Smoke from a forest fire 40 miles away creates
a massive amount of smoke. While it seems
as though it's a long way off, fire can travel
incredibly fast given the right conditions.
Thick black smoke from a wild fire obliterates
an otherwise clear blue sky.
| When you have a place out in the country, forest fires and wildfires are real risks. Your best protection against loss, damage, or injury is prevention. Prevention won't remove the risk of fire, but it can reduce your losses in the event of a fire.What can you do?
Your land
Your first plan of defense is to clear an area of 30 feet (10 metres) around your country home. Remove trees, deadfall, and woodpiles from this area and keep grass short and moist. This gives you a better chance of saving your home from an approaching fire.
Then consider the space from 30 to 90 feet (10 - 30 meters). Are you in a heavily treed area? If so, think carefully about removing the number of evergreen trees in the area (if applicable). Evergreen trees are more combustible than deciduous trees.
Remove deadfall and mature or standing dead trees. They provide a ground fire with an opportunity to climb up into the forest canopy. Once the fire is up in the canopy, it's out of control.
Wildfire spreads more easily uphill so be extra cautious with slopes - especially on windward exposures.
Your home
One of the things you can do to reduce your risk is to have fire resistant roofing. Metal or tile is best, followed by asphalt shingles.
Avoid wood shake shingles. They are an ideal fuel for a roaring fire.
Your choice of exterior walls can also reduce your risk. Materials such as stucco, metal, brick, and concrete, although not necessarily popular choices for a cabin in the woods, offer the best protection. Logs and heavy timber offer a little less protection, while wood and vinyl siding provide very little protection.
Closed in eaves and soffits offer protection against airborne sparks and embers that could otherwise find their way in and start burning.
Keep tree branches and leaves at least 15 feet (5 metres) away from the top of your chimney. If you've cleared trees in the 30 feet (10 metres) around your home, this shouldn't be a problem.
Install a chimney screen to keep sparks out of the chimney.
Store firewood well away from the house.
Some additional measures
Prune tree branches to a height of 3 to 6 feet (1 to 2 metres) off the ground to reduce risk of a ground fire moving upward into the trees.
Make sure your address is visible for quick identification. Many rural counties provide permanent address signs by the road for emergencies.
Make sure your driveway is wide enough for emergency vehicles.
If you have a propane tank, position it with the valve pointing away from your house.
Although these measures won't protect you from a massive forest fire, they may help prevent some damage in some situations. Take the time to assess your situation and see where you can improve conditions so they are not as favorable to a spreading fire.
Return from Wildfire to Fire Page
Return from Wildfire to Home Page
