How a 2016 wildfire impacted an entire region | Leveraging Opportunity Zones for Resilience

The Blue Cut Fire began on the morning of August 16, 2016 in the Cajon Pass, a mountain pass in San Bernardino County, just west of the Interstate 15 highway. When it was first reported just before eleven in the morning, the fire was only two acres; by nighttime, it had reached 18,000 acres. Flames traveled up a mountain slope to a point where the wind could carry embers over the highway, prompting the closures of portions of Highway 138 and both sides of I-15. California Governor Jerry Brown declared a state of emergency for San Bernardino County on August 16 after the fire had burned 15,000 acres in under 12 hours. The following evening, 82,000 residents had been forced to evacuate from their homes and by August 19 fire officials estimated that 96 homes had been destroyed by the fire.

Hospitals in Mogadishu struggled to accommodate an influx of extremely injured civilians from the truck bombings

On October 14, a double truck bombing exploded in Mogadishu, Somalia, which injured 300 civilians and killed approximately 277 people. First responders and hospital staff were quickly overwhelmed as most civilians were barely recognizable from their burns and needed immediate medical services. In Mogadishu, the two major hospitals closest to the explosion site are Banadir Hospital and Medina Hospital. The Federal Government of Somalia classifies Banadir hospital to be the only ‘National Referral Hospital’ in the country, which entails they offer maternal and child health facilities and services. Medina hospital treats “several hundred war-wounded patients and expectant mothers every month”, and is focused more on trauma and emergency services.

Helping cities of all sizes: California Opportunity Zone Partnership aims to guide investment

Last September marked the launch of the California Opportunity Zone Partnership, organized by the national nonprofit organization Accelerator for America and consisting of the State of California, the Energy Foundation, and the Cities of Oakland, San Francisco, San Jose, and Los Angeles. It aims to support government officials of small to medium sized California cities in taking advantage of their opportunity zones in  ways that will be beneficial to their communities.