{"id":1515,"date":"2026-06-08T11:07:28","date_gmt":"2026-06-08T11:07:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=1515"},"modified":"2026-06-08T11:07:28","modified_gmt":"2026-06-08T11:07:28","slug":"when-evacuation-fails-should-wildfire-communities-have-a-backup-refuge","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=1515","title":{"rendered":"When evacuation fails, should wildfire communities have a backup refuge?"},"content":{"rendered":"
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As wildfire researchers warn that some communities do not have enough roads to evacuate safely, they are also raising a fraught question: Should fire-risk neighborhoods have designated refuge areas for people who cannot get out?<\/p>\n

Read more Dear Abby: Who should tell our friend that his wife is not allowed on our cruise?<\/a><\/p>\n

A new study that found wildfire deaths in California and across the U.S. between 2008 and 2024 were concentrated in communities with few exit routes also contains a controversial recommendation to set up refuge areas in fire-risk communities to serve as \u201cpreplanned shelter-in-place options\u201d that could \u201cenhance survival when evacuation fails.\u201d<\/p>\n

The researchers from UC Santa Barbara pointed to the 2018 Camp Fire in Paradise east of Chico. While some fleeing residents died in vehicles stuck in traffic, hundreds of people rode out the blaze in parking lots and other areas they found on their own or were directed to by first responders.<\/p>\n

But the report\u2019s suggested investment in shelter-in-place refuges is \u201cone of the great controversial issues\u201d in wildfire response, UC Berkeley fire scientist Michael Gollner said.<\/p>\n

A last-ditch survival option could save people trapped by flames, Gollner said, but it could also deter residents from evacuating early, putting them and firefighters at greater risk.<\/p>\n

Seth Schalet, CEO of the Santa Clara County FireSafe Council, would like to see designated temporary refuges included in wildfire response plans by counties and local governments so they can \u201ccommunicate to people that in a last-resort situation, here\u2019s where you need to go.\u201d<\/p>\n

Public outreach and education would be needed to ensure residents do not delay evacuation because they believe they can rely on a refuge, Schalet said.<\/p>\n

Local and regional fire chiefs are aware of locations that could serve as refuges for people unable to evacuate, but publicly designating such sites as shelter-in-place options is problematic, said Chelsea Burkett, spokesperson for Cal Fire\u2019s Santa Clara County Unit.<\/p>\n

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\u201cIf we\u2019re giving an evacuation order or a warning that\u2019s us saying, \u2018This is the time to start moving,’\u201d Burkett said. \u201cWe would rather people adhere to those warnings and those orders that are given rather than having to use those temporary refuge areas.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Gollner said refuges could save lives in some situations, but would need to be identified in advance by local emergency managers charged with wildfire response, who would decide when to use them. Such sites would need to be staffed by first responders, which could divert firefighters and equipment from the battle against a blaze, Gollner added.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt can quickly turn into a tragedy if not well thought out,\u201d Gollner said.<\/p>\n

Michael Wara, senior research scholar at Stanford University\u2019s Woods Institute for the Environment, said the many older adults living in Bay Area communities at risk of burning could have trouble escaping a wildfire in time.<\/p>\n

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\u201cMy favorite neighbors are also most likely to die in a fire,\u201d said Wara, who lives in Mill Valley. \u201cIt would make sense to have a temporary refuge.\u201d<\/p>\n

Any outdoor shelter site must be fire resistant and offer protection from heat as well as flame, Wara said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe heat from these fires can be enough to kill people,\u201d Wara said. \u201cPeople\u2019s lungs get burned and then they suffocate.\u201d<\/p>\n

In fast-moving wildfires, the most dangerous conditions can pass through a community relatively quickly, Wara said. He said public agencies could consider using money to fire-harden a small number of homes or buildings that could serve as last-resort community refuges.<\/p>\n

Still, Wara said, \u201cI totally hear Cal Fire\u2019s perspective. They want people to get out of there.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more Asking Eric: He dropped his Marines plan but kept the money from the party. Seriously?<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

While providing a last-ditch survival option for people trapped amid a wildfire provides an obvious benefit, refuges could also deter people from evacuating.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1514,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1515","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\nWhen evacuation fails, should wildfire communities have a backup refuge? - Next City Digest<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/nextcitydigest.com\/?p=1515\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"When evacuation fails, should wildfire communities have a backup refuge? 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