Redwood Complex Fire Recovery
The Redwood Complex Fire began on October 8, 2017: 35,800 acres burned in Redwood and Potter Valleys. 387 single family residences were destroyed, 224 outbuildings ruined, and commercial structures damaged. There were 9 civilian fatalities. 7,620 people were evacuated for up to 5 days. Ukiah Unified School District closed for an entire week due to the evacuation’s impact on its teachers and students. Native Americans, immigrants and renters were disproportionately impacted. Median household income in Mendocino County is $42,980 with 20.3% living in poverty and 20.6% over 65; so, many survivors were uninsured or under-insured.
The Disaster Fund for Mendocino County was created by the Community Foundation's Board of Directors with a lead gift of $20,000 in response to drought conditions in the spring/summer
of 2014. In the three months following the fires the Community Foundation raised $2,300,000 from thousands of donors. Business and private sponsorship has covered the 1.5% administrative fee enabling 100% of the funds raised to go to those affected by the fires. To learn more, visit the Disaster Fund page.
Relief: Immediate and short-term need was addressed through three local non-profits: North Coast Opportunities (NCO), Potter Valley Youth & Community Center and the Mendocino Coast Children’s Fund/Ukiah Relief Center. $291,000 in grants from the Disaster Fund provided funds for gas and grocery cards, N-95 masks, motel stays, clothing, diapers, and holiday baskets as well as limited general assistance ($1000/family) for those with burnt structures.
Recovery: To aid the recovery efforts, the Community Foundation took on the role of chair of the long-term fire recovery committees known as Mendocino-ROC (Rebuilding Our Communities). The money held in the Disaster Fund is distributed through the Unmet Needs committee of Mendocino-ROC with a focus on long-term housing solutions. The Committee strives for equity, focusing on the most vulnerable populations, while ensuring opportunities exist for all fire survivors. To learn more about M-ROC's successes and lessons learned since the Redwood Complex Fire of 2017, click here.
Rebuilding: The greatest battle lies ahead, the rebuilding of the hundreds of homes that were lost in the firestorm. The vacancy rate prior to the fires hovered near 1%, and with the loss of nearly 400 homes the housing issue has become critical. The Disaster Fund has been essential to help provide housing grants to fire survivors towards rebuilding, but the gap remains significant. Of the $8-10 million suggested for the cost of rebuilding for the uninsured and underinsured, the Community Foundation has raised $2.3 million. That leaves at least a $6 million gap. We continue to seek donations, large and small, to help with the rebuilding efforts. If you are interested in giving, please visit our Disaster Fund page or contact Michelle Rich at (707) 468-9882 ext. 105.
Resiliency: Developing a resilient and prepared community is key to our future success to recover from natural disasters and is the final step in our recovery efforts. Resiliency builds in systems to help communities recover emotionally, physically and socially, and allows them to respond more efficiently and with less trauma to future disasters. Preparedness takes concrete steps to mitigate disaster hazards, such as building and landscaping fire safe, to aid in the prevention of future disasters. To achieve these goals the Community Foundation is introducing a new fund, The Community Resiliency & Preparedness Fund will be launching in the Fall of 2018, to help us be better prepared in the days and years to come.
Fire Survivors in Need of Assistance: If you are an individual in need of assistance due to the Redwood Complex Fire, please contact the Mendocino-ROC Redwood Resource Room at (707)
621-8817 to speak with a Case Manager. These advocates will help you find the resources you need to recover and rebuild. To learn more about Mendocino-ROC visit www.mendocino-roc.com.
February 1, 2019
One-Year Report to the Community
by Megan Barber Allende
Chief Executive Officer, The Community Foundation of Mendocino County
It is with a sense of anticipation that we share with you our One-Year Report to the Community on the work of Mendocino-ROC, the long-term fire recovery team. We are proud of the accomplishments that have been made over the past year as our community came together to support our neighbors and friends. In October 2017, the Redwood Complex Fire devastated 36,523 acres in Redwood Valley and Potter Valley. Over 7,000 residents were evacuated for up to a week, and 406 households lost their homes. Since the fire, the Community Foundation of Mendocino County has chaired Mendocino-ROC in partnership with North Coast Opportunities (NCO) and the County of Mendocino. These efforts were possible thanks to the thousands of donors and countless hours of staff and volunteers to help fire survivors recover from this unprecedented disaster in our community.
We hope you will take a few moments to read the One-Year Report to the Community on what we have accomplished so far.
- Read about funds we have raised and distributed on pages 3-4
- Understand our approach to relief, recovery and rebuilding on pages 5-7
- Learn more about survivors and recovery partners on pages 8-12
- Get to know our leadership and plans moving forward on pages 13-16
To read the report online, click here To download a PDF of the report, click here
