Berkeleyside’s wildfire guide: Everything you need to know to prepare for and survive wildfires
Preparation advice, evacuation guidance and answers to your questions about air quality, power outages and defending your property.
Air quality maps can show different measurements during wildfires. Why?
Depending on whether you look at AirNow or PurpleAir, you might get very different results of the quality of the air in your neighborhood. What’s the deal?
What mask should I wear to protect myself from wildfire smoke?
Masks made of disposable paper and cloth are ineffective at blocking out the fine particulate matter contained in wildfire smoke. The EPA recommends you use a well-fitted N95.
Wildfire smoke turns Berkeley air unhealthy and obscures the hills
Smoke from wildfires in Oregon and far North California brought the smell of smoke to Berkeley Tuesday, with AQI readings in many places topping 150, a level unhealthy for the general public.
100 years after Berkeley’s 1923 fire, another tragedy could be even likelier
Fire detection is leaps and bounds ahead of where it was. Some of the strategies of the last century, like fuel breaks, remain the same, however. But safety advocates warn the risk may be even higher.