THANK YOU, WILLY: Every time I see smoke on the horizon, I freak. I’m squirrelly that way. With that in mind, I was beyond relieved that firefighters managed to wrestle last week’s Gibraltar Fire into submission so quickly. A big and belated thanks goes out to former county supervisor Willy Chamberlin, who died of cancer a few months ago. More than anybody else, Chamberlin got our air tanker base reestablished in Santa Maria after a few years’ hiatus. That base proved absolutely critical for loading and reloading the 10 planes deployed and armed with chemical fire retardant. Without Santa Maria, the tankers would have had to fly in from much farther away. That translates to fewer drops and a less concentrated attack. That matters.
Chamberlin was the proverbial tall drink of water who favored cowboy hats, blue jeans, and platter-sized belt buckles. He was elected county supervisor in 1992 as the voice of ranchers and farmers railing against the environmentalist majority. He got on our bad side early, boasting he’d been endorsed by every newspaper on the South Coast. We hadn’t, and when we pointed that out, he explained he meant “reputable” papers. Relations went south from there. If we ever managed to get under Chamberlin’s skin — and we tried — he made a point to never let it show.
Ultimately, Chamberlin managed to lose the same election he won — after a grueling recount fight took place in several courtrooms. He left office, and we lost track. In 2011, he called out of the blue as if we were the best of friends. He was on a mission, and he needed a journalistic stooge.