Neighbors Rally Against Possible Changes at Fire Camp 8

• Voice Concern about Temporary Relocation of 80 Inmate Fire Trainees to Area

BY BILL KOENEKER

Nearby residents have expressed alarm about what they say is the California Department of Corrections apparently taking over Fire Camp 8 above Las Flores Canyon to house inmates in the facility that has been used by the Los Angeles County Fire Department to assign fly crews to the hillside facility.
Much of the concern has been mobilized by residents of the Seaview Estates area. About 100 people reportedly gathered at a residence in the area Monday night to explore their options for oppsing any use of the facility for inmate firefighters.
Among the topics discussed were opposition display banners, picketing, lobbying elected officials and a media campaign.
Concerns expressed at the meeting included safety of residents, especially children, and security of the facility.
There did not appear to be any discussion of the role the inmate fire crews have played in assisting in previous Malibu fires.
Concerned resident Roxanne Davis told neighbors the fire camp will be modified to hold 80 plus inmates for fire suppression. “Fences will be built to restrain inmates, dorms will be refashioned for incarceration and there will be no community access to the camp. The helicopter will remain as well as all current fire personnel,” she wrote,
However, the LACOFD media office would neither confirm nor deny the change. ”We don’t officially know that is going to happen,” said Inspector Fred Stowers, “We have nothing to say about it at this time.” He later indicated more information might be forthcoming, later this week.
Nevertheless, some residents contend the entire matter has been cloaked in secrecy. “This was a deal struck between the CDC and LACOFD, in secret, no community input or disclosure was allowed and even our representatives are not aware that this arrangement was concluded. They will begin a public relations campaign shortly to avert and blunt possible criticism,” wrote Davis.
“We need to immediately get a hold of the Environmental Impact Report. We doubt whether they considered the effect of the septic on the area. We doubt whether they considered the effect the tremendous increased traffic will have on Las Flores and other roads connecting,” she added.
Ironically, the history of the camp shows it got its start as a place for wards of the court to learn wildfire fighting techniques.
The county in the 1960s began training wildland firefighting hand crews using incarcerated individuals. Inmates were assigned to Camp 12 for formal training and then moved to various camps throughout the county after completion of fire fighting training.
Facilities in Malibu include Camp 13 on Encinal Canyon Road and Camp 16 in Malibu Canyon, according to a LACOFD website.
In June of 1970, the fly crew program was started at Camp 9 at Los Pinetos. Within the next two years, fly crews were assigned to Camp 2 in Arroyo Seco and Camp 8 in Malibu.
In 1981, Camp 13 was the first of four fire suppression camps to open jointly with the CDC, combining state manpower and resources within county facilities and county overhead, according to LACOFD website.
In a program that predates most residents, Camp 8 was one of seven camps in the 1940s, when the county staffed the facilities with wards of the court. They ranged in age from 15 to 18 years of age.
Run in conjunction with the county’s probation department, the duties and responsibilities parallel that of the adult inmate crews. They had their own training facility at Camp 1, which was located in fire department headquarters in East Los Angeles.
After training, the inmates were assigned to either of the Malibu camps—the one then called Camp 3 and the current Camp 8.