I had a bittersweet encounter with Pam Anderson at Pavilions in Point Dume this weekend. Our eyes met for an instant in the cheese aisle. She smiled. I smiled. I felt 150 years old. Then she swept past, out of my life. And, like many Malibu residents, out of an important part of Malibu’s civic life. Pam apparently did not attend one of the Community Wildfire Protection Plan meetings where residents assist firefighters by identifying the location of critical resources – schools, churches, pools, water tanks and local fire hazards like uncleared brush and power lines close to flammables.
Last Saturday’s attendance at CWPP at Juan Cabrillo Elementary totaled about 15 fire and park employees and perhaps a dozen Malibu residents.
Half of these residents were Malibu CERT members who had already spent two hours in a monthly meeting at City Hall. This meager participation was discouraging when you consider that wildfire is the single largest threat to public safety in Malibu.
My regret about Pam’s absence at the CWPP meeting was over the failure of both our celebrity and “regular” residents to get involved in important issues in their own town. None of us are safe from disaster; just ask Susanne Sommers who lost her home in the 2007 wildfire. For more information on how you can help improve public safety, please contact Brad Davis, Emergency Services Coordinator at Malibu City Hall, (310) 456-2489 ext. 260, bdavis@ci.malibu.ca.us.
And Pam, you can reach me at 310-457. Oh, never mind!
Marshall Thompson