New Wildfire Index Measures Community Resilience Across California

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. KEYT- The 2017 Thomas Fire showed Santa Barbara County how devastating wildfire can be.

“The Thomas fire was a huge wake up call about how profoundly different wildfires are today than they used to be," said director Ben Halpern of the National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis.

Now a new index is measuring how prepared communities may be to recover.

“I really think it puts a powerful tool in the hands of decision makers, and community members to make decisions that will improve the resilience of wildfires. That’s an inevitable thing in our landscapes every year," said Halpern.

UCSB Researchers of the National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis looked at nearly 100 factors including water, roads, housing and habitat.

“One of the things we found in Southern California in Santa Barbara specifically is that our recovery potential was higher than our resistance community is suffering more damage than what might be necessary," said researcher Cat Fong of the National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis.

The tool lets users search different communities and see where they appear stronger or more vulnerable.

It does not predict where the next fire will happen, but it shows where weaknesses could make recovery more difficult.

"It's so visual so easy to access and gives people information and tools they need now," said Halpern.

Those weak spots could become the focus before the next major wildfire puts a community to the test.

For more information on the wildfire index, visit: http://www.wildfireindex.org.