Catherine Rusoff
The town of Paradise, California, was almost completely destroyed in 2018 campfire – which burned more than 150,000 acres and was the deadliest wildfire in state history. The once lush pine-covered landscape was devastated as 95% of the city was burned.
But from the ashes, a new race of The American pioneer was born.
Kylie Wrobel and her daughter, Ellie, were one of the first families to return.
“Seeing the city grow and build, my heart needed it,” Kylie Wrobel said. “A lot of people don’t want to come back here. I had to stay here.”
In 2019, six months after the storm that destroyed everything and almost claimed their lives, the Wrobels cried. Now, Ellie Wrobel told CBS News, “Even though we lost everything in the fire, it’s nice to have something new.”
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
Kylie Wrobel said, “You just heal every day. It’s nice to come back to our hometown because then you get a fresh start in life.”
Thousands more returned for a new start. In fact, Paradise was the fastest growing city in California over the past four years, according to the California Department of Finance.
Jennifer Gray Thompson, founder of the nonprofit After the Fire, which helps people decide whether to rebuild, said: “People who decide to rebuild in a place like Paradise are often even safer than they were before the fire. , because that place has already been burned.”
Fire threatens 40% of homes in California. Starting in the 1990s, well-intentioned firefighters were trained to quickly put out flames and protect a growing population. But dead vegetation was left behind, which, combined with increasing drought levels, created a fuel source that continues to threaten communities today.
In Paraíso, efforts are focused on protecting against future fires. All power lines will be buried underground and all residents must remove vegetation that is too close to their homes. Federal subsidies are offered to homeowners who use fire-resistant materials to build their homes.
Images by George Rose/Getty
Kylie Wrobel said she believes the city is more resilient today than it was in 2018.
“The likelihood of seeing another forest fire in Paradise has already devastated our entire community, destroyed the trees. I don’t think another wildfire would hit like this,” she said.
But not everyone agrees enough to return. Although Paradise has seen record growth, the current population is still only a third of what it was before the bonfire.
“Paradise is a microcosm of broader issues that our nation will have to deal with more,” said Ryan Miller of UC Davis, a researcher tracking growing climate migration in the U.S. and the conflicts it is causing.
“I hope that with some of the work we understand from Paradise, we can get ahead of some of these issues and prevent these disasters from happening later,” he said.
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