By Gordon Williams    

The American Red Cross is known far and wide for its home fire campaign — a drive to reduce fires in residences by installing smoke alarms in dwellings that lack them.  Now the Red Cross has a new target: the wildfires that cause choking smoke across much of North America and leave charred swaths of ruin in their wake.   

Wildfires are a national problem, so the Wildfire Home Preparedness Program was initiated by the Red Cross national headquarters, with the aim of engaging individuals who live in fire-prone areas to take steps to minimize the risk of wildfires impacting their homes.  

To test-drive it in Washington state, the program was recently held in Chelan County's Vallyhi neighborhood. Involved were Red Cross staffers and volunteers, Chelan County Fire District 6, Cascadia Conservation District and members of Team Rubicon (military veterans who volunteer at disaster scenes).  

Chelan County has a lot of wildfires, making it just right for the pilot. So, on May 20, teams of participants fanned out through the target neighborhoods. As the program describes it, “These brief Red Cross and partner visits are meant to provide guidance on best practices for preparing for the wildfire threat. Both the educational materials and the fire prevention services provided by participating organizations are free.”  

What’s behind the program is the reality that homeowners can work wonders in defending their homes from wildfires once they are taught the best fire prevention practices.

The program got an immediate thumbs up from Jenny Carkner, head of disaster response for the Red Cross Northwest Region, covering Washington and Northern Idaho. “We were really excited when National first announced the Wildfire pilot program,” she said. “This is really important. This is what we spend 90 percent of our time on — responding to wildfires and home fires.”  

Carkner says she already sees signs the program is making a difference in terms of making people stop and think about how they, personally, can help reduce the wildfire risk to their homes.   

Susan Raley, a resident of one of the targeted neighborhoods, gave the program’s approach high marks. “They are trying to educate people, and education always works better than enforcement. It’s making people change their embedded ways.”  

The embedded way, of course, was to assume that wildfires were inevitable and that individuals could not do much beyond pruning a dead tree or two. Even pruning a tree or two is a burden some people can’t afford.

Ginger Hall, also a resident of a targeted neighborhood, says she welcomes the participation of entities such as the Red Cross in fire prevention. “I want to clear away dead trees, but taking out a tree costs $500 and I am a widow on a fixed income,” she says. “Having the Red Cross and Team Rubicon around will be very helpful.” 

Team Rubicon and other partners are essential to the success of the program. While Red Cross volunteers engage and inform, Rubicon's workforce is scheduled to arrive within a matter of days after an initial visit, to perform some of the manual labor identified for home defense.  

So, what can the Red Cross educational program teach? For one thing, it can teach the rules of defensible space — the art and science of grooming the area around your home to keep wildfire at a distance.

A study by the Washington Department of Natural Resources shows that 80 percent of wildfire damage would have been avoided if homeowners removed undergrowth and other flammable material from their property.  The space you want to defend is within 100 feet of your house, divided into three zones: 

Zone 0 (within five feet of your home) Remove anything that could burn — trash, woodpiles, garbage bins, and leaf piles. Keep the roof and deck swept clear of leaves or other debris. Cover the chimney and any vents from the exterior with wire mesh to keep flying embers out. Use mesh to seal off openings that would let embers fly under decks and porches.

Zone 1 (five to 30 feet from the house) Prune trees so no branch is closer than 10 feet from the ground, and so that tree crowns are at least 12 feet apart. Clear away all ladder fuel — low plants growing into higher plants that grow into tree branches. Keep lawns trimmed to four inches. Break up lawns with gravel paths that serve as fire breaks. Keep the area Lean, Clean, and Green.

Zone 2 (30 to 100 feet from the house) Remove all dead and diseased trees. Tree crowns should be no closer than 15 feet apart. There should be a 10-foot cleared space around propane tanks and barbeques. Stack firewood at least 100 feet from your house. Have the power company remove dead branches from the lines that serve your house.  

The Red Cross Wildfire Education program is still in its early stages. Look for more information and wildfire prevention tips and more pilot runs like the ones near Wenatchee. Link: Red Cross Wildfire Pilot Program