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Supervisor Ken Vogel 8/25/2011 2 on The Van Dykes were required by law to ensure an emergency access roadway to their house.In this situation,the Mokelumne Fire Department has jurisdiction over the approval of access road standards.San Joaquin County regulations require that the emergency access road be constructed and approved prior to receiving a final inspection or occupancy being granted by the San Joaquin County Building Department.Prior to construction,the VanDykes did not consult with the Mokelumne Fire Department regarding requirements to pass an inspection.Only after their house was close to completion did they even attempt to meet the Mokelumne Fire Department's strict road requirements.The Van Dykes cannot meet the Fire Department requirements for a fire access road.As a result,they continue to occupy their dwelling without the required occupancy permit.Their continuing illegal action constitutes a misdemeanor under section 8-7005(d)of the San Joaquin County Code,and the County has recorded a Notice of Violation against their property. POTENTIAL SEWAGE CONT AMINA TION When the VanDykes built their house,they also located their septic system in an area subject to high water tables when the Mokelumne River reaches near flood levels.As you can imagine,placement of a septic system in a flood zone jeopardizes the health and safety of the surrounding area and the viability of the Galeazzis'substantial walnut orchards:The Galeazzis live with the daily fear of potential E-coli and salmonella contamination should septic effluent from the VanDyke property spread onto the Galeazzis walnut orchards. Unfortunately,the Van Dykes have failed to ensure that their septic tank effluent would not permeate onto Galeazzi property in the event of a flood or other type of unusual occurrence. The Galeazzis are rightfully concerned about the potential for a public relations nightmare involving their valuable walnut orchard and the resulting loss of substantial income should a septic system failure occur on the Van Dyke property. LIFE SAFETY ISSUES At this point the VanDykes are both quite elderly and the potential for an emergency response to their home becomes all the more likely.However,the access road from Cherry Street is inaccessible to any large fire equipment or vehicles that would typically respond to an emergency due to a lack of appropriate compaction,insufficient width of the roadway at certain points along the road,Heritage Oak trees which cannot be removed,and the lack of sufficient turnarounds and turnouts.These circumstances pose a dangerous condition for both the Van Dykes and for Mokelumne Fire Department personnel who would be required to respond to an emergency medical or fire situation by attempting to travel on an unsafe,uncompacted roadway. The situation becomes even more complicated because of the VanDykes'advancing age. They appear to be confused because they recently called the San Joaquin Sheriff to remove trespassers from their land.As it turned out,these alleged trespassers were actually Galeazzi