Updated April 16, 5:35 p.m.
California is bracing for what could be a crisis within a crisis — that’s if a wildfire, flood or other emergency takes place during the coronavirus pandemic.
CapRadio listeners are wondering about how this could impact people that live in wildfire zones. Gillian Biedler, from Sacramento, asked CapRadio: “We are supposed to have a fierce and early fire season this year. How can we contain the virus while evacuating people?”
Wildfires and housing the people who are evacuated from them isn’t new in California. But what is new is this double whammy of a global pandemic and potential fires or other disasters, said Kim Zagaris, with the California Office of Emergency Services.
“We deal with this type of stuff all the time, but what we don't deal with is probably the magnitude that we're dealing with currently today,” he said.
Agencies across the state are preparing for that possibility, figuring out how to deal with evacuations if physical distancing orders remain. Zagaris worked for the agency for more than three decades and was pulled out of retirement to help plan during the existing crisis.
“I'm the guy that they break the glass in case of an emergency,” said Zagaris.
He says the state is preparing for disasters, but that generally fires are usually handled by the local level first. But if a blaze gets large enough or outside help is needed that's when agencies like Cal OES get involved.
Zagaris says the agency is already taking precautions at its offices by reducing entrances to one main door, temperature checks, constant cleaning and a series of questions about sickness and exposure.
“Then we give them a wristband,” Zagaris said. “Local governments will probably need to think through these issues as well when they set up evacuation shelters and whatever emergency they're dealing with.”
How Bad Will Fire Season Be?
All this is important because the snowpack statewide is measuring at about 63 percent of normal for this time of year. Even with late season storms keeping the Sierra Nevada moist California could see fires early as grasses dry this spring.
“It's kind of hard to predict what the fire season is going to look like,” said Leroy Westerling, a UC Merced professor and expert on management issues and climate change. “It's gonna be a combination of how hot it gets and whether or not we get any more storms.”
One agency paying attention to all these ingredients that determine how intense fire season could be is the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, or Cal Fire. The agency is already taking extra precautions with COVID-19 at play. Crews are using masks, sanitizing equipment often and limiting the number of people per vehicle.
But Scott McLean, Cal Fire’s deputy communications chief, says there’s still uncertainty because “we’re still a few months away for the potential of any major fires to break out. So, we really don't know where this virus is going to be at as far as spread at that time either.”
When a fire ignites and forces evacuations, McLean says crews will follow Center for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines, like washing hands, using sanitizer and maintaining a six-foot distance from others. He says that also goes for the public as they evacuate.
Mclean says he’s heard reports that the agency will be short staffed, but he says that’s not true and that 2,600 seasonal crew members are training.
“We're evaluating the situation in the state for wildfire reasons and for the virus aspects. Everyday leadership makes note as to what's taking place,” McLean said.
But Tim Edwards — president of Cal Fire Local 2881, the union that represents 6,000 Cal Fire firefighters — doesn’t agree that the state is prepared. He says the 2,600 seasonal workers are regular hires and there aren’t enough firefighters yearly.
Edwards says the pandemic also means inmate crews won’t be available.
“We lost 600 [inmates], so we're going to be down almost 40 inmate crews going into this fire season,” said Edwards. “That's going to put a burden back on to the firefighters.”
There have been over 700 wildfires in 2020 so far in California, but they’ve only burned around 1,200 acres. That could change fast if a major wildfire begins.
“Crews right now have a lot of anxiety going into this, not just because of a possible exposure to the COVID-19 virus, but to the long hours and days that they're going to spend now away from home,” said Edwards.
He is also concerned about whether social distancing can actually be achieved at fire crew camps.
“Picture 1,300 firefighters on five acres,” Edwards said. “How do you keep six feet apart and feed them and shower them. So, they're not going to be able to social distance unless they come up with a better way.”
He says larger areas will be needed to house crews if social distancing is still recommended.
“With lack of staffing in the longer work periods that individuals are going to be assigned to in these fires, it's going to create more exposure time to these viruses and other smoke and toxic chemicals,” Edwards said.
Cal Fire did not immediately respond to requests to comment on Edwards' concerns.
There have been over 700 wildfires in 2020 so far in California, but they’ve only burned around 1,200 acres. That could change fast if a major wildfire begins.
To protect human health, prescribed burns are not allowed for the time being on Forest Service land. But Ryan Tompkins, a forest advisor with the UC Cooperative Extension for Plumas, Sierra, and Lassen counties, says it’s still early enough to prepare for wildfire with other tools like thinning and in some cases burning.
“It is really difficult because of the concerns about smoke and COVID, but sort of now is our chance to be prepared,” said Tompkins.
"A Role To Play"
This delicate balance of preparing forests for wildfire while living under the stay-at-home order is why it’s important, Tompkins says, for people who live in fire zones to take personal responsibility for their homes and properties. (Here are some resources on how to prepare your home).
“We know the agencies are going to have maybe limited capacity, limited resources, they're going to have other strains on their organizations while dealing with this crisis,” Tompkins said. “So, I think it emphasizes in a silver lining way that we all have a piece to play or a role to play.”
Susie Kocher, a forest adviser for the Lake Tahoe region with the UC Cooperative Extension, is concerned about a triple threat of COVID-19, wildfires, and power shutoffs.
“These two potential situations just could stack on top of the uncertainty of what people need to do,” she said.
That’s why Kocher, who works out of South Lake Tahoe, says it’s important that people put in the work now to make their homes withstand fire, because if that triple threat happens it could be too late.
“Maybe you can't leave the house,” said Kocher. “So, you might as well be working on those things around the home, getting your go bag ready, getting your defensible space, doing any kind of home upgrading you can do right now since you’re home.”
How To Evacuate In A Pandemic
But when a wildfire does rage, groups like the American Red Cross are already preparing how to set-up evacuation centers.
“We are very concerned that people will hesitate to evacuate because they're worried about the pandemic,” said Trevor Riggen, senior vice president of disaster cycle services for the group.
“We want to make sure when they have that risk in front of them like a fire or tornado or hurricane, that we're giving them enough information that they can make an informed decision and get to safety quickly,” Riggen said.
During a wildfire the group usually opens a couple evacuation spots, but with the pandemic the non-profit is focusing on getting people into hotel rooms. The goal is to keep people socially distant.
If there is a massive evacuation, Riggen says evacuees will need to go through temperature and symptom checks while adhering to CDC guidelines. As a last resort, Riggen says the group would temporarily house people in shelters like gyms, but spread six feet apart. Also, the group has stopped taking bulk donations because of contamination risk.
“The time and resources it would take to clean each individual item could be overwhelming,” said Riggen. “Our first priority is always going to be the safety of the people in our care, whether it be clients or volunteers and so we're trying to minimize as much of that as possible.”
"We felt that we were safer here"
For Kathy and Doug Houston, the idea of a wildfire burning down their home is something they actively prepare to prevent all year long. They live on a ridge outside the town of Paradise where the Camp Fire devastated the community in 2018. (For more on their story check out this CapRadio story).
The couple didn’t evacuate because after spending thousands of dollars and time preparing their home they stayed and put out embers that landed on their property.
“We felt that we were safer here than trying to get up into the evacuation where many people were trapped,” said Doug Houston.
They and their home survived. In addition to water tanks, fire hoses and generators, the Houstons have cleared acres and acres of land around their home and a neighbor's property. He wants to go a step further and create a system that will hose down his house automatically if a fire takes place while no one is home.
All this work allows them to feel like they can weather COVID-19, wildfire and power shutoffs.
But that’s also because they could afford to go the extra mile to prepare their property.
“My wife and I have the means and the time to put into the preparation,” Houston said. “But many of those that have started to move back into the town of Paradise are people that are still not going to have the means to do this.”
