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LAKE & APACHE POST-FIRE BAER ASSESSMENT UPDATE

August 3, 2024

Lake Post-Fire BAER Soil Burn Severity Map Released

Forest Service Burned Area Emergency Response (BAER) specialists recently completed their data gathering and analysis for the Lake burned area and coordinated with the State of California State Watershed Emergency Response Team (WERT) to produce and finalize a soil burn severity (SBS) map for the Lake Fire. The WERT (CalFire is the lead agency and WERT works with communities) and Forest Service BAER teams coordinate the assessment of the burned area to ensure post-fire threats are identified.

The SBS map and data display categories of unburned/low, moderate, and high. Approximately 70% of the total 40,882 acres analyzed are either unburned and/or low soil burn severity, while 29% sustained a moderate soil burn severity, and only about 1% identified as high soil burn severity. Of the total 40,882 acres for the Lake Fire that were analyzed by the BAER Team, 18,088 acres were National Forest System lands and the remaining 22,794 acres were non-Forest Service lands.

The BAER assessment team used initial remote sensing imagery with their field validated soils data, to develop and produce a map showing soil burn severity levels for the burned areas The SBS is broken into four different classes: unburned (green), low severity (blue), moderate severity (yellow), and high severity (red). For more information on what these different SBS classifications mean, see BAER Information Brief at: Calpf Lake And Apache Postfire Baer - | InciWeb (wildfire.gov).

The BAER team relied on their refined soil burn severity map to produce data which they are using in their subsequent modeling and determination of post fire runoff and sedimentation. The BAER teams and the US Geological Survey (USGS) both utilized the soil burn severity map as an analysis tool to estimate post-fire flows and debris flow probability. In specific areas that experienced moderate to high burn severity, there could be increased runoff from steep hillslopes and resultant increases in post-fire soil erosion and potential debris flows.

The Lake post-fire soil burn severity (SBS) map can be downloaded at the Lake and Apache BAER InciWeb site: Calpf Lake And Apache Postfire Baer Information | InciWeb (wildfire.gov) as a JPEG or PDF version under the “Maps” tab.

BAER SAFETY MESSAGE: Everyone near and downstream from the burned areas should remain alert and stay updated on weather conditions that may result in heavy rains and increased water runoff. Flash flooding may occur quickly during heavy rain events--be prepared to act. Current weather and emergency notifications can be found at the National Weather Service website: www.weather.gov/lox/.

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