Kern & State agencies hold meeting with residents

LAKE ISABELLA, Calif. (KERO) — Thursday, residents affected by the Borel Fire were invited to an informational meeting about how to apply for the latest phase of Borel Fire clean up efforts.

• With phase one of the clean-up, which focused on household hazardous waste, nearing completion, Kern County and State Officials are starting the process to get residents up to speed ahead of phase two of the clean-up process.
• At the meeting, residents were provided information on what they need to do ahead, like fill out a right-of-entry form, so that crews can start the remediation process on their property. Phase two of the Borel Fire clean-up is open to affected residents, whether or not they have home insurance.
• Affected residents who were unable to attend the meeting or have other questions about phase two of the clean-up process can find more information on the Kern County Public Health website.

BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:

While the blaze that was the Borel Fire is now gone, the damage that it created remains. I’m Sam Hoyle, your neighborhood reporter here in Lake Isabella.

Thursday afternoon, residents affected by the fire were able to get more information and ask questions about the second phase of cleanup on their properties.

State and county staff were on hand to talk about the clean-up, like how to fill out a right of entry permit so crews can begin working on properties and showcasing how various agencies will be working in the area to prevent various ill effects from the fire, like flooding and soil contamination.

Brynn Carrigan, director of Kern County Public Health, said the hope is that residents affected fill out the required documents as soon as possible so crews can begin the process of remediating the areas affected.

“I hope that we start before the end of October if possible. Of course, that’s all dependent on how many R-O-Es we receive back from the residents who have been impacted, but I hope that we start as soon as possible. We want to get in front of any potential weather activity that is up there. We want to try and get this debris and ash removed as quickly as possible.”

Phase two of the clean-up process includes the remaining fire-related ash and debris, and is available to homeowners whether or not they have home insurance.

At the end of the information session, many residents asked questions about the finer points of their specific cases when it comes to cleanup, but one question that many had was “What if there’s something on my property that was affected by the fire, but I don’t want it hauled away?”

For Johnathan Hernandez, a Havilah resident, was appreciative of the information that was provided, and he’s hopeful the clean-up will go smoothly.

“I did find it helpful, especially the part where they tell you what you can request that they don’t take away and what they deem they have to take away, kind of gave me a bigger perspective as far as — that it goes case by case basis so I might be able to request it, but they might not approve it.”

If you are a resident who was affected by the Borel fire and you weren’t able to attend the meeting or you have other questions, be sure to check out the Kern Public Health website.

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