Fire watchers tasked with helping prevent wildfires in Orange County will use virtual monitoring due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Orange County Fire Watch is using the virtual program in conjunction with its normal in-person monitoring activities. OC Fire Watch volunteers monitor 36 different locations throughout the county from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. In-person watchers take two-hour shifts and virtual watchers take four-hour shifts. “Already the counties around us have had fairly sizable fires and Orange County has not,” Pointer said. “Every few years, Orange County has a sizable or catastrophic fire.”

Source: Los Angeles Times September 24, 2020 20:13 UTC