Wild Land Safety (Monday)
With more than 1.1 million buildings located in California wildfire hazard zones, the destructive potential of wildfires cannot be overstated. These areas are most at risk for incurring property damage or physical harm from fires, especially to those residing in the Wild Land-Urban Interface (WUI). The wildfire risk level for these areas are measured using a three-tier scale of fire hazard severity zones—very high, high, and moderate. Wildfires fuel sources include: dry vegetation, industrial materials, or combustible buildings. Wildfire ignition sources include: downed power lines, lightning strikes, breached gas pipelines, improper storage of hazardous or flammable material, poor building maintenance, arson or even something as small as an unextinguished cigarette. When the weather is hot and dry, fires can even start from the friction of dried vegetation rubbing against each other!
Topography, infrastructure, home construction, wind direction, climate and numerous other factors come into play when assessing the fire risk of a particular area. For instance, residential areas in upper elevations are more at risk because the steeper a slope is, the faster a fire can spread. Most of Orange County’s building infrastructure is wooden-frame construction, so a fire could start at any area of any city including intersections, freeways and railroads. The Mediterranean climate of Southern California can increase fire risk in areas with extensive fuel load. The Santa Ana winds that originate in the Great Basin can spread and amplify the impacts of fires in the Orange County region; in fact, the Santa Ana Winds are notorious for exacerbating wildfires on multiple occasions. Make no mistake, wildfires are a very real danger that requires awareness, vigilance and preparation for those of us who live and work in Fullerton and Brea. But with the right knowledge, residents can make their own property - and their neighborhood - much safer from wildfire:
- Know if you’re in a High Fire Hazard Severity Zone. If you reside in one of the High Fire Hazard Severity Zones, it is especially important that you are knowledgeable and vigilant to the environmental risk factors in your community
- Click here to learn more about landscaping tips that can help minimize fire risk to your property and learn how to create a Defensible Space that can protect your home during a fire.
- The Home Ignition Zone (HIZ) divides the area surrounding your house into 3 zones: Immediate, Intermediate and Extended. The HIZ describes the fire hazards of each zone and how to best fortify your home and mitigate (perhaps even avoid) damages caused by wildfire. Start first with fortifying your home defenses to reduce ember penetration before moving on to strategic landscaping measures.
- What are the primary threats to homes during a wildfire? Embers are the primary cause of home ignitions in wildfires; they are burning pieces of combustible material (wood and/or vegetation) that carried away from the main body of fire via wind.
Emergency Preparedness (Tuesday)
Orange County is prone to many disasters, including earthquakes, wildfires, landslides, pandemic, flooding, terrorism, gas or chemical leaks, and more. Being prepared can reduce the fear, anxiety and losses that come with disasters. We all know that the next emergency is coming. We just don’t know when or what kind it will be. But we can – and must – prepare now for the next emergency. Our family, friends and community depend on it. Do you know which types of disasters affect Orange County and how to prepare for them? There’s an old joke that goes around that California is home to four seasons: Earthquake, Fire, Flood and Drought. Since the topic of Wildfires was covered on Monday, let’s go over some helpful facts on the other three most common disasters in Orange County.
Earthquakes are as natural to California as is the Grizzly bear. The Earth’s crust is divided into 12 pieces called tectonic plates (like a giant jigsaw puzzle). These tectonic plates are always slowly moving and sliding past each other, but sometimes they get stuck in place. When the plates finally overcome the friction and move again, that releases energy that travels through the earth’s crust and causes the shaking we know as earthquakes. In California, there are two places that meet that is known as the San Andreas Fault. It is estimated that each year Southern California area has about 10,000 earthquakes, but most of them are so small that they are not felt. However, there are areas of the San Andreas Fault (and other smaller faults in California) where the plate movement strain can build for hundreds of years, producing great earthquakes when it finally releases. Drop, Cover, and Hold are the most important thing to do to protect yourself during an earthquake. But before the earthquake strikes, there are still proactive measures you can take to better protect yourself, your family and your property. .
Flooding is an overflow of water into land that’s usually dry. In parts of Orange County, floods are quite common and likely to occur. There are 5 dams/reservoirs in close proximity, so large areas of the City are flood risks in the event of extensive dam failure. In Fullerton itself only one dam incident has occurred: the extensive winter rains in 2005 overfilled the Brea Dam and caused water to spill over its crest; luckily no lives were lost and only minor damage was done to city infrastructure. The Santa Ana River is another major flooding threat in Orange County, as in 1938 when the river flooded parts of Anaheim, Santa Ana, and Garden Grove. Multiple elements like population density, the construction of buildings, highways, driveways, and parking lots increase flash flood potential by reducing the amount of rain absorbed by the ground. Finally, streams through cities and towns are routed underground into storm drains which, sometimes during heavy rains, can become overwhelmed and flood roads and buildings. Because of the high probability of flooding in Orange County, it is important to be aware of certain flooding safety information and precautions. Remember: it only takes a two feet of rushing water to carry away most vehicles; it only takes six inches of moving water to know a person down; fast-moving water can sweep away bridges without warning; and flooded areas can be contaminated and electrically charged.