September 4, 2020 – Nevada County is working with local residents to assess damages related to the Jones Fire.  

The Jones Fire which started early Monday morning, August 17th by a lightning strike:

  • Burned 705 acres over 12 days
  • 21 structures destroyed
  • Over 4,000 residents evacuated

Thanks to the hard work of our local firefighters along with CAL FIRE and the quick and proactive evacuations from our Nevada County Sheriff’s Office along with law enforcement partners, many more were saved and no lives were lost.

What to do after a wildfire

If you lost your home or had fire damage to your home or property:

  1. Contact your insurance provider. First, residents affected should get in contact with their insurance agent before removing anything or doing any clean-up on your property. Cleaning up prior to contacting your insurance company could result in a loss of insurance claims. Please work with your agent, insurer claims adjuster, and insurer with a goal of achieving a settlement that you believe is fair and consistent with your coverage. If you have a question about your insurance or a dispute with your insurer, please call the California Department of Insurance (CDI) at 1-800-927-4357. Find more wildfire insurance resources on the California Department of Insurance’s website: http://www.insurance.ca.gov/.  
  2. Replace lost or damaged ID and documents. Fire victims who need to replace lost or damaged DMV-related documents can do so free of charge at a local DMV field office.
  3. Fill out an Application for Reassessment of Property from the Nevada County Assessor’s Office on or before the next property tax installment payment date deadline to request the county assessor to defer payment of that installment of property taxes on the regular secured roll for the current fiscal year. Please complete, sign and return this form to the Nevada County Assessor’s Office in order to assist us with completing the process to assess the extent of the fire damage to your property and potential resulting value reduction.  
  4. Clean-up fire damage to property. Nevada County has declared a local Health Emergency and is currently working with the State to request Federal FEMA funding for individual and public losses related to the Jones Fire. This request is still under review. If a property owner would like to move forward with private property clean-up, Nevada County Community Development Agency has guidelines available for debris and ash clean-up after a wildfire.

As residents move forward it is important for everyone to understand what resources are available to those impacted by the Jones Fire.

Nevada County Office of Emergency Services is coordinating a Recovery Resource Center, with COVID mitigations in place, for those who lost or incurred damage to their homes, outbuildings or property on Wednesday, September 9th from 2:00 to 7:00 p.m. at the Main Street Center (Gate 1) of the Nevada County Fairgrounds. Connect with resources from:

  • Nevada County Office of Emergency Services
  • CalOES
  • Nevada County Building Department
  • Nevada County Environmental Health
  • Nevada County Assessor’s Office
  • Nevada County Social Services
  • Nevada County Behavioral Health
  • Nevada County Consolidate Fire District
  • AT&T

Nevada County Relief Fund for Jones Fire

Apply for Emergency Relief

With Sierra Nevada Memorial Hospital Foundation serving as the Relief Fund’s fiscal sponsor, donations may be made safely and are tax deductible.

Donate

For more information and to make a gift, please visit www.nevcorelief.org/donate. To apply for emergency relief, please visit: www.nevcorelief.org/apply/.

Recovery Efforts

As residents pick up the pieces and move forward it is import to understand what resources are available to you. Fire damages are not the only costs associated with a large scale wildfire. Fire suppression, law enforcement, evacuation, staff time and environmental impacts are other factors that must be considered.

  • August 18th: Nevada County Director of Emergency Management proclaimed a local emergency for the Jones Fire. On the same day, Governor Gavin Newsom proclaimed a State of Emergency. listing Nevada County among others.  Both of these proclamations open up Nevada County to limited financial assistance and reimbursement for losses related to the Jones Fire.
  • September 1st: Nevada County Board of Supervisors approved a local Health Emergency proclamation due to the Jones Fire. This declaration will allow for the cooperation and assistance from state and local agencies and the Nevada County Environmental Health Department for the proper handling and disposal of the hazardous waste and ongoing surveillance of this local health emergency.

The State also requested Federal FEMA funding for individual and public losses related to the Jones Fire. This request is still under review.

Recovery Resources

Nevada County Environmental Health

Nevada County Assessor

Nevada County Building Department

More information will be available soon.

Nevada County Agricultural Commissioner

Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E)