By RHEA-FRANCES TETLEY
Staff Writer
Learning about the importance of fire clearances and new ways to get them done was the focus of the Crest Forest Municipal Advisory Council (MAC) meeting for May. Lake Arrowhead will get an updated version of these fire clearance requirements at the June meeting.
Fire clearance is a year-round requirement, so they can check for compliance year-round, but with the recent winter storms ending and the grasses already several feet high, now is the time to start clearing/removing those weeds before they reseed and dry out, creating another crop of weeds.
Philip Salazar of County Code Enforcement spoke about the county’s fire requirements in creating a defensible space. When they come out to inspect, which is beginning almost immediately with the current speed of weed growth, they are looking at trees and grasses, leaf litter, pine needles and combustible debris on private property. The county will be inspecting all 14,500 properties in the Crestline and Twin Peaks area this month. They also respond to complaints on a property when notified, as Code Enforcement is a response agency, not a proactive department; they only go out to inspect annually for this fire cleanup requirement.
When a violation is found, they send out a notice to abate, with the date of the inspection, a photo of the violations and what corrective actions are needed. They mail the violation to the homeowner at the address on record in the Assessor’s office. After a second notice and fine, if not abated by the compliance date, the county will send out a crew to do the clearance, bill the homeowner and place a lien on the property for the expense of the cleanup.
The weeds only need to be cut to a quarter-inch and it is not required to rake them up, as property owners are allowed to have two inches of leaf duff or pine needles on the ground. Property that has dirt that is dry, compacted and barren of roots doesn’t absorb water as well, when the rains do come; this barren ground can lead to erosion and mudslides in the winter.
For those who have green waste from this abatement, the Mountain Rim Fire Safe Council has its annual program to do curbside chipping of branches that may have fallen in winter and has added monthly green waste removal from curbside, for those who cannot transport their green waste from their weed abatement to the weekend Clean Mountain trash sites. This curbside service must be pre-arranged through their website, www.firesafe.org.
Chief Jason Serrano from County Fire spoke on home-hardening to protect homes from wildfires. There are several threats to homes that wildfires create, including direct fire risk from flames, from radiant heat and from embers that can fly with the wind up to a half-mile away from the flames. These are some of the reasons for removing debris from the area around homes, so embers do not embed themselves into flammable items.
The best siding for a home is stucco; roofs should be metal, clay or composite with spark arrestor flues on chimneys. Vents should have mesh screens; double-pane windows block radiant heat. Decks are susceptible to fires and should have debris removed from them and under them. Eaves should be boxed in and gutters should be kept clear of pine needles and leaves, plus patios should have metal roofs or awnings. Fences should not be wooden. All these home-hardening elements can help protect a home from wildfire, along with defensible space, said Serrano.
When Cal Fire arrives with a 500-gallon truck during a fire, they fight what they can and may need to refill their tanks with your garden hose before they leave to prevent the next hot spot from blowing embers. In areas where well water is used, they need to know the locations of the wells, where hydrants are not available, added Capt. Bennett Malloy. There are three clearance zones for fire protection around a house. Zone zero is up to five feet, while the next zone is up to 30 feet and zone two is 100 feet to the property line. The website www.fire.ca.gov/dspace explains the type of plant clearances needed in each zone. Cal Fire is also starting fire clearance inspections this month and will be issuing fire clearance violation notices. County Fire clearance requirements are stricter than the state. Those violations will also be mailed to the homeowner’s address listed at the County Assessor’s office. The state issues misdemeanor citations to those who do not comply, but they prefer compliance over fines. Cal Fire inspects 80,000 parcels but finds that, after reinspection, only 1 percent are not compliant. Since 2019, all homes must be fire-compliant when sold.
Chipping will be offered by County Fire at the San Moritz parking lot in Crestline on May 25 and in Twin Peaks on May 26 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. For additional information see www.sbcfire.org.
The Sheriff and CHP offices are currently field training new officers who will be serving in the mountain communities soon, offering more protection for the residents this summer.
The next MAC meeting will be on Tuesday, June 4 at 6:30 p.m. at the San Moritz Lodge, with the major topic on home and fire insurance in the mountains and the new laws forthcoming from the state concerning insurance and cancellations.
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