CA governor requests more federal assistance to battle fires

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger sent a letter to President Bush this week requesting additional federal resources to fight the ongoing wildfires in California, underscoring the increasing pressures states face in addressing mounting fire suppression challenges. CA's request includes:

• Federal active duty forces to provide additional Type II firefighting handcrews to meet shortages;
• Additional out-of-state federal firefighters available to provide training for National Guard personnel as Type II handcrews; and
• Increasing the “Maximum Efficiency Level” (MEL) for the U.S. Forest Service to 100 percent.