19 ottob 1991 anni - Oakland Hills Fire

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The Oakland Hills Fire, occurred in October 1991 in the Oakland-Berkeley Hills, California. This devastating wildfire is significant due to its impact on fire management practices, community planning, and building codes.
As firefighters struggled to control the rapid flames, they soon began running into problems. Excess dry vegetation, narrow roads, houses with wood shingles, a limited water supply, and fire hydrants that were incompatible with neighboring cities’ trucks. The fire had taken 25 lives, destroyed over a thousand acres of land, and more than 3,500 homes. Over the past 20 years, state officials have created tighter rules about vegetation to reduce the risk of wildfires, as well as regulations requiring fire-resistant building materials. Fire departments also enhanced emergency response and weather monitoring techniques.
A 1992 Federal Emergency Management Agency report concluded that the flammable surfaces of trees and building structures, and the lack of separation between them was one of the main causes of the Oakland Hills Fire.The California Fire Code was modified after the Oakland Hills Fire and now incorporates regulations such as maintaining a 30 foot fuel reduction zone around buildings, keeping grass 6 inches long, and removing all tree limbs within 6 feet of the ground. Some of these requirements include maintaining at least a 10 foot space between tree branches and buildings. Hydrant connectors have now been standardized as well. They have also switched to a radio frequency that is accessible to fire departments across the region, making department communication easier in the case of an emergency.

Citation: Schell, Brittany . “Twenty Years after the Oakland Hills Fire, What Has Changed?” Oakland North, October 19, 2011. https://oaklandnorth.net/2011/10/19/twenty-years-after-the-oakland-hills-fire-what-has-changed/.

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