Wildfire Awareness and Preparedness / Defensible Space
Contact(s): Kim George This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 530-542-6037 South Lake Tahoe Fire Rescue
LAKE TAHOE, Calif./Nev. - Wildfire preparedness and defensible space are buzzword terms especially around springtime and throughout the warm seasons. The Caldor Fire demonstrated the reality of fire threat in Tahoe and the burn scar is a regular reminder. Additionally, we are facing growing challenges caused by the changing climate.
As our seasons seem to be warmer and windier, the fire threat increases. As we’ve seen over the last several years the0 trend is wildland fires becoming larger, more erratic and more costly. In recent years, it has become common for fires to become ‘complex fires’, meaning 2 or more fires meeting becoming a massive event i.e. the Dixie Fire.
In 2022, an estimated 1.2 billion dollars were spent to mitigate wildfires in California (2023, Statista.com). While the threat of fire is significant there is plenty of work that can be done to mitigate that threat. There are ways to protect your property from wildfire and give your home and your community the best possible potential for survival through a firestorm. Wildfire awareness and preparedness is essential because all of Lake Tahoe is in the wildfire urban interface.
Awareness and preparedness mean knowing how to get pertinent information relating to fire and being ready to adjust according to that information. This means information sources on such things as red flag days, alert systems in case of fire, evacuation information, fire restrictions in your area and even knowing how to prepare by providing defensible space and home hardening. There are several local resources that will help you find all the information you need.
A good place to start is connecting with local fire agencies who regularly offer information on social media sites pertaining to a number of topics. Fire departments will let you know when we have a red flag day. Red flag days are determined by the National Weather Service and essentially mean warm temperatures, very low humidities, and stronger winds are expected to combine to produce an increased risk of fire danger (2023, National Weather Service). During a red flag day, no outdoor BBQs or fire pits are permitted due to the increased fire risk and extra caution should be taken.
Local fire agencies will also keep you informed on local fire restrictions. In an effort to keep messaging consistent all Tahoe Basin fire districts work to implement fire restrictions at the same time. Once CAL FIRE announces that conditions warrant a burn ban then we all implement those same restrictions. Messaging will go out through Tahoe Fire & Fuels Teams as well as from each individual fire district or fire department. Once they are in effect we do not allow campfires or solid fuel BBQ cooking.
The best way to stay informed is to sign up with your county for emergency notification. Each county has an alert system that will send you messages (or call you) in the event of an emergency, such as a fire or evacuation. These systems are commonly referred to as “reverse 911” but now are more often associated with an app on your smart phone.
In Tahoe, an excellent resource is TahoeLivingWithFire.com. This website provides an immense amount of information on how to be better prepared for fire season including what you can do around your home to make it as fire safe as possible.
It is important to understand that the fire threat is generally not a wall of fire approaching your home; it is a simple ember. Embers have a vicious way of finding their way into a home. The prevention work we do focuses on educating residents about what they can do to be prepared and how keep those embers out.
We encourage you to learn more and do your part in making your home, neighborhood and community more firesafe. Yes, there are measures that can be costly, but many are not. We encourage you to learn more and do your part in making your home, neighborhood and community more fire safe.
2023, Statista.com. Wildfire suppression expenditures in California from FY 2012 to FY 2022. Retrieved from statista.com/statistics/942873/wildfire-suppression-expenditures-california/
2023, National Weather Service. Red Flag Tips. Retrieved from https://www.weather.gov/mqt/redflagtips
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