South King Fire & Rescue firefighters last week joined with other local teams to help battle the wild fires driven by strong Santa Ana winds that have devastated Southern California.

The firefighters are expected to be in California for two weeks.

Four South King Fire & Rescue firefighters and an engine combined forces with other local fire department teams to mobilize a strike team for the California effort.

The strike team is also comprised of five engines and one mechanic/support vehicle with equipment and staffing from Gig Harbor Fire Department, Key Peninsula Fire Department, Vashon Island Fire Department and East Pierce Fire & Rescue.

They are part of a massive effort to help California firefighters who have been working around the clock.

After 30 hours of travel, the local strike team arrived in Lake Arrowhead, Calif., near Chino. They were providing structural protection for municipalities whose manpower resources have been depleted.

Strike team members Lt. Aaron Weeks and firefighters Allan Crandall, Steve Crews and Jason Lambert are veteran firefighters with South King Fire & Rescue.

In addition to their structure firefighting expertise, these firefighters have obtained wild land firefighting training and certification just so that they can help out when local resources elsewhere are overwhelmed.

This experience is invaluable as it provides much needed help to those communities who are besieged at the time.

In addition, it provides firefighters with real life training, the opportunity to put their skills to use and to learn from each experience. South King Fire & Rescue wild land firefighting teams also assisted with wild fires in eastern Washington several years ago.

Deputy Chief Jerry Thorson said, "This experience will allow our firefighters to be better trained and prepared for such incidents in our area. It is possible that wild fires could occur here."