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Firefighters see danger when everyone else sees green on San Diego's hillsides

Winter rains produced new fuels
Posted at 6:59 PM, Apr 28, 2017
and last updated 2017-04-28 21:59:40-04

SAN DIEGO (KGTV) - The heavy winter rains in San Diego County left thousands of acres of green grass and brush. Unfortunately, most firefighters don’t look at the green with a lot of excitement.

“Those grasses that were once green just a few short weeks ago, they’re gone,” said CAL FIRE Captain Issac Sanchez.

Capt. Sanchez said he saw an increased potential for wildfires when he looked at the green hillsides after the winter rains.

“That stuff’s going to die out. We know that. It dies out every year no matter how much rain we get,” said Sanchez.

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Dry, brittle brush and grass is all that’s left behind.

“It’s stuff that dries out quickly and burns quickly,” he said.

That dry brush combined with any strong winds are a dangerous combination in Southern California.

“When the winds come we know there’s a potential for catastrophic fires,” said Sanchez.

The CAL FIRE Captain added firefighters are on alert and well aware of the dangers.

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