Morgan Hill
– A wandering bulldozer gave area firefighters some trouble the
past few weeks.
”
It’s had a series of one-day excursions,
”
said Steve Espe, a California Department of Forestry and Fire
Prevention fire prevention chief.
Morgan Hill – A wandering bulldozer gave area firefighters some trouble the past few weeks.
“It’s had a series of one-day excursions,” said Steve Espe, a California Department of Forestry and Fire Prevention fire prevention chief.
The bulldozer, a DH6 Caterpillar, was stolen at the end of March from a CDF work site near Loma Prieta in the Santa Cruz Mountains, when wet weather forced it to sit idle for a few days. The dozer was returned a day or so later.
Espe said he couldn’t be more definite because they didn’t check it every day. The 46,000-pound bulldozer was noticed missing on March 31.
Safely back and waiting for the muddy hillsides to dry up, the big yellow Cat was stolen again, most likely by locals, Espe believes.
“The dirtbags helped themselves to it and used it to move their own stuff,” Espe, said Friday.
Chris Morgan, CDF fire prevention specialist, said the dozer was helping to build fire breaks and clean out creeks as part of a PL566 watershed protection project. The work is a joint effort with the Santa Clara Valley Water District.
The bulldozer disappeared for a second time on April 12 and returned a day later – tired and ill-used but not vandalized, Espe said. At that point it was moved off the Casa Loma ridge to the CDF headquarters on Monterey Road in south Morgan Hill.
“Since locals wandered off with it twice, we thought it was a good idea to move it out of temptation,” Espe said. “We weren’t running it when the weather was not cooperating – but bad weather didn’t affect those dirtbags.”
While deputies have an idea of who the culprits are, there is no direct, physical evidence linking them to the thefts, Espe said.
“They were fairly accomplished and weren’t having any trouble locating the battery switch,” Espe said of the thieves.
Having the machine stolen for good would have caused major headaches for CDF firefighters as fire season approaches.
“Given the state’s finances, we probably wouldn’t have it replaced for a year or two,” he said.
Matt Scarcella, area representative for Peterson Tractor Co. in San Martin, said the D6H used by CDF is now worth a bundle.
“It’s probably in the mid-to-upper $80,000, even the low $90,000s,” Scarcella said.
The bulldozer has extra screens and other protections because firefighters work in areas with heavy brush, he said.
Morgan said the dozer was in good condition despite its unauthorized travels.
“It wasn’t damaged too much,” Morgan said. “It’ll be ready for duty after some fairly routine maintenance.”
