California homeowners are again threatened by wildfires, with heavy winds fanning the Kincade Fire and creating “blowtorch-like” conditions in the northern part of the state, CBS News reports. By late Sunday, the fire had burned more than 54,000 acres and was only 5% contained. In Southern California, the Tick Fire in Santa Clarita has burned more than 4,600 acres so far and was 70% contained by Sunday evening. California Gov. Gavin Newsom has declared a state of emergency.
About 180,000 people in Northern California were under evacuation orders. “This is the largest evacuation that any of us at the Sheriff’s Office can remember,” the Sonoma County Sheriff tweeted. “Take care of each other.” The North Bay Association of REALTORS® announced it was closing its Santa Rosa office Monday, which is in the evacuation zone.
Wildfires are becoming more common in California. Swaths of the state were left in ruins last year after fires destroyed more than 18,000 structures. Last year saw the deadliest and most destructive wildfire on record in the state.
Natural disasters can have a long-ranging impact on communities. A new study released by CoreLogic shows the ramifications of a natural disaster stretch far beyond the physical damage they can cause to homes. “They also wreak havoc on the finances of the local residents, which increases mortgage delinquency rates,” the study notes. CoreLogic evaluated the after-effects of four recent disasters: two hurricanes and two wildfires. “Within three months, there’s a huge spike in serious delinquency rates on mortgages,” notes Frank Nothaft, CoreLogic’s chief economist. “And it happens even on those properties that didn’t have any damage.”
Source: “Critical Day Ahead in California Firefighting Efforts,” CBS News (Oct. 28, 2019) and “California’s Governor Declares Statewide Emergency as Kincade Fire Grows to 50,000 Acres,” CNN (Oct. 27, 2019)
