The Donna O'Neill Land Conservancy is calling for members of the public to become Firewatch Volunteers for the South County Land Stewards (SCLS). Volunteers serve as a visible reminder of the need to be extra careful during periods of high fire danger.

SCLS lookouts are in San Clemente, San Juan Capistrano, Ladrea Ranch, Mission Viejo and Rancho Santa Margarita and receive an initial two-hour training from Orange County Fire Authority (OCFA) personnel and/or OC Parks employees.

Initial training includes:

• understanding basic fire behavior
• identifying signs of wildfire
• dealing with suspect behavior
• contacting proper fire authorities
• providing useful information.

Training includes a practice deployment at your assigned site. OCFA and OC Parks firewatch training prepares volunteers for deployment under conditions of severe fire hazard. On "Red Flag" days, South County Land Stewards will assign pairs of volunteers to wildland vantage points in rotating shifts of up to four hours.

"Volunteers don't act as firefighters, but as deterrents" said OCFA Captain Greg McKeown. "It helps to have the eyes and ears of the citizens out there."

The training is from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Wednesday, August 18 at Orange County Fire Authority Fire Station #58, Station Way, Ladera Ranch.

Volunteers are assigned to locations near their homes.

See www.theconservancy.org or call 949.489.9778 for information about the conservancy and this training. For more information about OC Firewatch, see www.ocparks.com