California faces the broadest range of major disaster threats of any state: catastrophic wildfires, major earthquakes, tsunamis along the coast, floods, debris flows, and extreme heat. It also runs the nation's largest prison firefighting program, deploying incarcerated crews to fight the very wildfires that threaten communities and prisons alike. When a disaster threatens a California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) facility, families confront a hard reality documented by the state's own watchdog: as of 2025, CDCR had no specific plans to externally evacuate prisons in a natural disaster.
This article covers what happens during California disaster emergencies, what the state's own audit revealed, how families can prepare, what to expect during a crisis, and what to do in the aftermath.
PART 1 - CALIFORNIA DOC DISASTER AND EMERGENCY PROCEDURES
OFFICIAL EMERGENCY PROCEDURES (AND A CRITICAL AUDIT FINDING)
The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) operates roughly 31 adult institutions housing approximately 92,000 incarcerated people (as of mid-2025), plus a network of about 35 conservation (fire) camps. Despite the state's extreme disaster exposure, CDCR's emergency planning has been found seriously deficient.
The defining document: In May 2025, the California Office of the Inspector General (OIG) published the "Audit of the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation's Natural Disaster Emergency Preparedness and Mitigation Efforts." Its central finding: CDCR "does not have specific plans to externally evacuate prisons in response to natural disasters."
In plain terms: while individual facilities have internal emergency procedures, the state's own watchdog found that CDCR lacks concrete, ready plans to move an entire prison's population to safety if a wildfire, earthquake, or tsunami forces a full evacuation. Incarcerated people and their advocates have repeatedly reported that they were never shown evacuation plans and never participated in evacuation drills.
What incarcerated people report:
- At California Correctional Center (Susanville) during the 2021 Dixie Fire, the chair of the inmate advisory council said there were never any evacuation drills and he was never shown any evacuation plan
- At San Quentin during a 2025 tsunami scare, an incarcerated journalist said there had never been any emergency preparedness or evacuation training for incarcerated people for fires, earthquakes, or anything else
This gap is the single most important thing for California families to understand: do not assume a detailed, rehearsed evacuation plan exists for your loved one's facility.
EVACUATION PROTOCOL (WHAT ACTUALLY HAPPENS)
In practice, when disaster threatens, CDCR tends to shelter in place rather than evacuate, in part because:
- Most facilities are severely overcrowded (many well over 100% capacity), so receiving prisons have little room to absorb a transferred population
- Moving thousands of high-security inmates is logistically enormous and security-sensitive
- Neighboring prisons may be threatened by the same regional disaster simultaneously
Documented decisions:
- 2020 LNU Lightning Complex Fire (Vacaville): With fire threatening the area, officials at CSP-Solano and the California Medical Facility (CMF) chose NOT to move prisoners. Inmates housed in tents at CMF were moved indoors due to smoke, and N95 masks were offered.
- 2021 Dixie Fire (Susanville): California Correctional Center sheltered in place; a backup generator reportedly failed (and had needed repairs for years).
When evacuation does happen, inmates are transported under guard by bus to other CDCR facilities. There is no published external mass-evacuation plan, so these moves are organized ad hoc during the emergency.
THE CONSERVATION (FIRE) CAMP PROGRAM - UNIQUE TO CALIFORNIA
California is distinctive: it deploys incarcerated firefighters to fight wildfires. CDCR operates roughly 35 conservation camps (fire camps) in partnership with CAL FIRE and the California Governor's Office of Emergency Services.
- Minimum-security incarcerated people volunteer and train as wildland firefighters
- They cut fire lines, clear brush, and perform fire suppression, often on 24-hour shifts during active emergencies
- Pay is roughly $5 to $10 per day, plus about $1 per hour when assigned to an active emergency
- During the January 2025 Los Angeles fires, CDCR reported 783 fire camp firefighters deployed, including 88 support staff
For families: if your loved one is in a fire camp, they may be deployed to an active fire away from the camp, working long shifts in dangerous conditions. Communication during deployment can be limited or cut off entirely. This is a different situation from a traditional prison and carries real physical risk.
FAMILY NOTIFICATION
California does not operate a single publicized statewide family notification system for prison disasters. CDCR communicates through:
- The CDCR website and "Inside CDCR" news posts
- Press statements to media (CDCR is often slow to respond or does not respond during fast-moving emergencies, per reporting)
- The California Incarcerated Records and Information Search (CIRIS) for locating an incarcerated person
How to receive information: Families must proactively monitor the CDCR website, CIRIS, CAL FIRE/CAL OES incident updates, and local news.
COMMUNICATION DURING DISASTER
Phone systems: California uses ConnectNetwork/GTL (now ViaPath) for inmate phone service. During a disaster, calls may be suspended; power outages (as at High Desert State Prison during 2020 fires) can take phones offline even when backup generators keep the institution running.
Finding your incarcerated person: Use CIRIS (California Incarcerated Records and Information Search) on the CDCR website. During a major disaster, updates may lag.
Visitation: Suspended during emergencies and for days afterward; resumes once the facility stabilizes.
Email/messaging and deposits: Electronic systems typically go offline during disruptions and restore once operations normalize.
PERSONAL PROPERTY, ACCOUNTS, COURT DATES
Personal property: In any transfer, inmates take minimal belongings; most property stays behind and may be shipped later (weeks to months) with risk of loss or damage.
Trust/commissary and phone accounts: Temporarily frozen during disruption; balances generally follow the incarcerated person.
Court and release dates: Release processing can pause during an emergency and resume once the person is stabilized; court dates may be postponed and rescheduled.
CLIMATE AND GEOGRAPHIC VULNERABILITY
California's risk profile is the most varied in the nation. According to analyses cited in reporting, two-thirds of California prisons are near or inside fire zones, and roughly two dozen prisons housing tens of thousands of people sit within five miles of fire hazard zones.
WILDFIRE-VULNERABLE FACILITIES:
- California Correctional Center (Susanville, Lassen County) - directly threatened by the 2021 Dixie Fire; remote, forested
- High Desert State Prison (Susanville) - power outage during 2020 fires
- CSP-Solano and California Medical Facility (Vacaville) - threatened by 2020 LNU Lightning Complex Fire
- Sierra foothills facilities (Mule Creek, Sierra Conservation Center) - foothill fire zones
- San Diego-area and Sierra facilities - among prisons identified inside fire zones
- The ~35 conservation camps - located in fire-prone wildland by design
EARTHQUAKE-VULNERABLE FACILITIES (California is highly seismically active):
- San Quentin Rehabilitation Center (Marin County, on San Francisco Bay) - Bay Area seismic zone, coastal
- Bay Area and Central Valley facilities - near major fault systems
- Southern California facilities (CIM Chino, CIW, California Rehabilitation Center) - near active faults
TSUNAMI-VULNERABLE FACILITIES (coastal):
- Pelican Bay State Prison (Crescent City, Del Norte County) - Crescent City is one of the highest tsunami-risk locations on the U.S. West Coast; a July 2025 M8.8 Kamchatka earthquake put the region under a tsunami warning
- San Quentin (on San Francisco Bay) - subject of a 2025 tsunami scare; incarcerated people reported "no expectation of survival"
FLOOD/DEBRIS-FLOW AND EXTREME HEAT:
- Central Valley facilities (Avenal, Corcoran, CCWF Chowchilla, Wasco, North Kern) - extreme heat and flood exposure
- Post-wildfire burn areas - debris-flow risk during rains
NOTE: The combination of extreme overcrowding and lack of an external evacuation plan is what makes California's situation uniquely precarious. A regional disaster threatening multiple prisons at once would strain the system severely.
PART 2 - CALIFORNIA COUNTY JAILS DURING DISASTERS
California has 58 counties, each operating jails under the county sheriff. Jails make their own emergency decisions. During the January 2025 Los Angeles wildfires, reporting found that some jails and detention facilities near the fires had not evacuated and were managing air-quality issues with N95 masks rather than relocating detainees.
MAJOR CALIFORNIA COUNTY JAIL EXAMPLES:
Los Angeles County (Men's Central Jail, Twin Towers, and others):
- Largest jail system in the nation
- Wildfire smoke and air-quality exposure during regional fires
- Contact: LA County Sheriff's Department, 213-473-6100
- Website: lasd.org
San Diego County (San Diego Central Jail and others):
- Wildfire and coastal exposure
- Contact: San Diego County Sheriff, 858-974-2222
Riverside / San Bernardino County jails:
- Inland Empire; wildfire and extreme heat exposure
- Contact: Riverside Sheriff 951-955-2400; San Bernardino Sheriff 909-884-0156
For any other California county jail: contact the county sheriff's office and ask about disaster and evacuation procedures.
PART 3 - FEDERAL BOP FACILITIES IN CALIFORNIA
BOP FACILITIES IN CALIFORNIA
Federal Bureau of Prisons facilities in California include:
1. FCI MENDOTA (Fresno County, Central Valley) - medium security with camp; extreme heat, Central Valley exposure
2. USP ATWATER (Merced County, Central Valley) - high security with camp; Central Valley exposure
3. FCI HERLONG (Lassen County, northeastern California) - medium security with camp; remote, wildfire and winter exposure, near Susanville
4. FCI TERMINAL ISLAND (Los Angeles, San Pedro) - low security, coastal/island; tsunami and coastal flood exposure
5. METROPOLITAN DETENTION CENTER LOS ANGELES (downtown LA) - pretrial/holding; urban, wildfire smoke exposure
6. FCI DUBLIN (Alameda County) - note: BOP announced closure of FCI Dublin in 2024; verify current status
BOP EMERGENCY PROCEDURES
BOP operates under federal emergency protocols and can transfer inmates between federal facilities across state lines. Families are typically notified through the Federal Inmate Locator (updated within about 24 hours of a transfer), and Trust Fund accounts follow the inmate.
BOP CONTACT FOR CALIFORNIA FACILITIES
Federal Bureau of Prisons Emergency Operations: 202-307-3198
Inmate Locator: bop.gov/inmateloc/ or inmatelocator.bop.gov
PART 4 - WHAT FAMILIES SHOULD DO (BEFORE, DURING, AFTER)
BEFORE DISASTER SEASON (WILDFIRE: SUMMER-FALL PEAK, YEAR-ROUND; EARTHQUAKE/TSUNAMI: NO WARNING; FLOOD/DEBRIS FLOW: WINTER RAINS)
Register and update contact information:
- Call the facility and update your phone, email, and mailing address
- Sign up for county emergency alerts where your loved one is housed
- Bookmark CIRIS (California Incarcerated Records and Information Search)
Know your incarcerated person's current facility:
- Use CIRIS on the CDCR website
- Write down: full legal name, CDCR number, and current facility/housing
Understand the planning gap:
- Per the 2025 OIG audit, CDCR has no specific external prison evacuation plan
- Ask the facility directly about its emergency procedures, but do not assume a rehearsed plan exists
- If your loved one is in a fire camp, understand they may be deployed to active fires
Create a family emergency communication plan:
- Assign one person to try reaching the incarcerated person first
- Establish how to share updates among family
- Write down CDCR/facility numbers and county emergency contacts
Save account information:
- ConnectNetwork/ViaPath phone account details
- Trust/commissary account details
- Copies of legal documents
Understand California's disaster risks:
- Wildfire: peak summer-fall, increasingly year-round
- Earthquake/tsunami: no warning; coastal facilities (Pelican Bay/Crescent City, San Quentin) face tsunami risk
- Flood/debris flow: winter rains, especially in burn-scar areas
- Extreme heat: Central Valley facilities
DURING A DISASTER THREAT
Monitor official sources:
- CAL FIRE and CAL OES for wildfire incident updates
- USGS and the National Tsunami Warning Center for earthquakes/tsunamis
- National Weather Service
- Local news and county emergency management
Do NOT call the facility repeatedly:
- Staff are managing the emergency; lines will be overloaded
- Wait for official updates
For earthquakes/tsunamis: expect little or no warning and sudden communication loss.
DURING THE DISASTER
Do NOT contact the facility:
- Communications may be offline
- Staff are focused on safety and security
Monitor official channels only:
- CDCR website and Inside CDCR
- CAL FIRE/CAL OES
- Local news
Expect communication blackout:
- 24-72 hours typical; longer after major events or extended power outages
IMMEDIATELY AFTER (WITHIN 24-72 HOURS)
Use CIRIS to locate your incarcerated person:
- Search by name or CDCR number
- May lag during large disasters
Call the facility or CDCR if CIRIS is not updated:
- Give the full legal name and CDCR number
- Ask whether the person is safe and where they are housed
For BOP inmates, use the federal locator:
- bop.gov/inmateloc/ or call 202-307-3198
Do NOT call the original facility if it was affected:
- Staff are managing damage assessment
SHORT-TERM AND LONG-TERM AFTERMATH
- Expect phone delays even after service is "restored"
- Ask about personal property location, shipping, and any loss
- Verify trust/commissary and phone balances
- Confirm court and release date status
- Document property loss and file a claim
- For fire camp deployments, ask about the person's safety, shift conditions, and return to camp
- Provide feedback to CDCR and the OIG if notification or safety procedures failed
PART 5 - HISTORICAL CONTEXT: CALIFORNIA DISASTERS AND PRISONS
2025 LOS ANGELES WILDFIRES (JANUARY 2025)
Catastrophic urban wildfires | January 2025
In January 2025, devastating wildfires swept through the Los Angeles area (including the Palisades and Eaton fires), among the most destructive in California history. Prisons, jails, and fire camps in the region faced smoke and air-quality threats, and incarcerated firefighters were central to the response.
What happened:
- CDCR reported 783 fire camp firefighters deployed to the fires, including 88 support staff, cutting fire lines and removing fuel around structures, often on 24-hour shifts
- Incarcerated firefighters earned roughly $5 to $10 per day plus about $1 per hour on active emergencies
- LA-area jails and a fire camp faced possible air-quality issues; some local jails managed with N95 masks rather than evacuating
Family impact:
- Families of deployed fire camp crews had limited contact during the around-the-clock firefighting
- Families of people in LA-area jails faced uncertainty about air quality and safety
- CDCR was reported as not responding to some media inquiries during the emergency
2021 DIXIE FIRE / SUSANVILLE (AUGUST 2021)
Largest single wildfire in California history at the time | Summer 2021
The Dixie Fire burned near Susanville in northeastern California, threatening the California Correctional Center (CCC) and the surrounding community.
What happened:
- While Susanville residents prepared to evacuate, incarcerated people at CCC had no evacuation drills and were never shown evacuation plans, according to the inmate advisory council chair
- A backup generator at the facility reportedly failed and had needed repairs for over 20 years
- Incarcerated people endured smoke-filled conditions
Family impact:
- Families could not be sure whether or how their loved ones would be evacuated if flames reached the prison
- The episode became a prominent example, widely reported, of the gap between community evacuation and prison sheltering-in-place
Aftermath and context: The Newsom administration had announced plans to close CCC; litigation by the town delayed the closure. CCC and its associated camps were later restructured, with conservation camp oversight shifting toward the Sierra Conservation Center.
2020 LNU LIGHTNING COMPLEX / VACAVILLE (AUGUST 2020)
Massive Northern California fire complex | August-September 2020
The LNU Lightning Complex fire threatened Vacaville, home to CSP-Solano and the California Medical Facility (CMF), a major medical/mental-health prison.
What happened:
- Prison officials chose NOT to evacuate Solano and CMF
- Inmates housed in tents at CMF were temporarily moved indoors due to smoke; N95 masks were offered
- Incarcerated firefighters from CMF, CSP-Solano, and Folsom assisted with rescue and evacuation in the community
- Separately, August 2020 fires caused a power outage at High Desert State Prison, with backup generators keeping the institution running
- During the Gold Fire near the Lassen/Modoc border, CCC sent 24 crews totaling 320 incarcerated firefighters
Family impact:
- The decision not to evacuate avoided worsening overcrowding but left medically vulnerable people in a smoke-affected facility
- Families monitored regional fire news with little direct facility communication
2025 TSUNAMI SCARES (JULY 2025) AND EARTHQUAKE/TSUNAMI RISK
M8.8 Kamchatka earthquake | July 29-30, 2025
In late July 2025, a magnitude 8.8 earthquake off Kamchatka, Russia, triggered tsunami warnings across the Pacific, including for Crescent City, California, home to Pelican Bay State Prison. Crescent City is one of the most tsunami-exposed locations on the U.S. West Coast because its shallow offshore waters amplify wave height.
In a related episode, incarcerated people at San Quentin (on San Francisco Bay) described having "no expectation of survival" during a tsunami scare, with reports that some staff were permitted to evacuate while no evacuation plan or training existed for incarcerated people.
Why it matters:
- Pelican Bay (Crescent City) and San Quentin (San Francisco Bay) are coastal facilities exposed to tsunami risk after major Pacific earthquakes
- The episodes reinforced the OIG finding that CDCR lacks external evacuation plans
THE 2025 OIG AUDIT - THE DEFINING DOCUMENT
California Office of the Inspector General | May 2025
In May 2025, the California OIG published its "Audit of the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation's Natural Disaster Emergency Preparedness and Mitigation Efforts," concluding that CDCR "does not have specific plans to externally evacuate prisons in response to natural disasters."
Why it matters for families:
- It is the clearest official confirmation that, despite California's extreme disaster exposure, the prison system is not prepared to move incarcerated populations to safety in a full-scale evacuation
- It validates years of reports from incarcerated people about the absence of drills and plans
- It is the single most important context for any California family: prepare for sheltering-in-place to be the default, and for communication blackouts during major events
LESSONS FROM CALIFORNIA'S DISASTER HISTORY:
1. Sheltering in place is the default, not evacuation. Overcrowding and the lack of an external evacuation plan mean CDCR typically keeps people in facilities during disasters.
2. The planning gap is officially documented. The 2025 OIG audit confirms no specific external evacuation plans exist.
3. Fire camps carry unique risk. Incarcerated firefighters are deployed into active fires, with real danger and limited communication.
4. Coastal facilities face tsunami risk. Pelican Bay (Crescent City) and San Quentin are exposed; 2025 events made this concrete.
5. Communication is often slow or absent. CDCR has been reported as unresponsive during fast-moving emergencies, so families should rely on CIRIS and official incident updates and expect blackouts.