Building community resilience during energy loss: insights from wildfire safety events in California

Purpose The study aims to assess how in-person wildfire safety events contribute to community resilience and emergency preparedness amid planned and unplanned energy loss in wildfire-prone areas, and to evaluate the equity and effectiveness of outreach to at-risk populations. Design/methodology/approach A case study of San Diego Gas & Electric's Summer Wildfire Safety Events used attendee surveys to capture demographics, perceived wildfire and outage risk, preparedness levels and awareness of emergency resources. Survey responses were compared with regional census indicators to gauge representativeness and identify outreach gaps among high-risk groups. Findings Attendance was skewed toward homeowners and older adults, especially those aged 65+, who are vulnerable to power loss and appear more motivated to seek preparedness resources. Renters, younger residents, people with limited access to information and individuals with disabilities were underrepresented. The census-survey comparison highlighted significant gaps in reach, indicating that current event formats and channels may not equitably engage populations most likely to face barriers during energy loss. Research limitations/implications Findings derive from a single regional case and cross-sectional, self-selected survey data, which may limit generalizability. Future research should test the approach across multiple utilities/regions and track longitudinal outcomes (e.g. preparedness behaviors before/after events). Practical implications Results point to the need for targeted outreach strategies (e.g. renter-focused channels, partnerships with disability and youth organizations, multilingual and accessible materials, varied times/locations) to broaden participation and ensure equitable access to preparedness resources during energy loss. Social implications Improving the inclusivity of wildfire safety events can reduce disproportionate harms from power outages, strengthen trust in risk communication and enhance community-level resilience for populations historically underserved in disaster preparedness. Originality/value The study foregrounds energy loss as a critical dimension of wildfire risk and examines utility-hosted, in-person safety events as a resilience intervention. It contributes a practical equity-assessment approach by cross-walking event survey data with census benchmarks to diagnose who is – and is not – being reached, generating actionable guidance for more inclusive preparedness efforts.