The Levin Letter: Grateful to Those Who Stood Between Our Homes and Norte Fire
On Friday, Oct. 16, a fire sparked in the hills where San Clemente meets San Juan Capistrano. Driven by strong Santa Ana winds, the Norte Fire spread fast, and within hours roughly 6,000 homes and 16,000 of our neighbors were under evacuation orders. My family was among them. My incredible wife grabbed what she could, loaded the car and drove away unsure of what we all would find when we came back.
By Sunday, we had returned home. Not every family was so fortunate. Seven homes were damaged or destroyed, and two firefighters were injured on the line. To everyone who lost a home or now faces a long road of repairs, our community is with you, and my office stands ready to assist however possible.
More than anything, I want to say thank you to the firefighters of the Orange County Fire Authority (OCFA) and to everyone else who came to help. They fought on steep, dry terrain through wind and smoke, and they held this fire to roughly 570 acres when it could have been so much worse. Thank you to the air crews whose water drops saved homes, to the deputies who knocked on doors and kept evacuation routes moving, to the staff and volunteers who opened evacuation centers, and to the teachers and staff at Capistrano Unified School District who got our kids out safely.
Thank you as well to the Santa Margarita Water District. Every firefight depends on water being there when crews need it, and the people who keep pumps running and reservoirs full do quiet, essential work. This weekend, it mattered enormously.
Since I began serving in Congress, I have believed that the best time to invest in emergency readiness is long before the emergency arrives. That conviction has guided my work for both of these agencies.
For Santa Margarita Water District, I helped secure $7.93 million through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law for the San Juan Watershed Project, along with nearly $960,000 for a PFAS treatment facility in San Juan Capistrano. Those projects make our local water supply cleaner, more reliable and less dependent on imported water. This year, I also requested funding to modernize San Juan Capistrano’s water system, an investment that would strengthen service for more than 35,000 residents.
For OCFA, I requested federal funding this year to replace aging fire engines and other apparatus. These are the vehicles that carry firefighters, water and equipment to fires, medical calls and rescues for two million people across 23 cities and unincorporated communities. After watching those crews work this weekend, I can think of few better uses of taxpayer dollars.
Going forward, I will use my seat on the House Appropriations Committee to see these requests through to the finish line. I will keep fighting for the federal firefighter grant programs that help local departments hire staff and buy modern equipment. I will work with our water agencies on the resilience upgrades that keep water flowing during power shutoffs and fire weather, because we know those conditions will return.
This incident reaffirmed my confidence in our community. Strangers opened their homes, neighbors checked on neighbors, and professionals ran toward danger so the rest of us could get to safety. That spirit is the best of who we are. Whatever challenges we face, I know we will do so together, and I will be right there with you.
By: Rep. Mike Levin
Source: Picket Fence Media