San Diego authorities announced Monday that they have purchased 10 new fire engines as part of their preparations for what could be a dangerous summer.
Mayor Kevin Faulconer and Fire-Rescue Department Chief Colin Stowell were among the city officials at a morning news conference announcing the new firefighting equipment. They showed off eight urban fire engines and two brush rigs. The engines area is still being outfitted, but six of them will be sent to city fire stations sometime next week. The department will also be getting a new helicopter later this year, according to the city.
Stowell said that San Diego’s unusually rainy spring is causing heavy growth of grass and brush. When it dries out later this summer, it could provide lots of fuel for wildfires.
“I think we cannot get lulled into a false sense of security just because we’ve had this rain,” Stowell said. “All this has really done is promote more growth down low. The grass there is going to dry out in July and August. We’re still going to have a tough fire season. It may just be delayed a little bit.”