NFPA Journal - Summer 2022 - 36

Wildfire
Clockwise from top left, the Almers' home and its metal roof, noncombustible deck and porch materials,
and ember-blocking metal mesh covering vents. Mark Almer, in cap, also credits defensible space for
helping save his property; the metal poles once supported 28 cords of wood, stored away from the home.
leaves and pine needles from collecting.
The home's vents are fitted with a tight
metal mesh to keep flying embers from
getting inside.
The Almers also increased the defensible
space around the buildings. The
home's foundation is free of vegetation,
and the tree line has been pushed back.
Dried pine needles-a highly combustible
fuel-are raked multiple times
each year, by hand. Two months before
the fire, Mark and his neighbors clear
cut beneath a Pacific Gas & Electric
powerline that abuts the north side
of his property, removing trees and
36 | NFPA JOURNAL * SUMMER 2022
underbrush that the utility had allowed
to proliferate. Just yards away, on the
other side of the cleared area, heavy
stands of trees and undergrowth were
consumed by the fire. Besides a short
length of split-rail fence that burned,
Mark is most wistful about the 28 cords
of wood, split and stacked out near the
powerline, that he lost to the fire, much
of it a product of the June clear cut
effort. " I'm ok with losing it, because I
stacked it that far out-if it had been
next to the house, this would be a different
conversation, " he says, gazing out
where the pile once stood. " I feel really
confident that our house
survived because of the
combination of noncombustible
construction and
the defensible space. "
Mark and Susan did a
lot of things right, and
their story is a model
of how the guidelines
offered by Firewise can
help millions of people
across the country prepare
their properties to
withstand even the most
adverse wildfire conditions.
But I also recognize
that not everyone can
afford to take the steps
that the Almers did,
even over many years.
I also realize that some
of the losses endured by
Grizzly Flats and other
communities in the path
of the Caldor Fire were
unavoidable, because I
know from my experience
as a wildland firefighter
that even hardened structures
can succumb to
wildfire if the conditions
are extreme enough.
Even so, homes and other
buildings survived the
Caldor Fire as a result of
the steps-some large,
many small-taken by
property owners well in
advance of the fire.
There were aspects of
our trip to Grizzly Flats
that were troubling, but
it also confirmed for me why I opted
to leave firefighting and work toward
prevention and preparation. Whether
they realize it or not, people who
choose to live in places like Grizzly
Flats-small, isolated, and lacking the
resources of larger communities-are
choosing to live with wildfire. When
they make that choice, they have an
important role to play in protecting
their own homes and property-and
I can help them do that. I absolutely
understand the appeal of these places,
but it needn't be clouded by the threat
of obliteration by wildfire.

NFPA Journal - Summer 2022

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of NFPA Journal - Summer 2022