Silicon Valley firefighters clash over territory

SILICON VALLEY OFFICIALS want to extinguish their feud with state firefighters over regional fire protection territory. But their vote to expand Santa Clara County Fire Department coverage threatens to fan the flames.

The Local Agency Formation Commission (LAFCO), a land use board comprised of elected officials from across the county, voted 6-1 Wednesday to remove Cal Fire from covering a 288-mile expanse of unincorporated South County neighborhoods, farms and wildland vegetation. Morgan Hill Mayor Mark Turner voted no. The decision affirms the county Board of Supervisors’ vote in January to bring coverage of the area under county firefighters, citing years of financial struggle and fragmented emergency response under the statewide fire service’s $8 million annual contract.