The scenes from LA are horrific and unimaginable. The terrifying fact is that given the right conditions this level of devastation can happen anywhere in California. A number of years back there was one of the first major wildfires in an urban area, the Oakland Hills Fire. At the time few would have been predicting a wildfire of that magnitude could have laid waste to such a large swath of a heavily populated area. Since that time we have seen other urban fires such as the one in Santa Rosa. Both of these fires were fast moving and sadly resulted in the loss of life.
Fire risk is ever-present on the minds of foothill and mountain residents. While effective work has been done to lessen the threat of a catastrophic fire, the dangers still exist. As communities continue to grow, especially in Wildland-Urban Interface (WUI) areas, they must assure that they are not compounding an already hazardous situation.
The Tahoe region has a perilous risk of having destructive fires like we are witnessing in LA. The area over the years has seen extensive growth that has pushed it beyond the ability of the infrastructure to confidently provide a safe exit during a major fire event. The Tahoe area has very limited and narrow access roadways, which makes it particularly vulnerable during a fast moving fire. Shelter in place is given as an alternative to evacuating when roadways are blocked or congested. Fire agencies give this as the last option because it holds the highest risk to public safety…