Southern California sees more students in High and Very High fire hazard severity zones

About 12.6% of California public school students are in High and Very High fire hazard severity zones. Among those students, nearly 70% are in Southern California.

Note: The 2024 Fire Hazard Severity Zone* map evaluates “hazard,” not “risk.” “Hazard” is based on the physical conditions that create a likelihood and expected fire behavior over a 30- to 50-year period without considering mitigation measures such as home hardening, recent wildfire, or fuel reduction efforts.
*Moderate, High, and Very High fire hazard severity zones shall be based on fuel loading, slope, fire weather, and other relevant factors, including areas where winds have been identified by the Office of the State Fire Marshal as a major cause of wildfire spread.
Chart: Yuxuan Xie, Justin AllenSource: Cal Fire, the Office of the State Fire Marshal (OSFM) and EdSource data analysisCreated with Datawrapper