EFFECTIVE MEASURES FOR EMBER RESILIENCE: At our 2025 Annual Meeting, our keynote speaker, Berkeley’s Assistant Fire Chief Colin Arnold shared with us how to make our homes and neighborhoods more wildfire safe. No longer based on theories, research has identified specific actions people and communities can take. “When you examine why some homes survive a wildfire, it may appear random but in most cases it’s not,” said Chief Arnold, who runs Berkeley’s wildland-urban interface division, during a 2024 webinar. “Homes that are hardened and have adequate separation from one another and have fire-resistive landscaping, especially in that first five feet around structures, are much more likely to survive.” Below is the presentation he shared with us at our event.
Toggle inside the slide show below and scroll down to view the presentation or click here to view the full presentation on a separate window.
EVACUATION PREPARATION: The basic facts supporting quick evacuation during fires are simple. Staying behind in a major wildfire is serious business and must not be attempted when the order to evacuate is given. Review your household’s evacuation zone at Genasys Protect. Officials will use these zones they need to share evacuation instructions. Evacuation guide and go-bag checklist (PDF). Prepare to survive wildfire, earthquakes, and other disasters (survival guides are here).
DEFENSIBLE SPACE: Creating and maintaining defensible space is one of the most important ways to protect your home from wildfire. Defensible space will improve the chance that an ember resistant house will survive on its own, and greatly improve the odds that firefighters will attempt to defend your home. Defensible space can be a designed landscape of well-maintained plants and hardscape surrounding your home, with fuel management of up to 100 feet as required by state law or by city code. Click on the video above or go to the Oakland Firesafe Council. For Oakland’s brochure click here →
HARDENING YOUR HOME (ember resistant homes): Preparing your home to resist burning embers is the next most important thing you can do. Current building codes are creating more fire-safe homes but all structures are vulnerable to wildfire and many older structures are especially vulnerable. A summary guide for hardening your home is found here. For a complete guide of preparing your home, see Bob Sieben's The Homeowners Guide to Wildfire Protection here→
ALERTS: Best summation of what you can do to prepare for wildfire: get Cal Fire's Ready, Set, Go app for your phone. For Alameda County’s alert system for the East Bay Hills, go to AC Alert.
