A Guide to

Forest & Wildfires

There is no denying that 2017 was an extreme weather year.

And, forest fires were particularly detrimental to the United States. In California, the La Tuna fire in Southern California burned more than 7,200 acres and jumped over one of the busiest interstates inside the Los Angeles county lines. The fire was the largest in Los Angeles history to date.

And that was only one fire.

Thousands of fires plagued the U.S. alone. Before the La Tuna fire ignited, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration estimated ​damage from the 2017 wildfires at around $10 billion. As of September 2017, more than 8 million acres of U.S. land had burned from wildfires.

Difficult lessons were learned from this wildfire season, which was one the worst in nearly a decade.

What We Learned From The Wildfire Season

One of the hardest lessons from the 2017 fire season was that homeowners are often more affected by the wild blazes than they think. The fires that plagued Northern California’s wine region destroyed over 8,400 structures, more than half of which were residential dwellings.

Your home doesn’t have to be tucked into the woods to be at risk of damage from wildfires. As we saw in with Tubb’s Fire, which blazed through the populous city of Santa Rosa, California, fires fueled by weather conditions, topography and vegetation can wreak havoc on wilderness and homes spread across hundreds of miles. Sometimes even densely populated areas.

How Can We Apply The Lessons Learned?

Let’s dive into the basics of forest fires, and how homeowners can protect themselves from damage but immediately and long-term.

What Causes Forest Fires?

How a forest fire starts is pretty simple. Forest fires are either caused by a human, or via a natural conductor.

  • Natural Forest Fires

    Natural forest fires are generally started by lightning, with a very small percentage started by spontaneous combustion of dry fuel like sawdust or leaves.

  • Human Forest Fires

    Human forest fires are caused by a wider-variety of things like smoking, recreation, arson or other equipment.

Lightning was, in most places, the only ignition source before humans started to use fire. Now, human-caused fires make up a greater percentage of total forest fires started.

On the other hand, natural fires tend to cause a larger total area burned.

How Wildfires Spread

According to a white paper conducted by North Carolina State, the distance a wildfire spreads is influenced by three major characteristics:

  • 1Weather

    Components like temperature and wind play a significant role in the spread of wildfire. Air temperature has a direct influence on fire behavior because of the heat requirements for ignition and combustion. Wind increases the supply of oxygen, which can make a fire burn more rapidly. Additionally, wind can change direction and intensity throughout the day which can make the wildfire change direction and expand more substantially.

  • 2Topography

    The characteristics of the land can change how a fire is tackled and how it can spread. For instance, an area surrounded by water won’t burn as much as land caught in a drought. Additionally, the slope of the land can manipulate the convection and radiation of a fire making it spread more or less based on conditions.

  • 3Vegetation

    As you may assume, vegetation can be the fuel for a fire. Dry conditions and trees can feed the blaze and give it longevity. Characteristics of highly flammable plants might include, dry and dead leaves or twigs, dense foliage or foliage with low moisture, and peeling bark.

All plants are flammable if not pruned occasionally. And, for fires that have made it into residential areas, tree branches that are overgrown and not properly trimmed are exceptionally vulnerable to catching fire.

  • The fire triangle, which is comprised of oxygen, heat, and fuel is a slightly more scientific look how fires start and spread. A fire needs all three elements to live, by eliminating one can you suppress a fire. Until one element is removed, wildfires will continue to grow and spread.

What Homeowners Must Know About Decreasing Risk of Property Loss During Forest Fires

There are steps homeowners can take to protect themselves in the event of a wildfire. Each of the following steps either prepares your home for a fire to lessen the risk of ignitability or protects you in the aftermath.

1

Mitigate Loss and Insure Yourself Properly

As a bare minimum, every homeowner should have a homeowners insurance policy. And, most likely, if you have a mortgage, homeowner’s insurance is already required.

Still, it’s important to remember that not all homeowners insurance policies are created equally. Some may not cover fires, others may cover a house fire but not wildfires.

If you live in an area that is high risk for wildfires, you should consider, and verify, your policy covers some of the following components of a comprehensive homeowners insurance policy.


  • Dwelling coverage

    Helps cover expenses related to repairing or rebuilding your home.


  • Personal property coverage

    Is a financial safeguard if you need to replace any of your belongings that were destroyed in a fire.


  • Living expenses

    If you aren’t able to live in your home because of a wildfire or other natural disaster, ensure your homeowners insurance covers living expenses while you rebuild your home or until you can return to your property.


  • Other structural protection

    If you have structures like a shed or gazebo ​ ​on your property it might be important to add additional structural protection to your insurance policy.

As a rule of thumb, you should review your homeowner’s insurance annually, especially if you’ve remodeled or updated your home. Changes to your home could increase the cost to replace your property if it’s lost to a wildfire.

Additionally, some homeowners insurance covers preventative measures to protect your home from wildfires, too. For instance, sometimes homeowners insurance covers tree removal which can be fuel to a wildfire or pose a danger if the tree is near electric wires.

2

Clear Flammable Debris from Your Home

We covered some of the ways wildfires spread in the sections above. Fires spreading by vegetation specifically relates to homeowners who keep a lawn or trees around their house. Pruning trees can significantly reduce the risk of wildfires igniting or spreading further. Additionally, removing low hanging vegetation that can ignite, or spark on electric.

Trees growing near power lines are not only prone to affecting your home’s power, they are also a fire and safety risk regardless of a wildfire threat. These reasons make it incredibly important to trim ​or ​remove trees as needed.

3

Learn About (and Act on) Defensible Space

Creating defensible space is essential to improving your home’s chance of surviving a wildfire. In order to create defensible space, homeowners should clear or reduce fuels to slow the spread of fire is known as creating defensible space.

Think of defensible space as the buffer between a building on your property and the grass, trees, shrubs, or any wildland area that surround it.

Or as Cal Fire says, create a “lean, clean and green zone” by removing all flammable vegetation within 30 feet immediately surrounding your home. If possible, 100 feet defensible space is ideal.

Defensible space is also important for the protection of the firefighters defending your home.

4

Reduce Structural Ignitability

A property’s landscape and building material can make or break a homeowner’s fire safety. As of 2008, homeowners began building with more ignition-resistant construction for roofs, gutters, vents, walls and windows.

If your property is older than 2008, consider updates to your home to decrease the risk of ignitability.

It’s also necessary to remove dead branches overhanging your roof or your chimney. If tree branches hang lower than six feet from the ground, it’s wise to trim or remove these branches as they can easily catch fire.

Landscaping with fire-resistant plants is another way to protect your home in the event of a wildfire. California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection’s homeowner’s checklist provides a comprehensive list of actions homeowners can take to protect their homes from a fire. If you have a lot of interest in learning more, you can consider getting an online forestry degree.

5

Create A Plan for You and Your Family

Even if you take precautions, wildfires are unpredictable and can force your community and household to evacuate. In the event of an emergency or evacuation, make sure you and your family have a plan. For example:

Make a checklist of things that are important, and if danger is nearing, collect these items for an easy escape.

Make sure your vehicle is equipped with an emergency supply kit complete with food, water and clothing in the event you are unable to find shelter right away.

Ensure your home address is labeled clearly in the event an ambulance, law enforcement officer or firefighter need to respond. It’s advised to make your address numbers at least 3 inches tall and on a contrasting background.

If you do need to evacuate, shut all windows and doors but leave them unlocked so first responders can act quickly.

If you have time, shut off the gas at the meter and turn off pilot lights.

Remember to leave your lights on so firefighters can see your house at night, or in the thick of smoke.

For further reading and a more comprehensive list of evacuation action items ​ consider an evacuation guide.

Trimming and Removing Your Trees Can Help Protect Against Forest Fires

The more you know about wildfires, the more you can do to protect your property. One of the easiest and most meaningful first steps you can take is to trim the trees around your property.

Tree trimming can be done by you or a professional. There are many factors to consider like:

  • Tree size
  • Complexity of the work
  • Tree condition

If a tree is near or tangled up in a power line, then extra precautions and considerations need to come into play during the tree removal process. While this can add to the expense of tree removal, it also makes the service necessary as the current position of the tree poses an immediate fire danger.