Current Fire Information:
CAL FIRE Current Major Wildland Fire Incidents
National Weather Service (NWS) National Fire Weather Page
Wild land fires are generally caused by lightning or by people and their activities. The magnitude and severity of a wild land fire can be influenced by a number of factors: fuel (in the form of wildland vegetation), structural improvements, topography of the area, weather, and accessibility of fire fighting equipment.
Most wild land fires are controlled within the first few hours, but those that are not cause large losses to natural resources, life, and property. There are critical fire-days characteristic to most locations. In San Rafael, particularly, there are days when the temperatures soar towards 100 degrees Fahrenheit, humidity drops near zero, and hot, dry north or easterly winds blow at high velocity.
There are six areas in the City of San Rafael that are considered vulnerable to Wild-land Fire. Extensive Plans for Fire Management have been developed by the San Rafael Fire Department for each of these areas. A summary of the plan for each follows:
Vegetation Management
Visit the San Rafael Fire Department's Vegetation Management Program webpage.