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Monterey County Impacts to Date from the Soberanes Fire Information Assembled by Monterey County Staff As of 9/20/2016

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Monterey County Impacts to Date from the Soberanes Fire Information Assembled by Monterey County Staff As of 9/20/2016 Monterey County Impacts to Date from the Soberanes Fire Information assembled by Monterey County staff as of 9/20/2016 The Soberanes Fire is now the costliest fire in U.S. history, $206,000 million as of September 20, 2016. And since this fire continues to burn, it is accruing firefighting costs of approximately $2 million per day. In terms of size, it is among the top 20 largest fires in California’s history, although it has not exceeded the size of the Basin Complex Fire yet. Here are statistics as of September 20, 2016: 121,050 total acres burned 37,194 Acres on CDF -San Benito- Monterey Unit (CA-BEU) 83,856 Acres on Los Padres National Forest (CA-LPF) Due to its size and the efforts that have been required to fight this fire, the Soberanes fire has had major impacts on Monterey County’s government, residents and economy. Here is key information about some of the major impacts to date. Emergency response Costs have exceeded $1 million in public safety response to support the firefighting efforts. This includes work by Monterey County Sheriff’s Office, Public Works, Health Department (Public Health) and Emergency Operations Center operations. Public Infrastructure Damage to public infrastructure from the fire could exceed $5 million. Damage includes roads impacted by heavy firefighting equipment, burned bridges, fences and buildings to regional park facilities. The county’s rain gauge ALERT system may have been severely impacted with as many as 10 stations burned or damaged beyond repair. The ALERT system is used for winter storm monitoring that is critical to warning communities now at risk for post-fire flooding and debris flows. Residential Damage 62 homes were destroyed and many displaced residents were either under insured or not insured and as a result have no financial remuneration to rebuild. Home businesses were impacted although no statistics are available yet. Private water systems were also damaged or destroyed which resulted in loss of clean potable water for affected residents. Phone systems have yet to be reinstalled throughout the burned communities. Economic impact There are estimates of a 40% loss of revenue for the 2016 summer season. The fire erupted at the height of the summer tourism season, resulting in significant loss of income, jobs and tax revenue for the greater Carmel and Big Sur region. These communities have been under various evacuation warnings or orders since the start of the fire. These evacuation orders necessitated the closure of lodging, restaurants, and Hwy 1 due to fire threats. Air quality also had an impact on tourism, with visitors avoiding the area due to smoke. For locals, unhealthy air quality resulted in increased visits to clinics and hospitals. The fire had an impact of the sales of homes in Carmel Highlands, Cachuagua, Tassajara, Palo Colorado, and Big Sur. The southern portion of Arroyo Seco area may see these impacts as the fire continues to move southward. Another fire consequence, homeowners are also reporting the inability to obtain home fire insurance due to the increase risk. Local insurance agents report that due to the recent fire, compounded by the 4-year drought, they are seeing a drop in some renewal policies, and that it is difficult to get fire insurance in some areas of the county. Recovery Work on recovery from the Soberanes fire has already begun, and the impacts of the fire once it has been extinguished will continue to be calculated due to the severity of the disaster. The Burn Area Emergency Response (BAER) Phase 1 report indicated communities at potential risk for flooding and debris flows as a result of the loss of vegetation cover and the hydrophobic changes to soil in severe burn areas. These risks are further exacerbated by the extremely steep terrain. Portions of Palo Colorado and Big Sur are areas of greatest concern. Although funds are available to assist private homeowners at greatest threat to debris flow, at this time, there are no federal or state funds to support mitigation and protection of county public infrastructure. Phase 2 of the BAER report may reveal additional risks and threats to public and private infrastructure. .
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