Education and Prevention
The saying goes, its not a matter of if but when.
Fire will come to the Hollywood Hills. How we survive it will be determined by what we do now to prepare for it.
Wildfire
wild·fire
/ˈwīl(d)ˌfī(ə)r/
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a large, destructive fire that spreads quickly over woodland or brush.
Climate
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Los Angeles is characterized by a Mediterranean climate, with winters that are mild and wet and summers that are hot and dry. Because the majority of annual precipitation occurs between November and April, wildfires are an inherent and recurring aspect of the region’s natural ecosystem.
Historical Practices
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Native California tribes such as the Chumash, Tataviam, and Karuk used seasonal burning as a sustainable form of land management. These carefully timed burns not only provided food and materials but also reduced the risk of large, catastrophic wildfires, making fire an integral part of cultural and ecological stewardship.
Cultural Burning Reduced Catastrophic Fires
Through the regular clearing of brush and dead fuels, Native Californians prevented the accumulation of dense vegetation that could otherwise feed destructive wildfires.
This practice also created a patchwork of forests and meadows, habitats that supported healthy populations of animals such as elk. Cultural burns further encouraged the growth of fire-adapted plants—native grasses, oak trees, and essential basket-making materials like willow—all of which thrived in fire-maintained ecosystems.
A Change in Forest Management
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When European settlers arrived, they viewed these cultural practices as a threat to cattle interests. Indigenous burning traditions were suppressed and replaced with fire suppresion policies. In place of stewardship, unchecked fuel accumulation began to dominate California’s landscapes.
Development and Urbanization
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As California grew, development pushed deeper into wildland areas. Homes and infrastructure were built within fire-prone landscapes, increasing both the exposure and vulnerability of communities to wildfire.
Understanding fire types and how they spread.
Ecology and Fire Behavior
Types of fire
Ground Fire
Behavior:These fires burn underground in layers of peat or other organic matter, often smoldering without flames and producing little smoke.
Fuel:The fuel consists of decayed roots and the duff layer, which is a thick layer of compacted dead plant materials on the forest floor.
Challenges:Ground fires are difficult to extinguish and can remain hidden, potentially smoldering for a long time and re-igniting.
Surface Fire
Behavior: These are the most common type of wildfire, characterized by flames that move along the forest floor.
Fuel: They consume loose surface fuels such as grass, dead leaves, moss, and small shrubs.
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Intensity:
Surface fires can vary from low to high intensity and spread quickly with high flames.
Crown FIre
Behavior:These are the most dangerous and intense type of wildfire, where the fire spreads into the upper canopy of the forest.
Fuel:They rely on "ladder fuels"—vegetation like shrubs and small trees—to transition from a surface fire to the tree crowns.
Dangers:Crown fires spread rapidly with the wind, pose a significant threat to structures, and are the most destructive type of wildfire.
Of the 6 major terrestrial ecosystems of California, fire finds its home mainly in the Forest, Grassland and Shrubland Ecosystems.
Forest ecosystem
Dominated by trees with extensive tree canopies and rich soil, forest ecosystems in California are primarily located along the state's northern coast (redwood and mixed evergreen forests), in the Sierra Nevada mountains (montane forests with conifers), and in the Klamath Mountains (Klamath-Siskiyou forests) in the north. Additionally, oak woodlands are found on the foothills of the Sierra Nevada, the Tehachapi Mountains, and the western Coast Ranges.
Shrubland ecosystem
Shrubland ecosystems in California, including chaparral and coastal sage scrub, are primarily located in the state's Southern California region and extend into the Central Coast. They occupy the low-elevation coastal areas and foothills of mountain ranges like the Coast Ranges, Transverse Ranges, and Peninsular Ranges, with some areas of inland chaparral and woodlands extending around the Central Valley.
Chaparral is a resilient shrubland ecosystem found in Los Angeles. Characterized by dense, drought-tolerant shrubs with hard, leathery leaves adapted to hot, dry summers and cool, wet winters. Fire is a critical natural process in chaparral, with many plants relying on it for seed germination and resprouting. This dynamic ecosystem provides slope stabilization, watershed protection, and vital habitat for diverse plant and animal species, despite its vulnerability to human-caused fires and climate change.
California's chaparral ecosystem is naturally adapted to high-intensity, stand-replacement crown fires that consume nearly all above-ground vegetation at moderate intervals, historically ranging from 30 to 150 years. These fires are crucial for chaparral's survival, triggering seed germination and promoting vegetative resprouting
Because of our chapparal ecosystem, surface fires fueld by low lying brush(Brush Fire) is the main type of wildland fire that occurs in Los Angeles County. Burning low-lying vegetation, including grasses, shrubs, and other dry, low-lying plants, a brush fire is a broad category of fire that falls under the umbrella term "wildfire" and is distinguished from fires that burn in dense forests. Brush fires are often characterized by their quick spread and the specific type of vegetation they consume, such as the low, dry fuel found in many open areas and near human settlements.
Key characteristics of a brush fire:
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Vegetation: Primarily involves low-lying plants like shrubs, grasses, and other brush.
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Type: A type of wildfire, which is an uncontrolled fire in an area of combustible vegetation.
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Spread: Can spread quickly due to dry conditions and the nature of its fuels.
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Location: Commonly found in open areas and places with abundant low-lying vegetation, and often in proximity to human settlements.
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Causes: Often started by human activity, such as discarded cigarettes, equipment sparks, or campfires.
How a fire grows
Once ignition takes place, how does a fire grow?
Fuel Driven Fire
is a fire where it's spread is dictated by the abundance, type, and condition of combustible material (the fuel).
The 2014 King Fire in El Dorado County, California was a fuel driven fire that burned 97,717 acres primarily in the Eldorado National Forest. The King fire was different from other fires in three unique ways.
1. Fire-induced winds: The primary driver of the fire's rapid spread was pyroconvection, a phenomenon where the fire's intense heat creates its own localized, powerful winds.
2. Self-reinforcing internal dynamics: Researchers found that these fire-induced winds equaled or exceeded ambient winds, effectively drawing the fire up canyons and across the landscape. This meant the fire was generating the atmospheric conditions that fueled its own growth, pointing to "self-reinforcing internal dynamics" rather than just external factors.
3. Challenging models: The fire's behavior was so extreme and dynamic that standard kinematic fire models, which don't account for these fire-induced winds, underestimated its potential size and growth.
Wind Driven Fire
is a fire whose rapid spread and behavior are primarily controlled by wind, which provides oxygen, preheats and dries fuel, and carries embers, making the fire unpredictable and dangerous.
A wind driven fire can be characterized by winds as low as 10-20mph or in excess of 80mph.
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While wind always affects fire, wind driven fires are characterized by wind as the dominant force as opposed to fuel.​ The most destructive fires in Los Angeles County have been wind driven brush fires.
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The 2017 Tubbs Fire was one of California's most destructive wind driven wildfires. Tearing through a mix of chaparral, grassland and oak woodlands, the fire burned over 36,000 acres and destroyed over 5,600 structures in Sonoma and Napa counties. The fire lead to 22 civilian fatalities. Fueled by strong winds and embers, the fire started at 9:43pm on October 8, 2017, near Calistoga, rapidly spreading at the rate of one football field every second into Santa Rosa and wiping out entire neighborhoods, such as the Coffee Park area, before fire officials were able to establish a base of operations.
Impact and Aftermath
The Tubbs Fire was the most destructive wildfires in California at the time. High winds, reaching 60 to 100 mph, were a major factor, allowing embers to spread rapidly and cause widespread destruction. Many residents were forced to evacuate their homes without warning in the overnight hours, sometimes escaping with just the shirts on their backs and some losing everything they owned. The fire has served as a difficult lesson for communities and homeowners regarding fire preparedness and risk mitigation.
Urban Conflagration
An Urban Conflagration is a widespread, destructive fire that spreads rapidly from structure to structure within a community, often starting with a wildfire.
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The Palisades and Eaton Fires were both examples of an Urban Conflagration
Understanding the Threat
How fire threatens your neighborhood.
​A Modern Wildfire Crisis
Climate Change
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Urbanization and the human encroachment into wildland areas.
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Decades of poor fuel management by property owners and municipalities resulting in massive fuel overgrowth or fuel mismanagement.
How urbanization has contributed to more extreme fire events
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The development and urbanization of California took place from the late 18th century, accelerating during the 1849 Gold Rush and exploding into a massive suburban expansion after World War II and is ongoing today. As homes and infrastructure were built, the cities and neighborhoods pushed further into the wildland areas. A greater vulnerability to wildfire was created. Coupled with climate change, and crowded cities, Angeleno's are now the inheritors of this wildfire crisis.
Land Management and it's role in extreme fire events
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Wildfire suppression has been the dominant strategy in fire management since before 1850. A century and a half of fuel growth coupled with industrial logging practices has changed the landscape of California. The destruction of old growth forests, making way for tree plantations has not only added to our carbon output as human beings, but has replaced old, fire adapted growth with young, densly planted forests that have become a river of fuel for modern wildfires. Without space in between plantings, fire grows faster and more intense making it impossible to manage a fire event at scale.
WUI (woo-ee) Wildland Urban Interface
A Need to re-think how our homes exist within the WUI or VHFHSZ
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Angeleanos have spent the better part of a century turning our chaparral ecosystem into a densly wooded urban landscape, bringing in non-native tree species, beautiful to behold, but a danger in an ecosystem where fire is a natural occurrence. In order for us to come to terms with how we live with these new fire events, we must reconcile how we have put ourselves in harm's way by moving into the wildland and planting whatever we feel like planting. Mother nature will restore balance despite our arrogance. We have the choice now to change how that happens.
Modern Municipalities and efforts to address with the issue
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Humans have increasingly encroached upon wildlands, leading to a steady rise in the frequency of brush fires. Entire homes and neighborhoods have been destroyed and rebuilt in their wake. In response to this growing crisis, fire authorities and insurance agencies have stepped in, working to define the scope of the problem and identify the communities most at risk.
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The concept of "Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone" was established in California state law, with the term originating in 1996 with the passage of Assembly Bill 337, also known as the Bates Bill, which authorized the creation of these zones statewide to identify areas with high wildfire risk. This bill was created to address destructive wildfires by establishing specific, science-based fire safety measures, including defensible space and building codes. The first official maps designating these zones were adopted in 1996.
The Wildland Urban Interface (woo-eee)/ Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone
VHFHSZ
A designated geographic area where vegetation, terrain, weather conditions, and the density of structures create an elevated potential for destructive wildfire
The Wildland-Urban Interface (WUI) is the area where human development, such as homes and businesses, intermingles with undeveloped natural vegetation, including forests and grasslands. This overlap creates a unique set of environmental conflicts, particularly the heightened risk of wildfires that destroy property, threaten lives, and fragment habitats
VHFHSZ in California
In total, more than 2.7 million people live in "very high fire hazard severity zones", which also include areas at lesser risk.
On lands under CAL FIRE's jurisdictional protection (i.e. not federal or local responsibility areas), the majority of wildfire ignitions since 1980 have been caused by humans. The four most common ignition sources for wildfires on CAL FIRE-protected lands are, in order: equipment use, powerlines, arson, and lightning.
VHFHSZ in Los Angeles
Griffith Park ,Beachwood Canyon, The Knolls, The Oaks, Hollywoodland, The Dell, The Manor, Lake Hollywood Estates, All of these neighborhoods are located inside of a Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone(VHFHSZ) as designated by the LAFD. As you can see from the map below, our neighborhoods are on the front line of the Modern Wildfire Crisis.
LAFD VHFHSZ Designation in Red
Life inside a VHFHSZ
Many of us have chosen our homes in the hills and wildlands of Los Angeles for their unique architecture, spectacular views, proximity to nature, seclusion, and also for their convenience to the city. As much as we enjoy our homes and neighborhoods, we have a responsibility to our neighbors and the surrounding landscape to be good stewards of our homes and property through effective fuel management and home hardening.
As August and September approach each year, we all feel the heat of summer taking its toll. The hotter the summer, the higher the temperatures, the drier the fuel becomes. As Santa Ana Winds start up in late September, we need to have our brush clearance and home hardening projects finished up. Now, we switch to Emergency preparedness mode and we keep an eye out for the conditions where ignition can happen and fire can quickly grow.
When to be alert
Time of Year
As September Rolls around, keep an eye out for these trends. The more prepared you are, the better chance you have if fire breaks out near your neighborhood.
Weather Conditions
Has your area had an extended period of temperatures above 95 degrees? When this happens, humidity drops and the vegetation near your property dries out making it the perfect fuel for fast growing wildfire.
When is the last time substantial rain has fallen? The longer the period of dryness, the higher chance of wildfire.
Seasonal Shifts
A Potential for Wind - For those of us in Los Angeles, the windy season mostly comes in the fall. Late September through January or February. Wind Driven fire is the most unpredictable and the most difficult for firefighters to suppress.
Watch the weather and if sustained winds go above 20mph, it's time to be alert and monitor wind direction and activity from your local fire services.
Red Flag Days are issued when weather conditions are such that the potential for a fast-moving brush fire is extremely high. Every year Los Angeles has 4-12 red flag days that are declared. These are the days to be most alert to the possibility of fast moving wildfire. Watch your local weather and fire services. When you see these days being declared, make sure your last minute preparations are complete. Make sure your leaf litter is removed from around your house. Any furniture, plants, etc. that are against your house, move to 5 feet or beyond the perimeter of your home. Have your go-bag ready. Make sure your family is aware of your family's emergency plans.
Seasonal Shifts and Weather Conditions
Santa Ana Winds are hot, dry, and strong northeasterly winds that blow from the inland deserts of the southwestern U.S. down the mountain slopes of Southern California toward the Pacific Ocean. Named for Santa Ana Canyon, they are a significant factor in California's wildfire season, increasing fire risk by drying out vegetation and causing destructive, fast-spreading blazes. These events occur most frequently from September to May, peaking in the winter months of December and January, and bring both warm temperatures and low humidity to the region.
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The January 2025 Fires - A Study in Prediction
The Palisades Fire was a highly destructive wildfire that began burning in the Santa Monica Mountains of Los Angeles County on January 7, 2025, and grew to destroy large areas of Pacific Palisades, Topanga, and Malibu before it was fully contained on January 31, after 24 days. One of a series of wildfires in Southern California driven by powerful Santa Ana winds, it burned 23,448 acres, killed 12 people, and destroyed 6,837 structures, making it the tenth-deadliest and third-most destructive California wildfire on record and the most destructive to occur in the history of the city of Los Angeles
The Eaton Fire, previously called the Close Fire, was a highly destructive wildfire in Los Angeles County, in Southern California. The fire began on the evening of January 7, 2025, in Eaton Canyon in the San Gabriel Mountains, and a powerful Santa Ana wind event drove the fire into foothill communities, particularly Altadena. The fire killed at least 19 people and destroyed more than 9,000 buildings, becoming the fifth deadliest and the second most destructive wildfire in California history. The cause of the fire is under investigation; news reports and lawsuits have focused on the possible involvement of high tension power lines operated by electrical utility Southern California Edison. The fire was fully contained on January 31 after burning for 24 days.
The Eaton Fire was one of eight major wildfires in Southern California in January 2025, and burned simultaneously with the deadly and destructive Palisades Fire in the Santa Monica Mountains.
Before the Palisades and Eaton fires ignited in January 2025, the National Weather Service issued warnings of an extreme katabatic windstorm—commonly known as Santa Ana winds—across Los Angeles and surrounding areas. Forecasts predicted damaging gusts of 60–80 mph, with some mountain regions potentially exceeding 90 mph. These winds were expected to be exceptionally dry, creating “extreme fire danger” and the potential for explosive fire growth. This came after a record-breaking stretch of little to no precipitation, compounded by several prior years of unchecked vegetation growth fueled by wetter seasons.
The January 2025 Fires - After Action Review
After extensive studying, agencies did a thorough review of systematic weaknesses and came to the following conclusions.
Impact Overview
• 37,000 acres burned across Los Angeles County
• 16,000+ structures destroyed
• 31 lives lost (12 Palisades, 19 Eaton)
• Nearly 250,000 residents under evacuation warnings or orders
• Estimated $28B–$53.8B in property damage; up to $9B long-term economic impact
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Systemic Weaknesses
• Outdated & conflicting policies on who can issue evacuation orders
• Inconsistent messaging — some residents got late or no alerts
• Staffing shortages & aging equipment magnified by event scale
• Situational awareness gaps (power outages, grounded aircraft)
• Fragmented public communication reduced clarity & trust
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5 Critical Focus Areas & Priority Actions
Policies & Authority Clarify evacuation authority; update SOPs & messaging roles
Training & Planning Cross-agency wildfire evacuation training; surge staffing models
Resource Management Modern equipment; sustainable funding; maintain strike teams
Situational Awareness Modern shared tracking tools; redundant comms & power
Community Engagement Unified public info strategy; multi-channel alerts; local partnerships
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Community Lessons
• Pre-season education saves lives — prepared communities respond faster
• Power outages cripple alerts — backup systems and local networks matter
Recommended Documentaries, Youtube Series, Vodcasts and Podcasts
There is a lot to learn from past fires. Thes are some of the best content available in order to do so.
PBS takes a deep dive on what happened with the Palisades and Eaton Firestorms of 2025. They outline the weather patterns of the 20th century and a possible reason for the increase in wildfires.
A fantastic visual assessment of the challenges we face when it comes to Wildfire in Los Angeles specifically. These guys are fantastic at pointing out how we can re-imagine our communities to survive in fire. They highligh why Southern California is different than Northern Calfiornia because of its Chaparral ecosystem.
This documentary covers The Camp Fire and the Woolsey Fire. It shows how people react to policy and building code changes after a fire. It talks about prescribed burning and how we, as Californians have mismanaged the wildland. It shows some very emotional scenes where we can hear residents of Paradise who are stuck in their homes when their homes burned.
This documentary will put you in the survivor's seat, allowing you to experience what it was like to evacuate Paradise, California, during the Camp Fire. It could change the way you think about how much time you have to evacuate during an emergency.
Paired with the Documentary Fire in Paradise, this podcast does an excellent job at filling in the gaps the documentary may have left. An excellent listen when you are doing other things.
Produced by our local station LAist, this is a comprehensive podcast that talks about wildfire from all angles. It goes through history and our past relationship with forest management.
Prevention
Now that you have a bank of knowledge under your belt, what do you do? Feeling overwhelmed? Don't worry! There are things that you can do now. Little by little, we can all work towards communities that are safer during fire events.
What can you do to help your neighborhood survive a wildfire?
1. Manage the fuels on your property
2. Harden your home
3. Help educate your neighbors
4. Make sure your neighborhood infrastructure is adequate for wildfire safety
5. Be prepared when a Wildfire happens
Let's get into the details.