Wildfire

Community

Preparedness

Colorado's Wildfire Season typically lasts from May through September. While wildfire risk has peaked during the summer, Colorado has experienced huge wildfires every month of the year, with increasing fire danger even in winter! South Metro Fire Rescue wants to ensure that you and your neighborhood feel safe year round, but especially while approaching Wildfire Season.

Wildfire Community Preparedness Day is a campaign that encourages people and organizations everywhere to come together on a single day to take action to raise awareness and reduce wildfire risks. It is held annually in the United States and Canada on the first Saturday in May. (NFPA)

This Wildfire Preparedness Day, South Metro Fire Rescue encourages our community members to get involved! By coming together as a community, we can increase the effectiveness of our efforts and better protect our neighborhoods.

Demonstrate your commitment to wildfire preparedness by adding your Wildfire Community Preparedness Day project to the nationwide event map hosted by the National Fire Protection Association. It’s easy to do, and by adding the info you can proudly share your community’s efforts. The map illustrates the magnitude of risk reduction projects happening throughout the U.S.

This summer, South Metro Fire Rescue is offering Neighborhood Home Assessment Days. We will work with your community to pick a day when homeowners can sign up for in-person home assessments. On this day, our dedicated team of firefighters and staff members will be available to conduct wildfire home assessments for community members who have signed up ahead of time.

If you are interested in setting up a day for your community, please submit your contact information by following the link below or by contacting [email protected]

This image from the Colorado State Forest Service illustrates the two primary determinants of a home's ability to survive a wildfire - structure ignitability and the quality of the surrounding defensible space.

Defending the

Home Ignition Zone (HIZ)

1 - Create a defensible space

2 - Keep rain gutters clear of leaves and pine needles

3 - Do not use the area on or under decks for storage

4 - Rake up pine needles and leaves

5 - Use fire-resistant landscaping

6 - Keep grasses mowed to a max height of four inches in Zone 2

7 - Address is clearly marked and well-lit at night

8 - Prune lower branches

Protect Your Home by Preparing Your Home

Research shows there are proven methods for preparing properties for withstanding the devastating impacts of a wildfire. This Prep Day, you have the power to protect the part of the community that means the most to you and your family by eliminating vulnerabilities in the HIZ, particularly the immediate 5-foot zone around your residence. Preparing your Home Ignition Zone for wildfires actually helps protect the entire community! Whether it's replacing wood chips with gravel or reimagining your entire landscape design, what you do on Saturday, May 4, really makes a difference.

This video from the Insurance Institute of Home and Business Safety compares how quickly a home that has been prepared for wildfire will burn vs. how quickly a home that hasn't been prepared for wildfire will burn.

Get started today!

Take the guesswork out by utilizing the Home Ignition Zone guide produced by the Colorado State Forest Service:

As Colorado homeowners and homeowners associations (HOAs) work through challenges with homeowners and HOA insurance, the Colorado Division of Insurance (DOI) offers this information to help people better understand the current issues, recent work by the DOI and the Colorado Legislature and various actions homeowners and HOAs can take in response to recent challenges in the market.  

Reverse 9-1-1

These will notify you of emergencies and natural or man-made disasters, such as wildfires and evacuations, missing persons, law enforcement activity, evacuation notices, and more. You can sign up on the links below or by visiting: ace911.colorado.gov

Keep In Touch! 

[email protected]