Last month, I spent a lot of time glued to the TV, websites and various social accounts as wildfires burned throughout the Los Angeles area. Talking with some of those who wrote or spoke on wildland-related topics in the past, the fire storm of January 2025 was predictable by some accounts, but several factors were out of the hands of firefighters.
Just days before the wildfires erupted, we posted a news story about a California fire department that was closing two fire stations during winter months to help to make up a budget deficit, in addition to some brownout efforts. The reporter wrote, “Both [fire stations] are in more forested areas of Oakland that fetch fewer emergency calls outside the peak wildfire months, fire officials said.”
After reading the story, it left me feeling uneasy, especially knowing from news reports that the weather on the West Coast was ripe for red flag warnings and that Oakland saw devastating fires in what would be named the 1991 Oakland Hills Firestorm that left two dozen dead and consumed nearly 3,500 homes, businesses and apartment structures. However, that fire occurred in October, which was the traditional fire season on the West Coast at the time.
As I was wrapping up this column, the Hughes Fire near Castaic, CA, was reported, and within two hours, it burned more than 5,000 acres, which resulted in the initial evacuation of nearly 19,000 people.
My cousin lived in that area, and when the Tick Fire burned up to a fence in their development, that’s when they decided that it was time to leave California. I remember the area well: beautiful views but with homes dotting the mountains and canyons, their rooftops appearing in every direction.
January’s weather wreaked havoc around the country. Blizzard-like snow conditions blanketed much of the Gulf of Mexico, and ice and snow paralyzed the Southeast Atlantic seaboard ports.
The identified and unknown stakeholders must come together to begin discussions on the next steps to help to prevent these sorts of losses in the future. Strategic partnerships with focused approaches must be outlined.
Building in the rural and rugged environment must be assessed, and the concept of defensible space must be brought to the forefront, as evidenced by the few homes that survived the Palisades and Eaton Fires, which were dubbed “miracle homes.” The use of noncombustible materials must be reconsidered. Although both methods have additional costs, the long-term gain likely will prove financially advantageous, not to mention the ability to save families’ cherished possessions. Fire codes must be reassessed, and the groups that are responsible for that reassessment must examine what’s best for communities moving forward. With fire prevention and community outreach budgets being cut seemingly annually, now’s the time to strike up those conversations while the iron (or embers) is still hot.
The loss of many homes and businesses means an impact on tax revenue for many locales, but those losses can’t stop these conversations from happening. There could be a no- or low-cost partnership in your fire district that can lend a hand.
Assistance from technology
Amid the destruction, there’s promise in the form of technological advancements that can provide innovative strategies—from fire detection to suppression—that can be explored. There are tech-driven tools out there that can provide early warning intelligence or can help to identify and gather resources as the human responders in suppression move into the incident area.
Just days before the 2025 Firestorm, Orange County, CA, announced that an AI-powered lookout camera spotted an overnight vegetation fire in December before any humans reported it.
Exploring AI-powered tools, unmanned aircraft and other devices to expedite resource delivery (possibly even despite high winds), mapping for traffic jams and water supplies can help crews to get an upper hand in some scenarios.
Finally, a tip of the helmet to all who worked the coast-to-coast incidents in January—with hope that the discussions have begun on prevention and mitigation while it’s fresh on the minds of everyone.
Peter Matthews | Editor-in-Chief/Conference Director
Peter Matthews is the conference director and editor-in-chief of Firehouse. He has worked at Firehouse since 1999, serving in various roles on both Firehouse Magazine and Firehouse.com staffs. He completed an internship with the Rochester, NY, Fire Department and served with fire departments in Rush, NY, and Laurel, MD, and was a lieutenant with the Glenwood Fire Company in Glenwood, NY. Matthews served as photographer for the St. Paul, MN, Fire Department.
