Reflections on the Almeda Fire and Where We Go from Here
Among the various ways that Mother Nature can upend our sense of safety and stability, wildfire is perhaps the most frightening because of its unpredictable nature. If the river is flooding, you go away from the river. Tsunami coming? Go to higher elevation. Hurricane? Move inland. Tornado? Basement time. Wildfire? Go where it isn’t and where you don’t think it will be – and move fast.
Wildfire is different because our reaction depends on where it starts and which way it’s moving – and that direction can change – quickly. It’s also true that there is a visceral fear that accompanies the idea (let alone the reality) of wildfire. I know of no one who wouldn’t rather face a wall of water (or anything else for that matter) instead of a wall of fire. The stories that have come from those who fled from Ashland, Talent, Phoenix, and Medford ahead of the Almeda fire are terrifying and the loss of life and homes is tragic.
We don’t like terrifying. We want predictability and certainty – guaranteed safety for ourselves and our families and neighbors. But for forested, mountain communities in the Western U.S., like Ashland, fire is part of the DNA of our landscape – and it’s becoming a bigger challenge year after year because of the accelerating impacts of the climate crisis. It is particularly challenging because, unlike other natural disasters, the “evacuation route” will be determined in real time based on the location and characteristics of the fire.
So, what do we do here in Ashland? We build on the foundation of wildfire safety and risk reduction that the City and its partners have been putting in place for years. I served on the Wildfire Safety Commission prior to joining the Council and now act as Council Liaison to that commission. I’ve learned quite a lot in that time about various efforts the City has undertaken with the Commission to reduce our risk of wildfire.
We must focus on three types of activities:
reducing fuels (while protecting nature) in the wildland-urban interface that surrounds our community;
reducing the chances that buildings will ignite when embers are blown out ahead of the fire front*; and
being prepared to evacuate large numbers of people when our best efforts cannot contain a wildfire.
*Embers have been known to fly for a couple of miles out ahead of large fires (whether they are burning in the wildlands or in town) igniting structures and making it very difficult to stop the fire. When they land in Ashland, we must make sure that there is a low likelihood that they will ignite a structure.
The City of Ashland has done the following:
The Ashland Forest Resiliency Stewardship Project addresses fuels buildup in our watershed. This is good work, but we must not imagine that we are somehow fire-proofing the forest. In extreme fire weather (hot, dry, windy), like what we saw the day of the Almeda fire, anything can burn. www.ashlandwatershed.org
The City Council banned fireworks several years ago and in 2018 passed the Wildfire Safety Ordinance, which makes all of Ashland a wildfire zone, updates standards for development of new construction and major remodels, and restricts new plantings of trees and shrubs that are known to be flammable. Details are here: https://www.ashland.or.us/Page.asp?NavID=17670
Ashland Fire & Rescue's Fire Adapted Communities program offers a one-hour comprehensive assessment for residents that includes a walk around your home and property where specific recommendations are provided to reduce risk of wildfire. Given the increased awareness of fire risk, there is a staffing capacity issue, but staff is responding as quickly as possible to requests for home assessments. https://www.ashland.or.us/Page.asp?NavID=17666
Firewise USA is a national recognition program through the National Fire Protection Association that emphasizes homeowner responsibility and community participation in wildfire home safety. The City of Ashland started its program in 2011. Now, with 35 FireWise neighborhoods within our city limits, Ashland is the leading FireWise community in Oregon. In addition, Jackson County has the largest FireWise community count in the nation, much of which is coming from Ashland. https://www.ashland.or.us/Page.asp?NavID=2825
Our Community Wildfire Protection Plan was completed in 2004. Since then, we have been implementing the community alternative in that plan as the Ashland Forest Resiliency Stewardship Project (see above).www.ashland.or.us/cwpp
Our Weed Abatement Ordinance requires that property owners cut all weeds by June 15th of each year and the City of Ashland enforces that ordinance. www.ashland.or.us/weedabatement
This year the City of Ashland sponsored its 9th annual Green Debris Dropoff Day, which allows Ashland residents to take their yard debris to the transfer station at no charge. https://www.ashland.or.us/Page.asp?NavID=16961
In 2019, the Wildfire Safety Commission and Ashland Fire and Rescue hosted their first Wildfire Preparedness Campaign emphasizing wildfire risk reduction around homes, home evacuation planning, and addressing smoke issues. That campaign happened again this spring. https://www.ashland.or.us/Page.asp?NavID=17666
This year, Ashland Fire and Rescue began a partnership with Rogue Valley Association of Realtors to draw attention to wildfire potential here and what homeowners can do to prevent fires. Our fire department personnel will be training realtors and home inspectors regarding home wildfire risk reduction. http://roguevalleyrealtors.org/buyers-and-sellers-information-buyers-and-sellers-menu/904-prevent-catastrophic-wildfires-in-southern-oregon.html
SmokeWise Ashland offers web, video, and written literature as well as educational presentations and workshops on how to improve indoor air quality and protect against smoke exposure. The SmokeWise partnership includes Ashland Fire & Rescue, Ashland Chamber of Commerce, Asante Ashland Community Hospital, Jackson County Health and Human Services, the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, and the City of Ashland Wildfire Safety Commission. www.smokewiseashland.org
Homesite Wildfire Risk Reduction: The City of Ashland is participating in a pilot program that assesses properties from the street and provides homeowners with a ranking of fire risk and ways to reduce that risk. If you live in the city limits of Ashland you should have received a postcard earlier this summer with a code to check out how your property ranked. As residents take action to reduce fire risk, they can request an updated inspection, which then updates the information in the system. You can email wildfire@ashland.or.us for your code.
FEMA grant: The City of Ashand is completing the process to be awarded a $3 million grant from the Pre-Disaster Mitigation Program of FEMA. This funding will be used to help the 1,100 highest risk properties reduce their fire risk in Ashland. Qualifying properties will be contacted in 2021.
Evacuation Plan: Ashland has an evacuation plan and had contracted with a firm to provide an evacuation traffic study prior to the Almeda fire happening. Information from that traffic study as well as the review of the response to the Almeda fire will be used to update this existing plan. But remember, the nature of wildfire makes it impossible to set evacuation routes in stone ahead of the event. www.ashland.or.us/evacuate
Last year the City of Ashland, with the help of citizen volunteer evacuees, conducted a limited evacuation drill to test evacuation systems and processes. https://ashlandtidings.com/news/top-stories/evacuation-will-be-a-learning-experience
Where We Go From Here
For many residents of our valley, the Almeda fire was an unwelcome wake up call to the reality of what it is to live in an area prone to wildfires. We are still in shock on some level and wanting to see action taken immediately to make sure something like this never happens again. Our reality is that we will never get to the point where we can guarantee that an event like the Almeda fire will not happen, but there is much we can do in the meantime to reduce our personal fire risk, strengthen our municipal systems, and prepare for the next time wildfire comes to Ashland. Fortunately, Ashland Fire & Rescue and the City Council have long recognized this growing threat and have taken action to address it and provide the tools residents need to do their part to reduce wildfire risk in our community.
After all major events like the Almeda fire, there is an in-depth assessment of the decisions that were made by different agencies and jurisdictions. Part of analyzing those decisions is looking at what information was available at the time the decisions were being made. For the Almeda fire, this will be a regional assessment, but the City of Ashland will be a strong partner and will be looking at its own emergency response as part of this regional effort. Results of this assessment will help us make improvements to our emergency response system.
The Wildfire Safety Commission held a special four-hour session to develop recommendations for the City Council, which will be finalized at its meeting this week. Those recommendations will be brought forward by the Commission at a public meeting soon.
What You Can Do
Share your experience with the City of Ashland: Lessons learned from the Almeda Fire event will help shape the response to emergencies in the future and better define areas of vulnerability. Take the survey here through October 20: http://www.ashland.or.us/news.asp?newsID=4815.
Get rid of hazardous plants around your home this winter: The Prohibited Plant List is here: http://www.ashland.or.us/Page.asp?NavID=17761
Reduce fire risk for your home and property: www.fireadaptedashland.org
Create a Personal Evacuation Plan: https://www.ashland.or.us/SIB/files/Personal%20Wildfire%20Evacuation%20Plan.pdf
Working together, we can ensure that our community lives as safely as possible with the increasing risk of wildfire in our region.
If you have any questions, comments, or suggestions related to this blog post, please reach out to me at Tonya@council.ashland.or.us. Thank you!