This is a comprehensive report of California wildfires by county.
The five gradients indicate the risk of wildfire in each county. The counties with the lowest wildfire risk include the Bay area, San Bernadino, Kern, Imperial, Inyo, Kings, San Benito, Nevada, Sutter, Sacramento, Anadox, and Merced. These counties lie around coastal areas and inland SoCal. Among all counties, San Francisco is the only one that was free of wildfire in the last decade. This is because San Francisco has a humid and cold Mediterranean climate along with very few forests. The hills also prevent fire from spreading.
From the picture, we can observe that northern California is the highest risk prone to wildfire. This is because of the highly continental climate type. The temperature is very high in summer, and the powerful subtropical high sometimes renders dry days when wildfires are more likely to happen.
Southern California is described as “middle-risk” of wildfires. This is because of the relatively higher population density, despite the conditions supporting wildfires.
Acknowledging the impact of climate and weather patterns on wildfire risk is crucial. The combination of high temperatures, dry spells, and specific regional conditions can significantly increase the likelihood of wildfire.