Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's neighbourhood in Montecito, California, has launched a new safety initiative to protect residents. The Sussexes have moved to the UK with their two children but will keep their mansion in Montecito.
The area is very prone to wildfires, so the Montecito Fire Department and Montecito Water District are adding two new temporary firefighter housing locations. These will be in effect during periods of high fire risk.
Wildfire season risks
Southern California's wildfire season usually starts in April or May and runs through to October, with the worst period during July. There are, however, still year-round wildfire risks.
Montecito Fire Chief Brian Fallon said: "By proactively positioning firefighters at these two locations on the far ends of our district, we can greatly reduce the time it takes to arrive on scene of a vegetation fire in remote wildland areas where our fire risk is the highest."
Montecito Water District General Manager Nick Turner added: "We are pleased to collaborate on these important initiatives to increase protection for residents."
Mudslide concerns
Another major issue in the area is mudslides, which have led to evacuations. Experts are concerned that once the rains start at the end of the summer, floods could occur across the county.
An area at major risk is San Ysidro Creek, which is close to Harry and Meghan's Montecito gated community. The millionaire who built the Sussexes' California home has said that he didn't consider weather threats.
Terry told the Mail on Sunday: "We sure as hell didn't think about it [the mudslides] when we were building, but certainly it's something I would be thinking about now."
Past disaster impact
In January 2018, a mudflow in Montecito killed 23 people and injured 163. It caused £131 million in property damage, £5 million in emergency response costs, and another £32 million for cleanup. The disaster occurred one month after a series of major wildfires, which devastated steep slopes, caused loss of vegetation and destabilisation of the soil, and greatly facilitated subsequent mudflows.
