Wildfire experts teach King County, WA residents how to protect their homes
Assessing homes for wildfire risk in East King County
As temperatures rise, so does the risk of wildfires, and communities in East King County are at an even higher risk. Fox 13 Reporter Franque Thompson has more information on the one person behind important mitigation work.
NORTH BEND, Wash. - As the heat intensifies in western Washington, so does the threat of wildfires. The risk is even higher for communities in east King County in the foothills of the Cascade Mountains.
Eastside Fire and Rescue offers free wildfire mitigation assessments to help homeowners protect their properties.
"This is a really accessible way for homeowners to make a big difference in the survivability of their home in a wildfire," said Cat Robinson, emergency coordinator for Eastside Fire and Rescue.
Robinson is also the wildfire mitigation specialist at Eastside Fire and Rescue. She created the Wildfire Safe Eastside - Home Assessment Program three years ago.
What they're saying:
"We are looking for ways to give homeowners practical, applicable tools toward reducing their wildfire risk," said Robinson. "We need our neighborhoods to act as fire breaks, not fire fuel."
Each assessment begins with a homeowner completing the program’s online registration form. From there, Robinson contacts the homeowner to schedule the assessment, which is approximately one hour.
"I’m looking at specific features on the home: roof, gutters, skylights, chimneys, windows, doors, foundation, siding, etc., construction materials, construction design and architecture," said Robinson.
The specialist said she completes the assessment in three zones, with the third zone expanding 100 feet from the house.
"We’re really looking for areas where embers can settle," said Robinson. "They think my home will burn because this raging fire will just come through and consume my home. But that’s very uncommon. Most homes burn in a wildfire because embers from that fire, which could be miles away, landed on or around their home."
Local perspective:
On Wednesday, she assessed the home of Eric Opsvig in North Bend. His charming home complemented his manicured lawn, but Opsvig called Robinson with concerns about dead trees on his property.
"I just thought maybe this would be a good time to have her come out and do an assessment," said Opsvig. "Seems like it’s getting a little drier and you just never know. So, it’s good to be prepared."
Opsvig walked with Robinson as they discussed his property. She said the dead trees were only a small part of the vulnerable spots on the property. While Robinson was impressed by many things like Opsvig’s fiber cement siding that would help protect his house in a wildfire, she also addressed issues that could fuel the flames, like landscape bark that is placed directly in front of Opsvig’s house.
"We are trying to interrupt that continuity of fuels. The less that’s flammable right next to your home, the less likely there’s a little fire next to your home that can ignite those features on your home that are vulnerable," said Robinson. "So, just looking right over here, there’s an arborvitae that you can see has a lot of dry debris in it. There’s landscape bark. So, those are flammable items, and they’re easily ignited by embers."
Why you should care:
During each assessment, Robinson provides homeowners with a report of mitigation recommendations. She explained homeowners can use the report when applying for cost-sharing opportunities with the King Conservation District to fix the issues.
"For individual homeowners, they will cost-share up to 75 percent of the cost of each project up to a total of about $5,000," said Robinson.
The assessment Robinson uses during each home visit was developed by the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA). Robinson explained the assessment uses best practices and mitigation recommendations from NFPA, the Insurance Institute for Business and Home Safety, the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service, and other data-based sources.
The Wildfire Safe Eastside - Home Assessment Program is available to residents who live within Eastside Fire and Rescue’s district.
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The Source: Information in this story comes from original reporting by FOX 13 Seattle reporter Franque Thompson.