By the 1850s San Francisco, referred to as “Paris of the West Coast," emerges as a city of wealth and culture. The East Bay communities of Oakland and Berkley flourish as separate cities, and as suburbs to San Francisco.
1910 The Forest Service’s “Fire Exclusion Policy” was enacted, whereby fire was argued to be unnecessary and destructive in nature.
Early 1920s The invention of the automobile and improved building technologies promoted building expansion onto the steep, west-facing slopes of the East Bay Hills, providing a “Home with a view," for elite residents.
September 17, 1923 A wildfire in Berkeley burns 130 acres, and 584 structures, in two hours. Damages amounted to US$10 million.
Post-September 1923 “After the 1923 wildfire in Berkeley, the city council passed legislation requiring fire resistive wood coverings for roofs, then rescinded the legislation before it could take effect” (National Fire Protection Association, 1992).
Post-September 1923 “After a 1923 fire in Berkeley (Alameda County), a special commission offered more than 100 recommendations for mitigating future losses; most of these were ignored” (Blakely, 1992, as cited in Mitchell, 1999).
Since the 1930s 14 fires have burned in the Oakland Hills, of which seven erupted in Wildcat Canyon, the originating point of the 1991 fire.
September 22, 1970 Fish Canyon Fire (Oakland) destroyed 38 structures and damaged seven others. Damages amounted to US$3.5 million.
December 14, 1980 Wildcat Canyon fire destroyed six homes and injured three people within twenty minutes.
Post-1980 Fire “The City of Berkeley passed prohibitive ordinances after the Wildcat Canyon fire in 1980, but the City Council was persuaded to rescind the regulations soon after their adoption” (Federal Emergency Management Agency, 1992).
1986-1990 A five-year drought occurs in the Oakland-Berkeley area.
1990 The Federal Emergency Management Agency (1990) Loma Prieta earthquake report urged installation of on-site emergency generators by water supply managers, but the district had not done so (Oakland Tribune, 1991, p.56) as cited in (Mitchell, 1999).
December 1990 A December freeze kills much of the native and ornamental vegetation, enhancing their susceptibility to fire and increasing the total fuel load in the East Bay Hills area.
1991 The region is recovering from a five-year drought.
June 1991 The City of Berkeley passes an ordinance requiring Class A roofs, in a specific area of the city, although not for the portion of the city that burned in the 1991 fire.
October 19, 1991 A “suspicious” fire occurs in Wildcat Canyon near the ridgeline. Firefighting forces successfully extinguish the fire that day, checking throughout the night for “hot spots." The fire burned 5 acres.
October 20, 1991 Embers, from the previous day’s fire in Wildcat Canyon, are re-ignited by Diablo winds during firefighting “mop-up” efforts.
October 21, 1991 The Mayor of Oakland vows to rebuild the burned East Bay Hills. Search and rescue efforts are performed, and damage assessments begin.
October 22, 1991 President George Bush declares the East Bays Hills area “a Federal Disaster area," making relief funds available to help with rebuilding the area, and for reimbursing agencies for their costs during the East Bay Hills fire. Firefighters declare the fire contained.
October 23, 1991 Firefighters declare the fire under control.