April 4, 2019 – The Incident Management Team for Camp Fire debris removal operations in Butte County has ordered the temporary demobilization of all wildfire debris removal crews. The recent string of wet weather has created unsafe conditions with oversaturated soil for debris removal workers and truck drivers, while limiting the ability of designated landfills to accept material.
The Incident Management Team, which includes representatives from the California Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery (CalRecycle) and the Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES), made the decision to demobilize all debris removal crews based on the extended forecast.
108 debris removal crews – consisting of three to five persons each – are expected to resume work on Monday, April 8. Pre-debris removal work including site assessments, asbestos surveys and abatement, chimney tipping, car tagging, and other activities will continue as weather permits.
7,454 sites have been assessed and 646 have been cleared in the State’s Consolidated Debris Removal Program. Over 220,000 tons of debris have been removed so far.