California 2019 Wildfire Season

Maia Vadun, Reporter|December 22, 2019

Here+are+some+of+the+necessities+to+pack+up+in+the+event+of+an+evacuation.+By+keeping+a+bag+ready%2C+you+can+leave+your+house+quickly+in+case+of+evacuation.

Here are some of the necessities to pack up in the event of an evacuation. By keeping a bag ready, you can leave your house quickly in case of evacuation.

Ways to Prepare for Wildfire Season and Possible Evacuation:

-Have important family documents in an easy to grab place; social security cards, drivers licenses, passports, medical records, insurance information, and even family photos.

-Have a change of clothing for each family member

-Have personal hygiene items packed up like; toothbrush, toothpaste, shampoo, lotion, soap, deodorant, tissues, medication, and more

-Have any specific items for babies, pets, and elderly packed up

-Download apps like the “Alert SD” and “SD Emergency App” to stay updated 

Fire season happens every year in California and occurs from October to December. These months produce California’s deadliest and craziest wildfires that affect communities, businesses, and more. The 2019 wildfire season had 6,872 fire incidents. A majority of these fire incidents took place from August to November.

The amount of fires increase during this time due to the Santa Ana and Diablo winds. The Santa Ana winds are dry winds that go in a downslope direction affecting most of  Southern California. The Diablo winds are dry, North-Eastern winds.

This year, the fires were extremely harmful to the residents in California. The biggest fires took place in Ventura, San Bernardino, Sonoma County, Jurupa Valley, Simi Valley, Brentwood, and Los Angeles. 

So far, this wildfire season in CA, as estimated by Cal Fire and the US Forest Service, has burned 250,349 acres. This year, the Kinkade fire was the largest fire of the year, burning about 77,758 acres in Sonoma County.

Have you had to evacuate your home because of fires?

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Thankfully, There were no major fires in San Diego this fire season. However, due to the fires up north, the San Diego Gas and Electric company nearly had to turn off power to over 40,000 customers. Their plan was to reduce the chances of igniting a fire with electrical equipment.  

From 2012 to 2016, electricity was the second leading cause of home fires in the United States. In addition, in 2018, California’s deadliest wildfire was caused by transmission lines which belonged Pacific Gas and Electric. The fire killed 85 people and destroyed around 19,000 structures.

Junior, Annalise Peters, has family in Brentwood LA, who had to be evacuated from their home due to the Getty Fire. Luckily, her family and their home were safe from the dangerous conditions. 

“It was really scary. My family lives up North in Brentwood.” Peters said. “They had to evacuate but their house ended up being fine and so were they,” Peters said.

About four and a half years ago, the Poinsettia fire happened in Carlsbad. The fire started on May 14, 2014 and ended three days later on May 17. The Poinsettia fire burned a little over 600 acres, and to this day the cause of the fire is still unknown. 

“I was at Aviara Oaks Middle School when the Poinsettia fire was happening, luckily one of my friend’s moms picked me up.” Spineto said, “My family had to be evacuated so we grabbed all of our important belongings and stayed in a hotel in Del Mar for a couple of days.”