Right about now you are in one of two scenarios:
1) First: You may be facing an active wildfire.
If your community is currently under threat of a wildfire, click for a checklist to get ready to evacuate immediately.
2) Second: You are educating yourself, taking action, getting ready for wildfire and other emergencies, well in advance of the event.
We sincerely hope this is your situation. Firewise Madera County can help you get there. You are not alone. Begin by watching the videos. If you are interested in a presentation or further personal assistance, contact Madera County Firewise Coordinator Roger Maybee.
Click to Email Roger Call Roger (559) 760-7407
Watch These Firewise Videos
Your Home Can Survive a Wildfire
Wildfire! Preventing Home Ignitions
with Jack Cohen, Research Physical Fire Scientist with the USFS
Examining Home Destruction by Wildfire in the Wildland Urban Interface
Fire Behavior in the Wildland Urban Interface
Making Your Home Firewise
Home Improvement: A Firewise Approach
Education & Implementation
Now that you’ve watched Jack’s videos and learned the basics, it’s time to get started.
Prepare > Harden > Go!
Follow the steps below:
Step 2
- Fireproof Roof
- Boxed Enclosed Eaves
- Fireproof Siding
- Firewise Vents
- Metal or Wood Windows
- Firewise Landscaping
- Home Ignition Zone
The payoff, however, is inestimable. You might just save your home & family.
And the little things can make all the difference.
Each item above is a link to that page.
This page is an overview with a lot of general information and videos.
You should read this whole page no matter how expert you already are.
You will get a good or better understanding of firewise, and what you need to do to get fire wise.
Firewise: The Basics
Click to Download How To Get a Firewise Home
What Does “Firewise” Mean?
First of all, let’s define “firewise.” In the context of the Firewise Madera County program of the Firewise Communities USA program, firewise means being ready for wildfire. Simple.
The term is a contraction of “fire” and “wise” obviously, started back in 1985 by an earlier version of the NFPA program. Back then firewise landscaping was the focus. Fire resistant plants and landscaping practices were promoted, thus being “wise” regarding “fire.” That first program was motivated by the devastating USA 1985 – 1986 fire season.
Helping You Help Yourself
Going beyond the figure of speech “wise regarding fire,” the Firewise program of the National Fire Protection Association is defined as helping homeowners prepare for wildfire.
Zooming in to break it down further, being wise regarding fire has three main areas, evacuation, property & structures, and execution of the plan: prepare, harden, and go.
Get ready for wildfire to the greatest extent possible and enjoy peace of mind.
By doing everything you can to prepare you, your family, your neighborhood, your property & structures, to potentially withstand major, or even any loss, in a catastrophic wildfire event, makes you firewise!
So get ready to evacuate long before you need to, leave behind a hardened home and home ignition zone and go early with your family using your emergency plan!
Get ready! Get Firewise!
Who Should Get Firewise?
Honestly, everyone should. No matter where you live, city, suburb, rural areas, wherever, fire and other emergencies pose a threat.
Being ready for fire, wild or not, is always a great thing. Being prepared for any emergency is even better.
Not Just for the Wildland Urban Interface WUI
Firewise Madera County focuses on the Wildland Urban Interface (WUI) of mostly Eastern Madera County. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t get ready.
If you live in Eastern Madera County, you are a prime candidate for the program.
See if your neighborhood is one of the at-risk communities listed in the Community Wildfire Protection Plan.
Nevertheless, even if you are not listed, don’t let that stop you.
Everyone should be prepared. At a minimum, you should be ready for fast and safe evacuation, but even better is to get truly ready for wildfire.
Stop Information Overload 🙁
There is so much information on the internet on how to be fire “wise,” fire “safe,” fire “adapted,” and on and on, that it can be overwhelming.
The goal of Firewise Madera County is to round up the info, help dispel any confusion and just get you going on easy, simple steps.
The idea is to break everything down with the 1, 2, 3 approach.
Taking these steps right now, will help to protect you, your family, your property, your neighborhood and emergency personnel, getting real results.
You are not alone.
You can get help with assessments and follow-up.
Watch These Videos
Wildfire! Preventing Home Ignitions
Firewise Communities created an excellent video that goes into great depth about how fire behaves and how homes are really lost in catastrophic wildfire. What’s surprising to some is that it’s not that raging front that destroys so many homes, but embers or “clinkers” as fire personnel call them.
According to A Holistic Framework to Sustainably Manage the Wildland Urban Interface by Dr. Chris Dicus, California Polytechnic University, San Luis Obispo, CA, statistically speaking, half of the homes that burn from wildfire in the WUI are ignited by flying embers. Half of those are ignited inside the house!
In other words, reducing the forest in a neighborhood to a concrete moonscape still won’t necessarily prevent catastrophic loss in the event of a wildfire! This is illustrated time and again when treeless, high-density urban neighborhoods burn to the ground. After getting ready to go, hardening your home is common sense and possibly your best line of defense!
Ready For Wildfire
This CAL Fire Ready, Set, Go! video touches on a lot of the same ground. This video is well worth a watch!
How Sunshine Resident Karen Simmons Helped Save Her Home from Wildfire
One Homeowner’s Efforts to Protect his Home from Wildfire
Four Mile Canyon Fire
Fire In The Hills
The History of the Oakland Hills Regarding Fire
This video discusses the history and growth of Oakland Hills from the 1700s to 1991. As Oakland grew and became more crowded, so did the problems that contributed to the both 1923 fire and the 1991 fire.
The 1991 Oakland Hills fire was the impetus behind PRC4290 and 4291. Enforcement of both remains a challenge.[break]