Facing the Flames: How to protect your home in the era of rising wildfire risks

After the Fort McMurray, Alberta wildfires in 2016 many wondered why 2,400 homes and buildings were consumed by the flames while some remained intact. In some neighborhoods, all homes except one were destroyed.

Fire safety expert Alan Westhaver’s investigation into the fires revealed that these homes didn’t survive by random chance. Instead, they either had protective features or lacked certain things that would encourage a fire to spread and grow. 

This is empowering because it means that there are concrete steps you can take before a wildfire happens to reduce your risks and keep your family safe.

We surveyed the recommendations created by Westhaver and other fire safety experts across North America to bring you the most important actions you can take to protect your home before a wildfire emergency.
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1. Make your evacuation plan and emergency kit

Even if your home is prepared to withstand the flames and smoke, you and your family may need to leave to find safety during a wildfire. Having an emergency plan that has been prepared and practiced in advance will give you the confidence to know that you and your loved ones will be ready to evacuate – quickly and safely.

While it’s a good idea to have a standard evacuation plan for any kind of emergency, PrepareForWildfire.org has some wildfire-specific evacuation recommendations. This includes having a plan for the “Six P’s” – people and pets, papers and phone numbers, prescriptions and other medically necessary items, pictures and other sentimental items, personal computers, and plastic (credit and ATM cards) and cash.

You can also give yourself some peace of mind by preparing your emergency kit with items your family will need to stay safe in case of evacuation. We’ve written an article on the best items to have in your emergency kit, with recommendations specifically for a wildfire emergency that you can see here.

Once you’ve prepared your plan and kit, you can reach out to vulnerable neighbours or those who are living alone in your community to see if they’d like help preparing theirs. You can also ask if they’d like to be included in your family’s plan.
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2. Prepare your Home Ignition Zone

Following research on what causes homes to burn in the 1990’s, retired USDA Forest Service fire scientist Jack Cohen created the concept of the Home Ignition Zone. This is the area within 100 feet or 30 metres of your home. It is made up of three areas: The Immediate Zone, Intermediate Zone, and Extended Zone. Here are some steps to prepare each area according to Cohen.

• The Immediate Zone (0-5 ft or 0-1.5m)
  • Clean your roofs and gutters of anything that can ignite like dead leaves and pine needles
  • Remove anything flammable from around the outside walls of your home including dead grass or leaves and items stored under your porch
  • Vents are one of the quickest ways for burning embers to enter your home and start a fire. Check all vents and chimneys and if possible, add a fine metal mesh screen to stop embers from entering your home.

• The Intermediate Zone (5-30 ft or 1.5-10m)
  • Keep your lawn mowed to 4 inches (10cm) or less. 
  • Remove any flammable landscaping materials like wood mulch
  • Remove fallen leaves, twigs, pine cones, piles of firewood and other flammable debris
  • Prune any trees in this area to at least 6ft or 2m from the ground to create a break between the grass and the flammable crown of the trees, that will stop flames from climbing.
    
• The Extended Zone (30-100 ft or 10-30m)
  • Remove fallen leaves, twigs, pine cones, and other flammable debris
  • Keep at least 12 ft or 3m between single or groups of mature trees to prevent fire from jumping between and spreading.
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3. Consider replacing vulnerable areas of your home with fire safe materials as budget allows

Certain building materials provide much greater protection against fire than others. That said, they also often have a significant price tag attached that for many will have to be budgeted and saved up over time.

If you are able to do this in stages, the first place to start is your roof. According to Cohen, “A flammable roof will make the difference of your house being destroyed and not being destroyed, regardless of what else you do,” Cohen says.

Metal roofing is widely considered to be the best option for protection against wildfires, followed by asphalt shingles.

The windows of your home are another area that can be particularly vulnerable, as the heat from fire can cause them to shatter and allow the flames to enter. Your best protection is installing double- or multi-paned windows, with at least one layer made of tempered glass.

For any windows that can be opened, a metal mesh layer will help make sure embers can’t easily enter your home and start a blaze.
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4. Share what you’ve learned with your community

A prepared neighbourhood is a safe neighbourhood. Helping others be prepared not only improves the chances of dealing with wildfires safely but also creates a close-knit community that is able to face challenges together. So, when you focus on the well-being of your neighborhood, you’re actually investing in the safety and security of the entire community.

If you are able, consider coming together with a few neighbours to start a wildfire preparedness group. My Climate Plan will be launching a Groups initiative in the new year that will help you get started and support you along the way. If you’d like to learn more, please fill out this brief survey and we’ll get back to you shortly with the details.

Over the coming weeks we will continue to share important information to help you keep your home and your loved ones safe in the face of wildfires. In the meantime, we encourage you to take the first step of putting together your family’s emergency plan and kit if you do not already have them. 

If you do, now is a good time to revisit your plan with your family members, and go through your emergency kit to make sure all the items are in good working order. You can also consider adding these wildfire-specific items to your kit.

Email us at community@myclimateplan.com when you’re done so we can give you a virtual high five!