Area Ignition: The True Story Of The Spanish Ranch Fire [Paperback]

Joseph N. Valencia (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 27, 2009

In August 1979, along a remote ridgeline near Santa Maria, four firefighters from a California Division of Forestry (CDF) engine crew, were preparing to defend the northern flank of the Spanish Ranch fire. Captain Ed Marty, and firefighters; Scott Cox, Ron Lorant and Steve Manley responded to the fire from the Nipomo fire station. They were all from California, but were as different as the golden state's angles, aspects and arenas. They were defined more from where they were from; Tehama, Goleta, Long Beach and La Habra. No one predicted what would happen next-but in a page from man versus nature, the fire accelerated and then swept across the face of the slope which the four young firefighters were on. At 4:25 PM their thin line of defense was cut-off and a retreating bulldozer operator was overrun. Minutes later, they tried to escape from the sweeping area ignition, but the fire cut-off their retreat and along with another dozer operator they were all overrun by fire. The tragedy that occurred and the subsequent investigation would change the way the state fire agency operated on area wildfires. Area Ignition looks back 30-years to honor the men who fought and died in the Spanish Ranch Fire. It recreates the courage, emotion and human frailties that are interwoven from the initial ignition point-to the final survivors' thoughts as they proceeded past a solitary CDF fire engine. Although much has changed since then-young firefighters still go out every year to battle California wildfires just like their brothers of the past. We owe it to them to understand a little bit of the awesome power of wildfires and the people who fight them.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Joseph Valencia is the author of three books about fire; The Fire Season, Beyond Tranquillon Ridge,Area Ignition. He lives in Lompoc California.

Product Details

• Paperback: 156 pages
• Publisher: AuthorHouse (May 27, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1438969120
• ISBN-13: 978-1438969121
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.9 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,544,379 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars Historical California fire, September 13, 2010

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Michael S. Post - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Area Ignition: The True Story Of The Spanish Ranch Fire (Paperback)

This is a very informative book and shed light on this seminal fire that the official reports do not. For those with an interest in fire fighting history it is a worthwhile purchase and read.

It is disappointing that the author failed to recognize that the fire was misnamed; the Spanish Ranch was on the other side (south) of the highway, and that the entire incident took place on the Chimineas Ranch, then private property and now a state owned ecological reserve with an informal memorial in place on the ridge so central to the story. A minor issue but one that calls into question the depth of research. Regardless, it is a good read and a tribute to the sacrifices made by wildland firefighters.

5.0 out of 5 stars Awesome, September 7, 2010

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Donald Arthur Davis - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Area Ignition: The True Story Of The Spanish Ranch Fire (Paperback)

This book is a must for anyone involved or remotely involved in Wildland Firefighting.
Very thorough and is a good refresher for all of us.

4.0 out of 5 stars Good story, well researched, July 22, 2010

By 

Carol Collins (Santa Rosa, Ca) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Area Ignition: The True Story Of The Spanish Ranch Fire (Paperback)

I read this before Valencia's "Beyond Tranquilon Ridge" which details a fire in 1977 on Vandenburg AFB. Both books are well researched and well told, with a minute-by-miniute account of the fires. For anyone interested in wildland fire fighting, this is a good choice.

However, Valencia is obsessed with dashes and drops them into sentences with abandon. I criticized his earlier book because of proof reading errors and, while this book is better, it still desperately needs someone to check spelling, punctuation, grammar, sentence construction and tense. All of these disturb the flow of the book.