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As we all know CA has been devastated by fires especially within the past several years when combined with our drought conditions. There's no easy solution to the problem which is tragic on multiple levels.
With these most recent tragedies in mind, how much of the state would you consider fire prone when in drought conditions? Secondly, do you think its hard to give relocation advice to those thinking of relocating knowing the potential danger?
When I think about the state's current condition after driving through the foothills and mountains recently, it seems like we are still just experiencing the tip of the iceberg. Much of it appears to be a tinder box which the smallest spark could easily ignite. Given that, it's pretty hard to know where the next big devastating fire could break out. Where will the next Paradise be? It seems pretty obvious that it's not so much a question of 'if' anymore but rather where and when. These will certainly not be the last destructive fires to hit our state.
There also seems to be false hope given to homeowners if they simply clear some brush and make a defensible barrier they should be safe/ok. Unfortunately, with these huge firestorms, no barrier will stop them ravaging a neighborhood or even a town like Paradise or Santa Rosa. My aunt and uncle lost their home in Santa Rosa last year and nearly their lives while escaping the quickly moving blaze by the skin of their teeth. If they had not woken up in the middle of the night, answered their phone and quickly got out they would have died in their home.
Derek
Last edited by MtnSurfer; 11-10-2018 at 02:13 PM..
To answer your questions. I would consider every place in California is prone to some sort of natural disaster, whether it's fire, flood or earthquake. If anyone who knows this state's history or even bothered to learn about it, California has experienced it's share of natural disasters. We've been experiencing drought for seven years. Last year we got plenty of rain but here we are again with no rain well into November and should have been seeing some as early as October 1st. It isn't any wonder everything is dry. Except for the coast, every other place in California has very low humidity and dew points, making them a virtual tinderbox.
As to your second question. Answering questions about a particular area can be helpful but it should be strongly suggested to the person inquiring that they should research and visit the area before moving. People who just arbitrarily pick up and move to a place on the basis of what some internet strange told them is just plain stupid and, quite frankly, deserve whatever happens to them. Life doesn't work like that. There are so many factors that go into making a move like that but even here, time after time, I see many of our members telling people they should move to this city or that city because they live there or used to live there but just because they live there doesn't mean it's the best for everyone.
California is changing more and more every day. Weather, economy, housing, population .... everything. There is no perfect place anywhere but maybe for one person who is looking, they may find what's perfect for them and if they do, it will be because they made the decision to do it, not because some stranger online told them to.
I don't know if you've found your perfect place yet but I'm sure you will as long as you continue to visit and do your homework, which I know you do because you've always been a very logical and level headed member here who utilizes his critical thinking skills.
As we all know CA has been devastated by fires especially within the past several years when combined with our drought conditions. There's no easy solution to the problem which is tragic on multiple levels.
With these most recent tragedies in mind, how much of the state would you consider fire prone when in drought conditions? Secondly, do you think its hard to give relocation advice to those thinking of relocating knowing the potential danger?
When I think about the state's current condition after driving through the foothills and mountains recently, it seems like we are still just experiencing the tip of the iceberg. Much of it appears to be a tinder box which the smallest spark could easily ignite. Given that, it's pretty hard to know where the next big devastating fire could break out. Where will the next Paradise be? It seems pretty obvious that it's not so much a question of 'if' anymore but rather where and when. These will certainly not be the last destructive fires to hit our state.
There also seems to be false hope given to homeowners if they simply clear some brush and make a defensible barrier they should be safe/ok. Unfortunately, with these huge firestorms, no barrier will stop them ravaging a neighborhood or even a town like Paradise or Santa Rosa. My aunt and uncle lost their home in Santa Rosa last year and nearly their lives while escaping the quickly moving blaze by the skin of their teeth. If they had not woken up in the middle of the night, answered their phone and quickly got out they would have died in their home.
Derek
Below interactive high-level map (I posted this and detailed maps/town list in Paradise fire thread) gives very rough idea about which parts of CA are under very high fire risk -- colored in red (may count lower risk orange too): CAL FIRE - California Fire Hazard Severity Zone Map Update Project
Not that big part of CA, but big part of nice places like Sierra/Cascade/Klamath and other foothills and mountains. As to general fire risk: I think it's everywhere, one bad neighbor can be an extreme fire risk.
People should be allowed to live in tiny homes, RVs, sheds on their land and current ridiculous mcmansion requirements removed. If the small stuff burns: easy to replace, and some can be towed away during evacuation with no loss suffered. There's whole construction + government greedy for property tax + chemical/materials industry + insurance mafia involved in current regulations.
To answer your questions. I would consider every place in California is prone to some sort of natural disaster, whether it's fire, flood or earthquake. If anyone who knows this state's history or even bothered to learn about it, California has experienced it's share of natural disasters. We've been experiencing drought for seven years. Last year we got plenty of rain but here we are again with no rain well into November and should have been seeing some as early as October 1st. It isn't any wonder everything is dry. Except for the coast, every other place in California has very low humidity and dew points, making them a virtual tinderbox.
As to your second question. Answering questions about a particular area can be helpful but it should be strongly suggested to the person inquiring that they should research and visit the area before moving. People who just arbitrarily pick up and move to a place on the basis of what some internet strange told them is just plain stupid and, quite frankly, deserve whatever happens to them. Life doesn't work like that. There are so many factors that go into making a move like that but even here, time after time, I see many of our members telling people they should move to this city or that city because they live there or used to live there but just because they live there doesn't mean it's the best for everyone.
California is changing more and more every day. Weather, economy, housing, population .... everything. There is no perfect place anywhere but maybe for one person who is looking, they may find what's perfect for them and if they do, it will be because they made the decision to do it, not because some stranger online told them to.
I don't know if you've found your perfect place yet but I'm sure you will as long as you continue to visit and do your homework, which I know you do because you've always been a very logical and level headed member here who utilizes his critical thinking skills.
HereOnMars, I appreciate your input. As a native, I grew up watching Malibu burn from the school playgrounds of Hermosa Beach. So I'm very familiar with these disasters, unfortunately. They are all part of the California experience for better or worse. And most of the time they did not affect us. Earthquakes, for example, were such a normal part of living here that I basically slept through most of them or thought little about them. It does seem that fire more than anything has worsened over the years.
Recently, we have been exploring different parts of the state for our next move. And we really do love the Sierra foothills among other areas for more affordability. We even took a trip recently to Tahoe and visited several places on the way up. We couldn't help but be struck with how dry everything looks given our drought conditions. Add to that our close relatives who almost died last year to fire, we definitely are taking this more into consideration now.
We have friends who grew up in the Sierra foothills around Auburn and loved living there. In speaking with their mom, she emphasized the realities of fire danger in her immediate neighborhood. On a scale of 1 to 10 her area is rated 10 by insurance companies for fire danger. As such, she said it is very hard to get fire insurance. They had to find a company out of state to buy from since most major carriers want nothing to do with that risk. This definitely gives us pause for thought when considering these otherwise beautiful areas.
Below interactive high-level map (I posted this and detailed maps/town list in Paradise fire thread) gives very rough idea about which parts of CA are under very high fire risk -- colored in red (may count lower risk orange too): CAL FIRE - California Fire Hazard Severity Zone Map Update Project
Not that big part of CA, but big part of nice places like Sierra/Cascade/Klamath and other foothills and mountains. As to general fire risk: I think it's everywhere, one bad neighbor can be an extreme fire risk.
Thanks for that map. It looks like there is a large swath of Very High risk areas from border to border. This includes some areas with high populations. There are definitely higher concentrations in certain parts. I think this has to be viewed as one data point in light of other factors when considering a place to live. Here's a good view from California Dept. of Forestry California Fire Threat Map
Location: East of Seattle since 1992, 615' Elevation, Zone 8b - originally from SF Bay Area
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Any place that’s without rain and subject to wind for 4-6 months of the year will have a threat of fire. I lived and worked in the Bay Area during the Loma Prieta earthquake, then the Oakland Hills Fire, which showed that even a city with hydrants all over is vulnerable, when the power lines to the pumping plants have burned and there is no water. When you have woods and dry grass all over, and the strong winds come, there are not enough fire fighters and equipment in the world to stop it. For the Op, I would suggest a coastal area subject to more rain and fog, like Eureka.
Any place that’s without rain and subject to wind for 4-6 months of the year will have a threat of fire. I lived and worked in the Bay Area during the Loma Prieta earthquake, then the Oakland Hills Fire, which showed that even a city with hydrants all over is vulnerable, when the power lines to the pumping plants have burned and there is no water. When you have woods and dry grass all over, and the strong winds come, there are not enough fire fighters and equipment in the world to stop it. For the Op, I would suggest a coastal area subject to more rain and fog, like Eureka.
Or somewhere else with more annual rain like the PNW!
Given that no place is totally immune from fire, there are some are at higher risk. Your example of the Oakland fire demonstrates that high risk fire maps alone will not show the full risk of an area which may get really dry.
My husband and I have been driving up to the PNW from NorCal and, more recently, SoCal, since 2002.
On our most recent trip, we really noticed the change in how the trees looked from Redding up through Portland.
It just looks drier to us. It has changed. Even the PNW seems not as wet as it used to be.
When we drove through Ashland in August 2017, we dealt with ash and poor air quality we’d never seen.
Had we come back down Hwy 99 just a bit later, on our most recent trip,
we’d have been caught up in this fire.
It also hits home because my husband’s sister just lost her home in the Carr Fire in Redding.
Really, who knows. We have had horrible fires even within city limits, like the Oakland hills fire in 1991.
With our dry, windy conditions, anywhere in CA is in danger that is dry, and that's most of the state.
Nowadays, fire is much more of a concern than earthquakes.
I carry insurance for both.
You should always carry insurance, even if you are a renter, that includes loss of use, so you have money to stay in a hotel, etc. And, pack a go bag that you put your passports in, as well as a change of clothes and documents that show your pets are vaccinated, etc.
I have also been sending these kinds of documents to myself via email, so I can access them anywhere. You never know if you'll be where you can retrieve them or not, if/when disaster hits.
Goes to show, you also want some cash available -- either actual cash or a debit card - that you can grab.
This is also a good time to send yourself a video of your entire home/apartment, that shows everything you own, that you might need to claim on insurance.
Or somewhere else with more annual rain like the PNW!
Given that no place is totally immune from fire, there are some are at higher risk. Your example of the Oakland fire demonstrates that high risk fire maps alone will not show the full risk of an area which may get really dry.
Derek
Excellent map from Usrname With all the yellow, orange, and red areas, there doesn't seem to be many places one can live without threat of fire or the astronomical cost to insure a home.
Thinking about the PNW, I came very close to moving to a small town in Washington State, just across the bridge from Astoria, OR. Iwalco. I fell in love with the area. I could have been very happy living there or in Seaview, just up the road a bit. Winter storms are brutal, though. It's nothing to have your roof blown off in one of them. So much so that homes listed for sale often have a note about there having "new roof installed to withstand winds 150 mph" If you haven't ever visited, I can recommend it. The only drawback is shopping. No big box stores. The closest is in Astoria and they're pretty limited too but it's a beautiful place.
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