L.A. Fire Season for 2023
Southern California Should Expect Fires
It seems like Los Angeles is barely getting out of a very wet winter yet it is the end of June. The unusual rainy weather did not stop fire season 2023 from making an appearance. In this blog, we will take a look at some of the predictions the fire department has for us and what we can do to stay safe.
According to the Los Angeles Times, California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection chief Joe Tyler says that the soggy winter we had merely delayed the start of the fire season for southern California. “The abundant rain has produced tall grass and other vegetation that’s dried out already and is ready to burn,” Tyler said. Additionally, portions of the state are expected to soar into the triple digits this weekend, including up to 110 degrees in the Sacramento Valley.
The fact is, there have already been numerous small wildfires in Riverside County and it is not stopping there. “As the Fourth of July is quickly approaching us, I’m asking each of you to be mindful of how quickly a fire can have devastating consequences,” Tyler said.
Climate Change in California
California Governor Gavin Newsom agrees. He has acknowledged that vegetation management plays a key role in reducing the state’s wildfires, which are getting hotter, faster, and more frequent than ever. But Newsom also said climate change — including worsening whiplash between extreme weather conditions — has accelerated the need for advanced firefighting response.
“In the last four years, we had two of the most extreme wildfires seasons — some of the most destructive in terms of acreage and property and lives lost — and then two of the more modest fire seasons,” Newsom said. “And so we live in this new reality where we can’t necessarily attach ourselves to some of the more predictive models of the past because of the nature of a world that’s getting a lot hotter, a lot drier, and a lot more uncertain as it relates to the issue of climate change.”
New Strategies
The good news is the golden state has a plan that is hopeful. New technology is rolling out just in time for this summer's scorching days. Among the state’s latest tools is the Fire Integrated Real-Time Intelligence System, or FIRIS, which includes advanced aircraft that can deliver real-time updates on fire behavior to crews on the ground."Black Hawk" helicopters are a main tool firefighters are using to beat the flames. "The transition from fire suppression to hoist-air rescue to vegetation management is seamless," according to Benjamin Berman, chief pilot of Cal Fire’s helicopter program.
Another tool the state is using is mountaintop cameras. The state’s firefighting portfolio now has about 1,000 mountaintop cameras that can provide real-time, 360-degree monitoring of the state’s forestlands; pinpoint firestarters using artificial intelligence; and help organize resources for early suppression.
