NBC: California Wildfire Reality: New Alert Systems and Forest Management Key as Climate Change Continues

Fire and embers blow around a burnt utility truck during the Kincade fire in Healdsburg, California on October 27, 2019. - Powerful winds were fanning wildfires in northern California in "potentially historic fire" conditions, authorities said October 27, as tens of thousands of people were ordered to evacuate and sweeping power cuts began in the US state. (Photo by Josh Edelson / AFP) (Photo by JOSH EDELSON/AFP via Getty Images)

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California is no stranger to wildfires, seeing many in 2019 with some even leading to weeks of power outages. In response, Operation Sierra Storm at South Lake Tahoe called a meeting with leaders of Cal Fire’s new Wildfire Resilience Program, PG&E and the National Weather Service to discuss what to expect in 2020. The Cal Fire Chief identified that the major wildfires have burned, in part, because of drier weather patterns and that the fire season has been extended over 78 days in recent years. They further discussed that an estimated 150 million dead trees form an area newly susceptible to disease and insects after the recent fire season. Cal Fire suggests that homes in high risk areas should be built to new codes that outline “home hardening,” such as prohibiting single pane windows that are more likely to break in high heat. PG&E shared that they are implementing microgrids that allow for a more targeted approach to shutting off power with lower impact over large areas. This is in response to a call for increased management of energized lines that run through increasingly active wildfire areas.

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