I wish I had the time to write a longer thing about new housing that I see going up around the city and its outskirts (often displacing homeless people who camped in beautiful empty lots), and about how upset survivors are about disaster tourism (Especially when people walk around their properties! ugh), and how there are a lot of different art projects that are exhibiting right around now. I met an 8ish year-old girl last week who was a very angry and bitter fire victim. Can you imagine how hard it is to come home to live in a trailer where her family’s house once stood?
If I had a podcast, one of the people I would interview is one of our local farmers whose whole property burned down, and some who lost only small parts of their properties, and learn how the fire affected their operations, their land, their customer base… Sigh. Back to breakfast. Have to pick strawberries.
Many of us have been on edge this weekend because of the hot, dry north wind that creates the perfect condition for fire to spread…
10/21 update: The things I added have a * at the beginning. (you can search the page for * if you’d like to see what’s new). I added italics to people’s commentary so it’s easier to skip over if you’d like.
*November 7th in Sebastopol with the Farmers Guild: explore and discuss fire resilient land management techniques; find out what assistance is available (again, see a list of some resources at the end)
10/19: I spent too much time working on this today, but at least I was able to close a lot of tabs… Sorry about the formatting. Hopefully I will get to add more as I find them…
Fire Recovery/Cleanup Resources with a focus on Sonoma County
*See end of this document for some resources for assistance for farmers, ranchers, and forest land owners
*A study of leaves from plants. It has yet to be funded, but we can take samples now (ask me how or come to a training): http://www.petalumabounty.org/take-action/health-impact-of-fire-on-local-produce-call-for-sites-and-volunteers/
*How to help plants damaged by heat and ash http://www.pressdemocrat.com/lifestyle/7538682-181/garden-docs-how-to-help
*Things to consider when returning to a site that has burned: Post-fire tips for Sonoma Valley residents: https://www.sonomaecologycenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/SEC-Post-Fire-Tip-Sheet.pdf
UC ANR on wildfires:http://ucanr.edu/ somewhere in there- it didn’t give me a link because it was like a slideshow from the front page
*From the UC Master Gardeners on FB on 10/20/17: (I highlighted in bold the main point) “A number of our followers have been asking about food safety following fire. The following guidance was developed with input from food safety experts at the University of California; also below is a link to a USDA publication on fires and food safety.
Air quality in Sonoma County has been significantly impacted by the ongoing fires in the region. Local farms have played a very large and important role in food relief efforts immediately following the start of the fires and the mass evacuations. Many farmers and others in the community are concerned about how the air pollution might be impacting produce. While the University of California does not have data on the levels of these chemicals in produce that have been in contact with smoke and ash, we understand the need to share information with our community at this time.
When assessing the safety of exposed produce, the difficulty is knowing what has been burning. If it is just vegetation smoke then it’s probably safe to eat produce after rinsing down the ash (just the same as having a bonfire in your garden), although it might still taste/smell smoky.
If the air pollution has particulate matter from treated timber, tires, non-food grade oils, or anything plastic or chlorinated that burned it may include a mixture of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs), dioxins, and metals. Exposure to fire retardant may also occur.
An unpublished literature review on the health impacts of PAHs from traffic-related air pollution on lettuce grown in urban agriculture found that:
Some PAHs can be absorbed into plant tissue, and so cannot be simply washed off. The health risk from eating these PAHs is a small proportion of the health impact from breathing them, and it is far below the EPA’s level of concern for lifetime cancer risk. It is possible that the health benefit of eating the vitamins and nutrients in green leafy vegetables might outweigh that negligible negative impact. There is not enough research available on the cumulative impacts of air pollution on produce to make any solid conclusions about the health impacts.”
from Erik: the only real way to find this out is going to be taking soil samples and sending them in for testing (harmony does the testing)Every zone is going to be different, depending on the winds and ash settling.The low areas where the smoke and ash are settling the most will probably be worse than coastal hills. There is a difference between the house and forest fire/ash as well. Today’s smoke and ash is mostly forest ash and actually can be a good thing for soil as a source of potassium and alkalinity. Monday – Thursday’s ash was the most toxic.
from Pam: I know that part of the clean up in homes destroyed near me requires removing up to 4” of soil and testing until toxins are no longer present. Maybe the same for gardens- some soil removal??
Saivya (sp) “Harmony Farms told me to contact the soil testing labs directly to ask which toxins they can test for and that I should have a list of what types of chemicals I was wondering about. “
from PeterProbably not soot: soot is black carbon, and may have oil and tar content, including some nasty stuff. Ash (grey or white) is all mineral, some soluble and not typically toxic. I would just wash as usual.
If you actually have soot – black carbon – test for dioxins and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, for starters.
From Erik- Dioxins from plastics(this is the major concern In think), lead, (copper, aluminum maybe too?) hmmm what else??
*Grainger carries child-sized N95 masks, but you may have to ask your local store to order a box for you. The store in Rohnert Park had them in stock on 10/19/17. Looks like you can also order stuff for delivery (?) https://www.grainger.com/
First, I am so sorry. As a mother who lost a home two years ago and is currently experiencing the Tubbs fire, I get it. Surviving an emotional, logistical nightmare may be hard, but navigating a nightmare while simultaneously nurturing children through it is even harder. This is exhausting work.
Below are a few things that helped our family survive wildfire evacuation and home loss. I hope a few may be useful in caring for your hurting children …because, truly, the last thing you need right now or a few months from now are children that are completely falling apart. Or worse: shutting down emotionally.
Create opportunities for a sense of control and “container”
Keep individually packaged snacks and drinks in your trunk. These are useful in giving children a small sense of control over their chaotic world, as well as in keeping blood sugar level when you need a few more minutes at a store or in a meeting.
Find a way to create a small space a child can retreat within and keep their few belongings. For instance, create a soft, blanketed space under a shelter cot or consider purchasing a pop-up tent designed for play or to fit over a twin bed. These spaces are particularly vital for children with sensitive nervous systems. Blanketed spaces can also be created in a hotel room under a table or in a closet.
Purchase card games or board games to play as a family. Games like Uno and Go Fish can be stored in a glove compartment or purse …and require little brainpower for exhausted parents. Games can create a “container of family” at a restaurant, shelter, hotel, or sparsely furnished home. If used regularly, games can also create a sense of routine for children overwhelmed by the sudden disorder in their lives.
Create meaning
During mealtime, tell stories from your childhood about when you overcame hardship. This communicates to children your family’s legacy of being overcomers. It also communicates your firm belief that they will survive this experience.
Highlight the helpers. Routinely begin conversations about the people helping your family and your community. Explain how when bad things happen in life we talk about the hardship, but we also focus on the beauty of kindness and love that flows in to surround that hardship.
Give kids vocabulary to express the feelings in their bodies. Use words such as tight, tense, confused, trapped, sad, angry and worried. Also emphasize empowering words such as tenacity, family, community and kindness. Language centers of the brain can go off-line during trauma, yet we need them to make sense of our experience to guard against potential long-term effects from trauma.
Show children how healthy adults handle trauma
If two parents are available, take turns being with the children. Commit to the parent who is with the children to being off his/her phone as much as logistically possible.
If friends and family are offering to help, work with your children to create a list of ways people can support you. Include a short list of your child’s favorite books, meals or outings (if relevant). In doing this together, you are modeling how to proactively turn to relationships and receive kindness during times of stress.
Move your body and get your kids moving theirs. Bodies pump out stress hormones during trauma to make extra movement possible. Movement is both helpful and critical during stress to ensure stress hormones do not damage the body. If opportunities for large movement activities such as swimming are restricted, be a fierce leader and spearhead games of running down hallways, seeing who can run in a circle the longest, bear crawls, hopping on one/two feet, or wiggling toes to work out stress. Hopscotch and flat “obstacle” courses can be created using sidewalk chalk, tape, pillows and towels. (I know: Playing with kids may feel like the LAST thing you want to do right now. But time spent moving and playing with your kids will pay dividends in the long haul. Fake it till you make it.)
Take care of your body
Challenge yourself to turn away from screens and towards people.
Eat vegetables, protein and whole grains. You need your body to feel as agile as possible right now.
Stay away from things that will decrease time in “deep sleep.” Most importantly: (a) avoid caffeine after lunch, (b) turn off your phone at least one hour before bedtime, and (c) minimize alcohol. Your kids will need you tomorrow and need you to rest. You may technically sleep for a few hours after caffeine, screens and alcohol, but it will not be the deep sleep that rejuvenates your brain. If sleep seems impossible, try focusing your mind on slowly repeating the lines of a favorite verse, poem or calming statement. When you awake in the middle of the night, quickly focus on the words of your simple, calming verse or sentence. (Your mind will drift. Just keep trying.) Again, your children need you to sleep.
*The Magic of Caring, Responsive Adults
A growing body of research indicates the number one “protective factor” for resilient children is the presence of caring, responsive adults. During the coming months you will likely hear adults flippantly minimize children’s experience of powerlessness and chaos with, “Oh, children are resilient.” Please remember children possess immature nervous systems and need adults to guide them in establishing a sense of stability and in developing healthy coping mechanisms. Wrapping a sense of safety, control and the opportunity to express emotions is critical to ensuring that in the long-term, children will indeed be resilient.
Giving children time feels daunting when there are phone calls to return, news to catch up on, …and the problem of figuring out how to feed kids their next meal. Consider reminding yourself, “This is what mammals do. We work endlessly for the sake of our kids. I’ve got this.”
Parenting children in a caring, responsive way while scrambling to survive is a steep mountain to climb. If you find yourself in a position of parenting in the midst of not just evacuation, but also losing your home and rebuilding your life in the wake of a wildfire, your task is even steeper. Perfection is not required, nor is it possible during this time. Instead, consider creating a mental list of three things you can do for your child each day to provide the container of love, stability and “being seen.” According to research, just holding children while listening to them talk or cry can be the most valuable gift of all.
Our family offers tender wishes of grace during this most difficult time.
gently,
Carolynn Spezza
P.S. My younger daughter just reminded me that among the most helpful things we did for her during the Valley Fire was to let her choose a notebook and pencil to have as her very own. With all my exhausting work and failures during that time, it feels curious that a $2 notebook is what stuck with her the most.
As the smoke outside the window is getting thicker and my children are waiting for attention, I am not allocating time to add references to a few items above. Please forgive me. Most ideas come from my years as a social worker, research associate in youth development, and perhaps most useful, my years as a mama.
*Merchandise that’s said to be benefitting relief efforts (t-shirts, decals, etc): https://docs.google.com/document/d/11VDsfdogcrD7dsPmKP8mbA0A_6nlIuwI04yZpWtrUEY/edit
