Videos went viral of entire streets up in flames. Reports tracking the immense damage were broadcast on dozens of news channels. For San Mateo residents, the hazy, gray sky was not only a reminder of how close the fire was, but also a reminder how quickly everything could be lost. Not only was 2017 the most destructive year of wildfires ever recorded in California but also a sign of a new era of fires — ones that are more frequent and destructive. These fires beg the question of what danger San Mateo residents are in and what can be done to prevent these disasters, or at the very least, control them.
Causes of forest fires
In order to properly understand how to keep our communities safe from forest fires, it is essential to understand what causes them. While climate change hasn’t directly caused these forest fires, its effect on the environment has increased their likelihood.
Climate change leads to a higher chance of drought and dry weather, which subsequently lead to higher fire risk.
“Part of it is that we had a five-year drought … which killed a lot of trees. Dead trees don’t resist fire nearly as well so [the forest fire] spreads faster,” said San Francisco firefighter Lt. Tom Oertli.
As each California summer breaks records for being hotter than the last, fire risk has continued to worsen.
Climate change also exacerbates swings in climate, making rainy years rainier and dry seasons drier. While extra rain may initially sound like a good thing, in truth, it causes excess plant growth which turns into kindling when the climate swings back to being dry. It’s no coincidence that the 2016-2017 rainy season ranked the second wettest in California history and was followed by the most destructive fire season.
Even before the state started feeling the effects of climate change, though, it was already at higher risk due to another dangerous weather phenomenon: the legendary and powerful Santa Ana winds.
The Santa Ana winds are a wind pattern which blows in from Southern Nevada into Southern California. While they don’t directly start any of the fires, they do provide dangerously hot and dry conditions.
As these winds journey toward the Pacific Ocean, their humidity decreases and speed increases, which in turn sets the stage for fires by drying out vegetation and increasing temperatures. These powerful winds — with speeds that can exceed 40 mph — also quickly spread existing fires.
Forest fires become increasingly common, and destructive, during “Santa Ana season,” which typically occurs during winter months. During these months, when the wind is particularly strong, firefighters are essentially powerless.
“Hot, warm Santa Ana winds make the worst fire conditions possible,” Oertli said.
The December Thomas Fire in Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties, for example, started as a .1 square mile fire, but due to winds reaching 60 mph and extremely low humidity, grew to over 375 square miles.
But while the aforementioned conditions make it easy for fire to spread, there still needs to be the initial spark.
In this regard, wildfires are anything but wild: the vast majority of them are man-made. Not only are 84 percent of forest fires caused by humans through unattended campfires, littered cigarettes and sparking power lines, but forest fires are greatly impacted by the growing human population.
Studies of the California population have found a massive overlap between areas with an increasing population and areas with a high fire risk. Basically, what draws people to places like Napa — large, open grasslands, mountains and forests — are also what makes those places have a high fire risk. The houses, schools and other structures built in these growing areas not only feed the fires, but also make them very hard to control.
All of the major fires in California this year are believed to have been started by man-made objects: the Thomas Fire by an exploding electric transformer and the Napa Fire by a sparking power line. While companies such a Pacific Gas and Electric cut down over a million trees every year, it only takes one spark to start a devastating fire.
The cost of fighting these fires has been record-breaking. Back in December, only halfway through its fiscal year, Cal Fire had already exceeded its $427 million dollar budget by more than $150 million.
These costs not only have a potential impact on taxpayers, but also on the environment. “As more and more of the agency’s resources are spent each year to provide the firefighters, aircraft and other assets necessary to protect lives, property and natural resources from catastrophic wildfires, fewer and fewer funds and resources are available to support … programs and restoration projects that reduce the fire threat,” said the U.S. Fire Service in a recent report.
Fire Risk in the Bay Area
California has the highest fire risk in the entire country, with over 2 million houses at high or extreme risk of being destroyed.
However, the Bay Area is neither located in Santa Ana Wind territory nor in the middle of a forest. So, what is the risk of a forest fire occurring here? Though weather patterns may lower the fire risk, there are many factors that make forest fires a possibility.
Oertli believes the Bay Area fire risk is higher than most think.
“The Bay Area really isn’t that protected from fires,” he said. “In 1991, they had the Oakland Hills fire, which was previously the most destructive fire [in terms of structures destroyed and the death toll].”
The Oakland Hills fire, which affected both Oakland and Berkeley, claimed 25 lives and burned over 3,200 homes in one day.
While the fog from the nearby Pacific Ocean keeps grass and plants from drying out, therefore reducing fire risk in the Bay Area, open land poses a threat.
“There is definitely potential [for fires] in San Mateo and Marin,” Oertli said. “If you get up near 280 there’s a lot of potential that [a fire] could come down near to us.”
However likely a fire is to start in San Mateo, it is unlikely it will spread far. Oertli says that in Napa, part of the problem was that the fire was in a secluded, hard-to-reach area. It took a long time for the fire to be noticed and then called in and for trucks and supplies to arrive.
“In San Mateo, if there [was] a fire … it’s going to be seen right away,” Oertli said. “You’re going to get a rapid fire response. That’s why in urban areas you don’t see structure fires become wildfires.”
What Can We Do?
No forest fire begins with 40-foot flames. It is usually something small such as a few stray sparks that quickly escalate into a ferocious fire. When it comes to fire prevention, it is important to be aware and pay attention to potential fire risks in our daily lives.
“People can be careful with tossing out cigarettes, making sure they aren’t dragging chains while towing, making campfires only in designated areas and making sure they have a water source or some way to completely put it out,” said Cal Fire firefighter Daniel Rosas.
There are also steps that citizens can take to protect their homes and neighborhoods. Once a fire has started, and is headed your way, it is important that your home and surrounding area is already fire safe. This is called keeping a “defensible space.”
“[A defensible space consists of] not having plants, not having weeds, not having dead grass near your home, having your things trimmed back,” Oertli said.
Keeping the area around your home clear of dry foliage and easily accessible can ultimately result in whether it is saved or whether it is destroyed by the fire.
“If you have five engines and seven houses, you have to pick and choose [which ones to save],” Oertli said. “They’re going to look at the ones that are most defensible. What kind of roof do they have, do they have a fire resistant roof?”
“Defensible space is very important,” Rosas said. “It gives your house and belongings a fighting chance.”
Additionally, there are measures that cities can take to prevent the spread of fires, such as clearing roads and the areas close to power lines.
Having a “fire safety plan” is equally as important — where to go in case of a fire, an emergency kit and so on. Since firefighters must prioritize evacuation over firefighting, a quick evacuation means that the fire can be dealt with and contained quicker.
