SAN DIEGO COUNTY, Calif — The Resource Conservation District of Greater San Diego has been awarded a CAL FIRE Defensible Space Assistance Grant through the California Fire Safe Council. The grant will be used to launch a new pilot Home Assessment Program for San Diego County residents in partnership with the Fire Safe Council of San Diego County and the 39 community Fire Safe Councils.
The Home Assessment Program will help teach homeowners about defensible space, home hardening and other measures to keep your home safer from wildfire.
Peter Heifetz lives in Scripps Ranch. He remembers the Cedar Fire. "It started in the middle of the night. I woke up at 2 o’clock in the morning and could smell smoke. Because we had the Santa Ana blowing, I knew that wasn't good," Peter said.
The City of San Diego’s website lists the 2003 Cedar Fire as the largest wildland fire in California history at the time. The Cedar Fire started 25 miles east of San Diego.
Peter added, "We could see fire coming from 2 different directions out back so we knew that was time to get moving. Got the kids. All the stuff we could grab that were irreplaceable and hit the road."
Peter’s home survived. Several of his neighbors lost everything. Peter says, being fire-ready is key. "We had double pane glass. I want to encourage everyone, get double pane glass because our neighbor that did lose their house had single pane glass. We had an area where the outer pane had broken but the inner pane held and that kept the house and the blinds inside melted."
The pilot Home Assessment Program will launch in January 2024. Heather Marlow is the Director of Forestry and Fire Prevention Programs. She says this new grant will build upon already existing fire mitigation programs around the county to help you stay better prepared.
A team member will come to your home, see where there may be fire vulnerabilities and help you get any help you need making your home more fire safe. Marlow shared that they’ve been working to help bridge the gap in fire readiness for San Diego County residents for a while. "We identified a gap there which was really the preparedness and education piece. We’re offering a comprehensive review of the defensible space zones, home hardening principles and landscaping suggestions. It is first come first served, funding dependent, and our capacity dependent. But we hope to get everyone a home assessment free of charge that's interested."
Peter said it took his community about 5 years to rebuild. "There's definitely a lot of value in that education, particularly for people who may not have been here as long and don't really know what that risk is and what you should be doing to mitigate it."
The pilot Home Assessment Program doesn't launch or start accepting applications until 2024. In the meantime, there is a Defensible Space Assistance Program to help you clear your defensible space if you need it. You'll need to meet age, income and disability requirements. For more information on this program, click here.
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