The Plumas County Fire Safe Council reports a review completed earlier this year by the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection identified 19 housing developments and subdivisions in Plumas County that may face evacuation challenges during a wildfire due to limited access routes.
The findings are part of California’s Subdivision Review Program, stemming from Assembly Bill 2911, a statewide effort to identify neighborhoods in high wildfire hazard areas where evacuation may be more difficult because of limited ingress and egress.
The public mapping tool allows users to view identified subdivision review areas alongside fire hazard severity zones, parcel information, jurisdictional boundaries and other wildfire-related data.
“When we talk about wildfire preparedness, we often focus on defensible space and home hardening,” said the council. “Those are critical actions, but they are only part of the equation. We also need to think about community access during an emergency.” For residents evacuating, emergency responders entering and communities navigating a fast-moving wildfire, limited access routes make advance planning and preparedness even more important.
The council points out that, for many communities, this map may raise questions such as:
- How would we evacuate?
- Are there opportunities to improve access?
- What can we do to be better prepared?
“Those are exactly the kinds of conversations that help strengthen community resilience before an emergency occurs,” said the council.
The Subdivision Review Program does not create solutions or require specific actions. Instead, it provides information that can help communities better understand local evacuation challenges and identify opportunities to improve preparedness.
Residents, Firewise communities, government agencies and local organizations can use this information to strengthen Firewise risk assessments and action plans, community wildfire protection plan updates, local planning and future mitigation efforts. The council encourages residents and organizations to:
- Review evacuation routes serving neighborhoods and communities.
- Identify vegetation concerns immediately along evacuation corridors that could affect emergency access.
- Improve evacuation planning and public communication.
- Identify vulnerable populations that may need additional assistance during an evacuation.
- Support larger fuels reduction and forest health projects that strengthen evacuation routes and community resilience.
“Every community is different, but every community benefits from understanding its evacuation challenges before an emergency happens,” said the council. “The map doesn’t provide the answers, but it can help communities ask the right questions.”
More information about the Plumas County Fire Safe Council is available at plumasfiresafe.org.
