Wildfires are a common occurrence in California. Wildfires along the US/Mexico border in the Potrero/Hauser Mountain Management Area of San Diego County burnt wooden utility poles cutting off power and other services carried on the lines to many homes and businesses. A portion of the poles had cultural resources in the vicinity and PanGIS archaeologists were asked to perform an emergency survey of the poles as crews worked to restore power.
PanGIS obtained a Field Work Authorization (FWA) Permit from Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Palm Springs Field Office to conduct the survey of the affected area. PanGIS staff conducted the survey, wrote a survey report of their findings in the BLM report format, and submitted the report to BLM for review and approval.