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Forest Service BAER Team Begins Post-Fire Assessment of Eaton and Hurst Fires

A Forest Service Burned Area Emergency Response (BAER) team has been established by the Angeles National Forest (NF) to begin a post-fire burned area assessment of the Eaton and Hurst fires that recently burned on National Forest, state, and private lands. The BAER team leader is Forest Service Soil Scientist Eric Schroeder. Forest Service BAER team assessments typically take approximately two weeks to complete.

BAER teams coordinate with the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), National Weather Service (NWS), US Geological Survey (USGS), and other federal, state, counties, and other local agencies as they assess potential post-fire impacts to the burned watersheds. For the Eaton and Hurst fires, the Angeles NF also coordinated with Los Angeles County Department of Public Works and CALFIRE’s California State Watershed Emergency Response Team (CA WERT). CALFIRE is the lead agency, and CA WERT works with private communities. Forest Service BAER teams coordinate the assessment of the burned area to ensure post-fire threats are identified.

Emergency Stabilization-Burned Area Emergency Response (BAER) surveys are rapid assessments to identify imminent post-wildfire threats to human life and safety, property, and critical natural or cultural resources on National Forest System lands. The BAER team evaluates the burned area to identify watersheds having increased potential for post-fire flooding, including mudflows, debris flows, rockslides, and landslides, that assist land managers in preparing for seasonal thunder cell storms or winter rainstorms. They also model hydrologic response throughout the burned area and share the team’s findings with the affected downstream agencies.

BAER teams may consist of scientists and specialists including hydrologists, geologists, soil scientists, road engineers, botanists, biologists, archeologists, hazmat specialists, recreation and special uses specialist, and geographic information specialists. BAER teams collect field data during their burned area surveys to analyze through GIS and computer models and present their findings along with recommended BAER emergency stabilization treatments in a BAER assessment report. 

BAER reports are shared with interagency cooperators such as California Office of Emergency Services (CalOES), NRCS, CA WERT, counties, and cities who work with downstream private home and landowners to prepare for potential post-fire flooding and debris flow impacts. 

One issue of concern for the BAER team within the Eaton burned area is hazardous material (hazmat) from burned structures on and off the forest. Airborne and contact exposure have been the focus of a lot of the safety messaging both internally to resources working within the burned areas and externally to the public. The older structures could contain lead, asbestos, biohazards, carcinogenic chemical compounds called polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), biohazards, and all sorts of other hazardous substances.

Homes or businesses that could be impacted by flooding from federal land that result from wildfires may be eligible for flood insurance coverage from the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). Information about NFIP is available through FEMA at www.fema.gov/national-flood-insurance-program, or www.floodsmart.gov/wildfires. Other flood preparedness information is available at www.ready.gov/floods at www.floodsmart.gov/.

Additional information on understanding the BAER program, process and other post-fire information is posted on the Eaton-Hurst Post-Fire BAER InciWeb page found at: https://inciweb.wildfire.gov/incident-information/caanf-eatonhurst-postfire-baer.

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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