ESP Partnership Meeting, December 12, 2023

The ESP Partnership meeting on Tuesday, December 12, 2023 is from 2-4 pm and is virtual. We are pleased that Dr. Charlotte Jourdain, MWPA consultant, will present and lead a discussion on the MWPA Evacuation/Ingress/Egress Risk Assessment project with Tami Lavezzo at Sonoma Technology, the firm that created the modeling behind the Evacuation Risk Assessment. 

Zoomlink:https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83304105666?pwd=bVVQMVkzRGZlaExjWVE4QWFXUUw5dz09 

RSVP: Please RSVP to this email- espwildires@gmail.com

Abstract:

California has experienced a growing number of wildfires that have overwhelmed community preparedness and evacuation plans. The Marin Wildfire Prevention Authority (MWPA) has undertaken a study to better understand and address wildfire evacuation route risks in Marin County. These risks include the lack of vehicle access, public notification failures, heavy traffic burdens, and low risk perception. As part of this effort, Sonoma Technology’s project team performed the Marin County Evacuation Risk Assessment Study, which included:

(1) conducting a literature review to understand the causes of civilian fatalities during evacuations;

(2) a review of available risk factor data for the county;

(3) dynamic modeling of fire progression, communications, and traffic flow for five county test areas across multiple timeline scenarios; and

(4) a current conditions assessment of evacuation difficulties across the county related to fire and fuels, communications platforms, human-decision making, and traffic flow.

The Study produced geographic information system (GIS)-based datasets and maps of aggregated evacuation difficulty scores for Marin County, which identify potential areas of high risk during evaluations. The results are also being used to develop a Mitigation Toolkit that considers different types of mitigation actions, including improved project planning, policy changes, and investment in capital projects.