Dubroff: Behind the daunting economics of disaster recovery
The Mountain Fire struck Ventura County just one month shy of seven years after the Thomas Fire devastated a 70-mile front that stretched from Fillmore to Goleta.
Five days later as the Business Times went to press, some 300 structures suffered damage, hundreds of people remained inside evacuation areas and the long, slow effort of recovery and reconstruction was just getting underway.
In some ways the region was lucky.
Prompt action by local and state fire crews helped contain the fire — it never jumped Highway 126 or Highway 101, no one died and injuries were minor.
Urban areas were largely spared.
But the first responder’s skill in fighting fires during high wind events and the cutting off of powerlines plus countless other acts of courage create a conundrum for recovery.
With the fire pretty much contained as of Nov. 12, it was doubtful that the Mountain Fire would be classified as a major disaster, meaning that local and state government, not FEMA, would bear the brunt of the cost of clearing debris and other recovery costs.
Unlike the winter flood damage, which was widespread, this time won’t be FEMA’s considerable financial support for victims and small businesses, Unlike the Woolsey and Hill fires, which hit Ventura County and Los Angeles County in 2018, it will be much harder to tap the vast philanthropic resources which came to the aid of victims in East Ventura County, Calabasas and Malibu, where more than 1,000 homes were destroyed.
So, one lesson from the Mountain Fire is going to be that the more successful local governments are in limiting damage, the harder it’s going to be to tap federal resources.
And tapping federal aid will likely get harder and harder as budget deficits rise, emergency funds run short and politicization of disaster relief becomes a reality.
That is quite a conundrum for counties like Ventura where an impressive volume of small donations still amounted to just $207,000 in relief aid, reported Vanessa Bechtel during a Zoom meeting for about 100 community leaders on Nov. 12. However, a $100,000 grant from Wells Fargo shortly after the meeting.
“The devastation caused by these fires takes families years to recover from, and we understand how vital financial assistance is during these challenging times,” said Kären Woodruff, Senior Vice President of Community Relations for Wells Fargo. “Wells Fargo is determined to be there to help, and we are deeply grateful to all who are joining with us to support our neighbors in need.”
Another conundrum of disaster recovery is what happens when the TV cameras and firetrucks leave. That’s the most difficult period in disaster recovery and the Mountain Fire victims are just entering this phase. “For better or worse, we’ve experienced two major fires,” Rob Mullane, director of the Ventura County Resource Management Agency told the meeting. That means the county has expertise in setting up recovery centers and assessing needs and it is braced for disaster every time there’s a Santa Ana wind event in fall or winter.
But it also means telling folks who’ve just lost their homes, that even in the best circumstances, clearing debris and certifying a lot ready for rebuilding is likely a six-month or longer proposition.
For right now, Ventura County has the resources to provide food, temporary shelter and clothing to folks who need it most, in this case something like 40% of the victims are renters and low to moderate-income families.
The Mountain Fire also exposes how much things have changed since the Thomas and Woolsey-Hill Fires in terms ofdisaster preparedness and the ability to bring resources to bear quickly immediately after a disaster.
But there is a third conundrum to disaster recovery in the 21st Century.
The more we learn about the changing climate, the faster insurance companies are adapting their risk management profiles.
The risks of urban boundary living are being redefined so that a friend’s home outside of Camarillo that was built in the 1950s was uninsurable when he bought it over a decade ago.
In just seven years, we’ve sharpened our skills but we’ve learned that communities will more often be on their own when it comes to paying the bills.
And we’ve learned that as communities are adapting to climate change, so are insurance companies, which can change the risk profile for home ownership.
For those who thought the Thomas Fire and Woolsey-Hill fires were one-off events, welcome to the rest of the 21st Century.
We’re getting smarter and we’re learning how to persevere.
Henry Dubroff is the founder, owner and editor of the Pacific Coast Business Times. He can be reached at [email protected].
