Advancing Wildfire Safety

Berkeley is no stranger to natural disasters. Earthquakes, drought, flooding, and wildfires have all impacted Berkeley, with the threat of some of these increasing as a result of climate change. Wildfires in particular have become of extra concern in recent years, with eight of the ten largest wildfires in California’s history, including the top seven, taking place since 2017. To address the growing threat of wildfires, the City of Berkeley has taken significant action to mitigate risks, advance preparations, and educate the community on how to be wildfire safe. 

Remembering the 1923 Berkeley Fire

 

September 17th marks the 100th anniversary of the 1923 Berkeley Fire.

 

On September 17, 1923, the strong, dry Diablo winds were in full effect and a fire had erupted just east of the Berkeley Hills ridgeline near Wildcat Canyon. The fire quickly swept over the hill and down into the heart of Berkeley. In a matter of hours, the La Loma Park and Northside neighborhoods were destroyed. Firefighters and volunteers were overwhelmed, but the fire ultimately stopped near Hearst Avenue and Shattuck Avenue - once there was a shifting of the winds bringing a cool seabreeze. As a result, Downtown Berkeley, UC Berkeley, and the rest of the city was spared from the destruction. 640 buildings were destroyed and thousands were displaced, including many who had moved to Berkeley after surviving the Great San Francisco Earthquake of 1906. Miraculously, there were no deaths. The cause of the fire was never determined.

Many lessons were learned from the 1923 fire. The architecture of Berkeley changed, with stucco and tiles replacing the wooden shingle style which reportedly helped the fire quickly move from home to home. Water mains, which were inadequate in parts of the city, were upgraded. A new fire station was built in the hills. Despite these efforts, disaster would strike again along the wildland-urban interface. Smaller fires impacted southeast Berkeley in 1946 and 1970. Then in 1991, a major wildfire destroyed over 3,000 single-family homes and apartment units across Oakland and Berkeley, killing 25 people. Today, efforts continue to improve wildfire safety and preparedness. 

To mark the 100th anniversary, the City is hosting an event for people to learn about community fire preparedness. There is no registration required to attend. This is a free, accessible community event for all ages and you can: 

  • Enjoy games and participate in interactive fire prevention fun including fire safety demonstrations

  • Learn and gather information about fire and disaster preparedness

  • Sample great food from local vendors

  • Connect with other community members

  • Meet fire personnel and check out a fire engine

Mark your calendar for Fire Safe Fest Sunday, September 17th at Live Oak Park (1301 Shattuck Ave) from 10am-2pm.

Climate Change Increasing Risk, Severity of Natural Disasters

 
 

2023 has brought extreme, record shattering conditions throughout the world. The wildfires that destroyed the historic town of Lahaina and ravaged Maui, Hawaii became the deadliest wildfire in modern US history, surpassing 2018’s Camp Fire that destroyed the town of Paradise. The ongoing wildfire season in Canada is by far its largest on record, already burning an area larger than Southern California. Last month, Hurricane Hilary was added to the incredibly short list of tropical cyclones to hit California. July 2023 was the hottest month on record, with unprecedented heat waves impacting virtually every continent while ocean temperatures are increasing. Our Sister City of Gongju, South Korea, was heavily impacted by severe flooding and torrential rain in July. This is just a small sample of exceptional events to take place this year.

While it is difficult to directly attribute any single natural disaster to climate change, the reality is a warming world, caused by human activity, is creating the conditions for more extreme weather phenomena. Because of this, solutions to address wildfire safety in the past may no longer be adequate to deal with the changing climate. Long term climate models forecast that California and Berkeley will experience longer, more extreme droughts and heatwaves, and the fewer storms that we do receive will be more intense. 

City Takes Action to Prioritize Wildfire Safety

 
 

In 2020, Berkeley voters approved Measure FF, a parcel tax that raises $8.5 million annually for improved fire services, emergency communication, hazard mitigation, and wildfire prevention. Over the last three years, significant progress has been made at moving forward and implementing policies to become more resilient to the threat of wildfires. 

Improving Evacuation Routes

As we witnessed in 1991 and last month’s fire in Maui, roadways used for evacuation can become gridlocked quickly, forcing people to abandon their vehicles, which in turn causes more congestion. To address this, the City has launched the Safe Passages program, which will complete roadway treatments and vegetation management projects improving evacuation and emergency responder access to many areas. To help with the Safe Passages program, the City has contracted an engineering firm to conduct an analysis to scientifically predict exactly how long it will take to move people out of harm’s way in various wildfire scenarios. To help supplement this, we are asking community members to fill out this 10-minute survey by September 30th on how your household would handle an emergency evacuation. The survey is anonymous and seven people will be selected at random for gift card prizes. Only one survey can be submitted per household. 

Expanding Emergency Alerts

There are several emergency alert systems where you can subscribe to receive urgent notifications. Stay informed by subscribing to AC Alert, the mass notification system for Berkeley and Alameda County. This system provides email and text notifications of evacuation warnings and orders, extreme fire weather, and other emergencies. The Berkeley Emergency Map (formerly Zonehaven) provides real-time information catered to specific areas in the event of an emergency. Be sure to memorize what zone you live in to stay informed.

In the event of a fire or a Public Safety Power Shutoff, power and telecommunications may be down. In this case, there is now another way to inform residents of emergency notifications. The City is in the process of completing installation of an emergency siren network, with ten sirens already installed and operational; five more will be installed by the end of the year. These sirens have a solar-powered battery backup and can be activated by landline, cell phone, computer or satellite, so they can operate in any situation. The first test of this system will take place on September 17th during the Fire Safe Fest. 

Vegetation Management

The Berkeley Hills have changed significantly over the past century. What were once grassy hillsides now have much more development with non-native, flammable trees, increasing the amount of fuel in the area. Proper vegetation management can make a significant difference in whether or not a home will burn down in the event of a wildfire. Thanks to Measure FF, a new Wildland Urban Interface Division has been established which is dedicated to improving the community's understanding of, and resistance to wildfire. Additionally, the Fire Department is now able to cover 8,500 properties in the Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone (which covers most of the Berkeley Hills) with an annual inspection that includes a corrections checklist. 

The City has been working with neighboring and regional partners for improving wildfire safety along the overlapping jurisdictions of the East Bay Hills. A few years ago, the North Orinda Shaded Fuel Break was created, a 19.3 mile project that reduces wildfire fuels while protecting existing wildlife. Part of this project encompasses the ridge directly east of Tilden Regional Park, reducing the threat of a wildfire crossing the wildland-urban interface in the Berkeley Hills. This project is now effectively completed. More recently, the City, in partnership with other agencies, was awarded a $2.8 million grant from CAL FIRE to perform vegetation management along Grizzly Peak and adjacent key evacuation routes. This project will begin next year and will be completed in 2026.  

Community Wildfire Protection Plan

In May 2023, the Berkeley City Council adopted the Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP). The CWPP, developed collaboratively by the Fire Department, federal and state land managers, local governments, and communities, provides a roadmap to help the City and community work together to mitigate wildfire risks. The CWPP establishes goals for improving wildfire response, community preparedness, fuel management, creating infrastructure, ignition reduction, and home hardening. Explore the CWPP hub to learn more.

What You Can Do to be Prepared

 

Extreme Fire Weather occurs when strong winds and very low humidity happen at the same time, with some of the most destructive wildfires happening in these conditions.

 

There are individual actions that you can take to be prepared for extreme fire weather conditions. 

1) If you live in the Berkeley Hills:

2) Sign up your mobile phones and email for AC Alert. Emergency officials will use AC Alert to notify you of Extreme Fire Weather and to send targeted alerts for evacuations.

3) Bookmark and get comfortable with the Berkeley Emergency Map (formerly Zonehaven). Responders will use this online tool to share evacuation updates and other emergency instructions.

4) Make your fire weather plan. Use the City's fire weather planning toolkit to help decide when you will leave the Hills, where you will stay when you leave, and what routes you will take.

5) Be ready to evacuate. Wildfires may occur even without Extreme Fire Weather. Berkeley residents, and Berkeley Hills residents especially, should always be ready to evacuate rapidly if needed. The City's wildfire evacuation checklist offers instructions.

6) Complete the Community Evacuation Survey to help the City gather critical information about the human element of evacuations in Berkeley. When combined with an engineering analysis of Berkeley's roadways and capacities, this survey will help us to establish evacuation time estimates, which will improve our evacuation strategies.

Whenever Berkeley experiences Extreme Fire Weather, which is when extremely low humidity is combined with strong winds, the Fire Department recommends people living in the Berkeley Hills stay elsewhere. This preemptive voluntary evacuation is useful in reducing congestion of evacuation routes in the event of a mandatory evacuation.

 

We are committed to continuing our efforts to make Berkeley a wildfire safe community. With funding support from taxpayers, and in partnership with many stakeholders, the Berkeley Fire Department is creating historical opportunities to build resistance to wildfire. Take action today to learn about and take advantage of these opportunities. Preparing your family, home and property for wildfire will benefit you, your neighbors and the city.

Jesse Arreguin