Phil Barber reflects on Tubbs Fire in KQED radio interview

As we approach five years since the Tubbs Fire, The Press Democrat reporter Phil Barber joined KQED radio Wednesday morning to talk about his recent story tracing the nearly 12-mile path of the devastating 2017 blaze.

Barber spoke with KQED’s Brian Watt about where he was on the day of the Tubbs Fire, what emerged from his reporting and lessons learned.

“The speed with which the fire took over the landscape that night was like nothing I had ever seen before,” Barber remembered.

As for the recovery, “overall the picture was a landscape and community that has recovered at different paces,” he said, calling it “kind of all over the map.”

Barber also talked about changes since the fire, including an improved emergency notification system and more sophisticated evacuation routes and plans.

“I think fires made people reappraise their decision to live here,” he said.

Read his story on the Tubbs Fire at bit.ly/3MaQzKN.

Read all Press Democrat stories related to five years after the 2017 North Bay firestorm at bit.ly/3ygShV6.

Listen to the interview at bit.ly/3SGp51Z.