island, Valley RFA, Bothell, Shoreline, Eastside, Snohomish County, as well as Seattle Public Utilities.