Fire retardants are an important tool in fighting wildfires, and crews at Sonoma Air Attack Base are ready to produce more and use them at a moment’s notice.

Battalion Chief Jake Serrano has been with Cal Fire for 31 years and has worked at the base for much of that time.

“We definitely want to help. So if there’s a fire, we’ll be there,” Serrano said. “It’s one of 14 air assault bases in the state and one of the few bases that can load large firefighting planes.”

Serrano said they move to first-line attacks almost every day, putting out fires while they are still small and before they become a problem for most people.

“The entire operation is designed to enable rapid response and extinguish the fire with flame retardants and water before ground personnel arrive,” Serrano said.

An aircraft can often reach the source of the fire more quickly and begin fighting the fire.

The plant has approximately 50,000 gallons of fire retardant on hand each day and can produce an additional 50,000 gallons as needed.

You can load and unload the aircraft quickly.

“Our goal is to stay in the box for about four minutes and then we go back to the fire,” says Serrano about the multiple times an aircraft has been delivered to a fire.

The pilots and other firefighters are always ready and waiting for the next mission.

“This is our fire retardant plant,” Serrano said. “We have a water tank, we have a silo that carries the dry material that we use to make the flame retardant, and all of that goes into the mixing tank.”

The different types of aircraft are only one part of the firefight; the tanks contain the secret weapon.

“This is the mixing tank, where we mix the dry material with the water,” said Serrano. “We have just produced a batch here and it is ready for immediate use.”

It takes about three hours to make enough flame retardant to fill the silo. The flame retardant is bright red but non-toxic. He said it’s essentially just water and a lot of salt.

“This is the finished product; this is a fire retardant,” Serrano said. “You can see it’s a little thicker than water. It’s designed to be applied to vegetation and slow the spread of fire.”

Cal Fire spokesman Jason Clay said they have been very busy this year.

“A really active start to the fire season, one of the most active we’ve ever had,” Clay said. “If you look at the first half of the last 10 to 15 years, 2018 is the only year that we’ve had more acres burned in our North Bay unit.”

Clay said many of the fires were caused by wind. Fires ignite and spread quickly because vegetation grows strongly after a wet winter and has now dried out in the summer heat.

But Serrano said the community can help Cal Fire.

“The key is defending open spaces,” Serrano said. “Keep vegetation away from your homes.”

He also said it is crucial for people to evacuate when it is time to go. For Serrano, it is time to go.

He is eligible for retirement and this is his final firefighting season with Cal Fire.

“It’s bittersweet,” Serrano said. “I’m looking forward to retirement, but what I’m going to miss most is the people.”

He said the air strike base was in good hands.

The other firefighters remain ready to jump into the planes at any time and ensure the safety of the community.