Due to the large number of public requests for escorts into the evacuation order areas of Paradise, Magalia and Concow, the Butte County Sheriff’s Office and Paradise Police Department have established a process to provide law enforcement escorts for critical needs. New procedures have been established to minimize confusion and provide better service to our community.
The fire affected areas under evacuation have extensive rehabilitation work being conducted to render the areas safe for re-population at later date. These efforts involve large numbers of personnel and equipment working on and around the roadways. Many areas have single lane traffic control points that require slowing or stopping the progress of work crews to allow traffic through.
The Sheriff’s Office and Paradise Police Department understand the desire of displaced people to return to their property to assess damage, retrieve belongings or search for recoverable items within the remnants of their homes. These needs have to be balanced with the needs of the work crews to complete their tasks to allow the re-opening of these areas when it is safe.
At this time, Law Enforcement will only be providing escorts for a limited number of priority circumstances:
- Recovery of a vehicle needed for work or habitation (RV’s etc.)
- Recovery of a small amount of material needed for work such as records or computers
- Recovery of animals left behind
- Recovery of necessary medications or medical devices
- Property evaluation by insurance adjusters
Prior to submitting a request for an escort, please use the drone map available at https://buttecountyrecovers.org/Maps to confirm that the structures or vehicle(s) in question remain intact.
Approved escort requests will be subject to the following limitations and rules:
- Time on site will be limited to 15 minutes. Remaining on scene after being told to leave by the escorting agency or travelling to unapproved areas may result in arrest.
- No minors (under 18 years old) will be allowed in the Evacuation Order zones.
Due to the high demand for services, limited resources available and negative impacts of increased traffic on rehabilitation efforts, requests for escorts for the following reasons cannot be accommodated at this time:
- General checks or searches of properties
- Sifting through debris for remaining property
- Searches for vehicles
- Moving out of residences in the affected areas
- Area searches for pets
- Maintenance of properties
- As additional rehabilitation work is completed and/or as resources become available, some of these restrictions may be lifted. If this occurs, the public will be notified via media and social media releases.
Safety
Assisting law enforcement or National Guard units make no guarantees that specified locations are accessible or safe. Any damaged structures should not be assumed safe for entry. All actions taken in the Evacuation Area are at the risk of the person making the request.
Request Process
The Butte County Sheriff’s Office, Paradise Police Department, California Highway Patrol and Army National Guard have established a unified call center and online system to handle requests for escorts into the evacuated areas of Paradise, Magalia and Concow.
Phone: 530-897-8873
Available from 8:00 AM to 6:00 PM
Online:
Prior to calling the hotline, please have the following information available:
- Address, city and evacuation zone (if known)
- Purpose of escort
- Contact information for person requesting escort
Results of requests are not instantaneous. Requests will be processed in the order they are received. Updates on the status of your request are not available from field units, dispatch centers, or the request hotline. As your request is processed and evaluated, you will be contacted to schedule the escort or explain why your request cannot be accommodated at that time. Please be patient with this process as a large number of requests are anticipated.
We appreciate your patience and understanding with the extended delays to open these evacuated areas and will continue to look for every opportunity to provide the best possible service to our community.