Several GFPD residents attended a one day Home Ignition Zone (HIZ) consultation workshop presented by the Plumas County Fire Safe Council, CAL FIRE, and the U. S. Forest Service to learn about fire behavior characteristics and how a homeowner can modify their immediate environment to reduce the fire risk on their property. The Home Ignition Zone includes the home and surrounding vegetation which can be at risk from flames and embers. Homeowner's actions, or more often the lack of action, often play a decisive role in determining the winners and losers in a wildfire. Homeowner's prior actions also play a key role in firefighter safety when structure protection actions are necessary. The training covered how to evaluate the risk of losing homes when a wildfire threatens, what causes homes to burn, what defensible space is, how forest fuels affect fire behavior, factors affecting firefighter safety when they provide structure protection, and how to safely burn dooryard materials.
The consultation is performed as a walkthrough with the property owner(s) and usually two consultants who will recommend any changes to make the property more fire safe. The additional eyes of the consultants will provide an objective look at your property. They will offer suggestions of what they would do if it was their property to make it safer. The purpose is to reduce the risk - fire safe not fire proof - you do not have to have bare dirt or strip your property to be fire safe.
No information is reported to anyone outside of the consultation except for the identification of automatic backup electric generators which will be given to the Graeagle Fire Protection District for firefighter safety. NO INFORMATION WILL BE AVAILABLE TO AN INSURANCE COMPANY OR PLUMAS COUNTY OR ANY OTHER GOVERNMENTAL AGENCY.
To schedule a FREE Home Ignition Zone Consultation call the Graeagle Fire Protection District at 530-836-1340.
Click Graeagle Fire Protection District Firewise Community Home Ignition Zone Consultation Checklist
to see a copy of the form that is used.
Click California Public Resources Code Section 4291 for the law regarding defensible space in a wildland urban interface area.