I’m not sure that clearing brush/creating fire breaks would be the answer in any event. All an arsonist would have to do is light the fire on both sides of the break. I heard that the main problem in this case was either lack of water planes in the air or inability to get planes in the air due to the wind. Hopefully the magnitude of this fire will spur the county/state/federal government to buy more planes.
If clearing brush is an answer, I say raise property taxes so that the county can pay people who want to do it. My job pays better than what I could make as a brush clearer and I’m sure a single skilled dozer operator could do the job much better than 10 people with skills similar to mine.
But again though, feel free to get started on the job yourself. I have much more respect for people who lead by example than those who volunteer others to do something they want done.