DEADLY WILDFIRE EXPERIENCE IN SOUTHERN

CALIFORNIAJuly 17, 2015

Walter Hays, Global Alliance for Walter Hays, Global Alliance for

Disaster Reduction, Vienna, Disaster Reduction, Vienna, Virginia, USA Virginia, USA 

Natural Phenomena that Cause Disasters

Planet Earth’s atmospheric-lithospheric interactions cause:

• WILDFIRESWildfires

WILDFIRES are conflagrations caused by

lightning discharges (or acts of man) in wilderness areas close enough to one or more urban interfaces that they threaten

people, property, infrastructure, and business enterprise.

THE WILDERNESS AREAS typically contain national forests, national parks, or resorts and the adjacent urban areas typically contain large, expensive homes.

SCIENCE OF WILDFIRES

LOCATIONS OF MAJOR WILDFIRES

• Four locations: 1) Australia, 2) California, 3) Europe, and 4) Yellowstone Park (USA), have wilderness-urban interfaces that have been repeatedly impacted over the years by wildfires.

JULY 17TH 2015 WILDFIRE IN CALIFORNIA

THE JULY 17TH WILDFIRE EXPERIENCE WAS NOTABLE

BECAUSE IT JUMPED INTERSTATE 15 AND TRAPPED

HUNDREDS OF CARS AND TRUCKS BETWEEN LOS

ANGELES AND LAS VEGAS

THE JULY 17th WILDFIRE IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA

CREDIT THE ASSOCOATED PRESS FOR THE PHOTOGRAPHS, WHICH

ARE USED SOLELY FOR EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES WITH NO

FINANCIAL GAIN

JULY 17TH 2015 WILDFIRE

JULY 17TH 2015 WILDFIRE

JULY 17TH 2015 WILDFIRE

JULY 17TH 2015 WILDFIRE

JULY 17TH 2015 WILDFIRE

JULY 17TH 2015 WILDFIRE

JULY 17TH 2015 WILDFIRE

JULY 17TH 2015 WILDFIRE

JULY 17TH 2015 WILDFIRE

JULY 17TH 2015 WILDFIRE

PLANET EARTH HAS THOUSANDS OF “WILDFIRE

LABORATORIES”

EACH WILDFIRE PROVIDES VALUABLE LESSONS ON

DISASTER RISK REDUCTION

WILDFIRES CAN CAUSE HIGH-RISK SITUATIONS

Any wildfire can be devastating to people, property, infrastructure, business enterprise, and the environment.

WILDFIRE HAZARDS (AKA POTENTIAL DISASTER AGENTS)

• SUNDOWNER WINDS• SANTA ANNA WINDS• LOCAL CHANGES IN AIR

QUALITY• LOCAL CHANGES IN

WEATHER

WILDFIRE HAZARDS

WILDFIRE HAZARDS (AKA POTENTIAL DISASTER AGENTS)

• FIRE • HOT GASES AND SMOKE • HOT SPOTS• BURNED OUT SLOPES (with

increased susceptibility to insect infestation, erosion, and landslides)

DISASTER RISK ASSESSMENT FOR WILDFIRES

TWO EXAMPLES OF THE BASIC CONCEPTS:

CALIFORNIA AND AUSTRALIA

HAZARDSHAZARDS

ELEMENTS OF RISKELEMENTS OF RISK

EXPOSUREEXPOSURE

VULNERABILITYVULNERABILITY LOCATIONLOCATION

RISKRISK

LIGHTNING STRIKES

WILDFIRES

MANMADE FIRES

PROXIMITY OF URBAN AREA TO THE WILDLAND FIRE

WIND SPEED AND DIRECTION (DAY/NIGHT)

DRYNESS

HIGH TEMPERATURES

LOCAL FUEL SUPPLY

CAUSES OF DAMAGE

DISASTER LABORATORIES

COMMUNITYCOMMUNITYDATA BASES DATA BASES AND INFORMATIONAND INFORMATION

HAZARDS: GROUND SHAKING GROUND FAILURE SURFACE FAULTING TECTONIC DEFORMATION TSUNAMI RUN UP AFTERSHOCKS

•HAZARD MAPS•INVENTORY•VULNERABILITY•LOCATION

RISK ASSESSMENTRISK ASSESSMENT

RISK

ACCEPTABLE RISK

UNACCEPTABLE RISK

WILDFIRE DISASTER RISK WILDFIRE DISASTER RISK REDUCTIONREDUCTION

•PREVENTION/MITIGATION•PREPAREDNESS•EMERGENCY RESPONSE•RECOVERY and RECONSTRUCTION

POLICY OPTIONSPOLICY OPTIONS

EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES

EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES FOR WILDFIRES

• FORECASTS OF WEATHER CONDITIONS

• MONITORING TECHNOLOGIES (E.G., REMOTE SENSING, TEMPER-ATURE, HUMIDITY, WINDS)

• WARNING SYSTEMS

• DATABASES FOR EACH WILDFIRE

• COMPUTER MODELS OF WILDFIRES

• MAPS; ZONING • DISASTER

SCENARIOS• HAZARD

ASSESSMENTS • RISK ASSESSMENTS

THE PEOPLE ABANDONED THEIR CARS, CAMPERS, AND

TRUCKS AND FLED FOR THEIR LIVES