COUNCIL'S TRIAL BY IS BY FIRE GROUP CLEARS BRUSH, HELPS OUT NEIGHBORS.

Byline: Jim Skeen Staff Writer

LEONA VALLEY - As more than 17,000 acres burned in the Pine Canyon fire, members of the Angeles Forest Valleys and Lakes Fire Safe Council answered the call when their neighbors needed help.

Last month's blaze west of Lake Hughes provided a major first test for the council, a nonprofit organization formed after 2002 fires and aimed at making communities safer through fire prevention education and emergency preparedness.

Council members helped evacuate residents, helped evacuate and care for animals, and kept people informed on the battle against the fire, which lasted eight days and burned three homes.

``It was a learning experience,'' said Flo Bistline, council chairwoman. ``We didn't know if we would be able to do what we needed to do. We were able to get the information out and our large animal team was able to do their thing.''

The Angeles Forest Valleys and Lakes Fire Safe Council was formed in July 2002, after the Copper Fire burned more than 23,000 acres and forced Green Valley residents to evacuate their homes for four days.

``The goal is to educate Green Valley, Leona Valley, Lake Hughes, and Elizabeth Lake to make the communities more safe,'' Bistline said.

There are more than 130 such fire safe councils throughout the state. The first such council is a statewide organization that formed in 1993 in the wake of the Oakland fire that killed 25 people and destroyed nearly 3,000 homes.

Bruce Turbeville, who organized the statewide council, said the biggest benefit the councils provide is educating communities about ways to reduce their fire risk. The councils also provide a way for a community to coordinate their emergency response with the public agencies battling the fires.

``It's not the government saying do this. This is the communities saying we need to do this,'' Turbeville said.

During the Pine Canyon fire, council members helped 68-year-old Lake Hughes resident Kate McGregor evacuate from her home.

And while McGregor was staying with a friend, council board secretary Lu Bole was able to check on her home and let her know it was OK. The flames came close but swept around the home, leaving it intact.

``They helped save items that might have been lost,'' McGregor said. ``They never panicked. That kept me levelheaded.''

Council members also worked two days at the Antelope Valley Fairgrounds helping to care for more than 250 evacuated animals, said Chuck Crandall, one of the council volunteers.

Statewide, the councils are handicapped by a lack of financial support from the federal government, Turbeville said. This year, there was about $6 million to $7 million available in grants while the requests for those funds totaled about $50 million.

``We're behind the curve,'' Turbeville said. ``For every dime for prevention, you're going to save a dollar in damage. We've got to convince the lawmakers that it's worth throwing money out front.''

The Angeles Forest Valleys and Lakes Fire Safe Council has been able to secure two grants, one for $127,000 to fund brush clearance around homes, and one for $30,000 to clear manzanita bushes and recycle the material, making such items as bird perches and bird toys.

After going through an environmental review, the council was able to start the brush clearance effort just before summer and so far has cleared brush around about 40 homes. Residents in the area covered by the council are offered brush clearance and tree trimming services at costs based upon a family's income, with most of the jobs being done for free.

Under the second grant, the products created with the manzanita material are sold through a Web site, manzanitaheaven.com. The Web site is being revamped and the council hopes to have it back up in a few days.

The fire council meets once a month, rotating the meeting places among the communities.

The August meeting featured a review of the Pine Canyon fire. At the meeting, a display of photos from the fire was set up, showing firefighters and law enforcement officers who helped out during the blaze.

The display included an obituary for Capt. Daniel Elkins, a Los Angeles County Fire Department captain who died in a traffic crash while on his way home from working on the fire on its first day.

For more information about the fire safe council, call 270-9911.

Jim Skeen, [phone]

james.skeen(at)dailynews.com