AHAH Monthly Program Update - California Wildfires (April 2021)

CALIFORNIA WILDFIRE RELIEF UPDATE APRIL 2021

TOTAL PROGRAM IMPACT

5 1,705 11 368

ACRES CLEARED

VOLUNTEER HOURS

Current Activities After a successful 1-month pilot, the team was excited to welcome the second group of volunteer sawyer trainees in mid-March.

Based on feedback from the first cohort, the team has implemented improvements and adjustments to the training curriculum, and the volunteers are making swift progress.

VOLUNTEER TRAINEES

HAZARD TREES FELLED

The team continues to work in close partnership with the Butte County Firesafe Council and has cleared over 5 acres of land (with help from the local goats) and completed fire mitigation activities on 5 private properties. They are also collaborating with Paradise Recreation and Park District Department to carry out a variety of fire mitigation projects on campgrounds that run community programs.

All staff and volunteers who wanted a vaccine have got their first shot and will get their second dose in mid-April.

Volunteer Spotlight “The chainsaw training was perfect. It was very informative. Being able to take apart and see the inside of the saw was great, especially because I got an idea for how it works before turning it on” - Volunteer Sawyer Trainee.

“This program has been a breath of fresh air, seeing a group come together to make this type of training a possibility for people like me with no experience and who want to train but maybe not in the DM12 sense is so innovative” - Volunteer Sawyer Trainee.

Photos: (top) an aerial view of the team creating a fuel break, (left) a sawyer trainee during the chainsaw training.

Learn about our programs at

allhandsandhearts.org

Disaster Profile In California, where wildfire season (historically May through October) is a natural part of the landscape, the season has started earlier and finished later in recent years. The wildfires have increased in size eightfold since the 1970s, and the annual burned area has grown by nearly 500%. The climate crisis is considered one of the key drivers of this trend, with high temperatures and droughts causing dry vegetation and dead trees, which are more susceptible to severe wildfires. One of the deadliest and most damaging wildfires in California’s history is the 2018 Camp Fire, which incinerated the town of Paradise and swaths of surrounding foothill communities in a single day. Driven by winds, this wildfire continued to rage for two weeks and spread further in Butte County. More than two years after the Camp Fire, only about 400 of the 14,000 homes destroyed have been rebuilt, and the community remains at risk for future wildfire destruction.

Our Work All Hands and Hearts launched a pilot wildfire program in Paradise in February 2021. Alongside local partners, our focus is on wildfire mitigation projects, such as creating fuel breaks by felling and removing trees for protection against future wildfires, and recovery activities, such as hazard tree removal on private properties to help homeowners prepare for rebuilding. A core component of this program is our sawyer training curriculum, which is helping to build capacity in our organization by improving skill, safety and efficiency in chainsaw operations. We plan to expand our work in California to include interior home repair.

About All Hands and Hearts We effectively and efficiently address the immediate and long-term needs of communities impacted by natural disasters. We communicate directly with local leaders and community members and then deploy our unique model of engaging volunteers to enable direct impact, helping to build safer, more resilient schools, homes and infrastructure.

We have earned a 4-star rating by Charity Navigator for the seventh year in a row. This year only seven percent of rated non-profits received this distinction for financial and operational efficiency.

Photos: (top & bottom) trainees practicing their chainsaw skills in the field, (middle) map of the fuel break surrounding Paradise.

Our Partners

info@allhandsandhearts.org