The County of San Diego has completed $12 million in renovations at the Ramona Airbase, expanding aerial firefighting capacity as Southern California prepares for increasingly intense and complex wildfire seasons.
The county marked the completion of the project with a ribbon-cutting ceremony and said the upgraded facility will improve support for large airtankers, reduce turnaround times for aircraft reloading fire retardant, and help crews return to active incidents more quickly.
The work forms part of a wider wildfire mitigation strategy that combines aerial response with ground-based prevention. The County of San Diego is also working with Perimeter Solutions to apply PHOS-CHEK long-term fire retardant along high fire-risk county roads for the sixth consecutive year.
“Many of my constituents have been personally impacted by wildfire or know someone who has. Fire safety and prevention have consistently been a top priority for my constituents and we continue to invest proactively to provide better protection for the entire county,” said Supervisor Joel Anderson, who represents District 2 on the San Diego County Board of Supervisors.
“The renovations made in Ramona will enhance support for the large airtankers needed to combat today’s wildfires, cutting down turnaround times for aircraft to reload PHOS-CHEK, and return to the fire faster to save lives and protect our communities,” Anderson added.
The Ramona Airbase improvements include more than a dozen upgrades designed to increase operational capacity and streamline retardant loading. The project added 5,200 square feet of fire retardant mixing equipment and four additional 20,000-gallon PHOS-CHEK storage tanks.
Retardant loading pits were also relocated to allow aircraft to move through the facility more efficiently, while a new underground piping system was put in to speed delivery of retardant to aircraft.
Environmental enhancements completed as part of the renovation include a new oil/water separator, a new catch basin, and upgraded storm drain systems and drainage improvements to support environmental compliance.
For the sixth year in a row, San Diego County will apply PHOS-CHEK fire retardant along more than 200 miles of roadway considered historically high risk for wildfire. The treated areas include Wildcat Canyon, where heavy vehicle traffic and hilly terrain can increase the risk of overheated cars and trucks igniting roadside vegetation.
Ground-applied PHOS-CHEK uses the same core technology as the red retardant dropped from aircraft during active wildfires, but is uncolored and designed for pre-season application to flammable vegetation and other cellulosic material. The product is intended to remain effective until a significant rain event.
When fire reaches vegetation treated with PHOS-CHEK, the retardant forms a carbon layer on fuels such as grass and other cellulose-based material, helping prevent combustion and slow the spread of fire.
“Since we started applying PHOS-CHEK to San Diego County’s high-risk fire areas in 2021, not a single large wildfire has started in those areas,” said Steven Woolworth, Vice President of Commercial Operations at Perimeter Solutions. “Fire starts were recorded, but the PHOS-CHEK application successfully contained them before they could affect surrounding communities.”
Woolworth said the company remains committed to providing advanced fire retardant solutions to help protect local residents.
San Diego County’s wildfire mitigation strategy is partially supported by a Community Wildfire Defense Grant. The program was authorized under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which set aside $1 billion over five years to help high-risk areas reduce wildfire threats.
Local community and tribal leaders working to reduce wildfire risk are encouraged to apply for Community Wildfire Defense Grant funding and consider incorporating long-term retardant treatments into their mitigation strategies.
