Wildfire Season: You Can't Just Rely on Firefighters

Help firefighters by following a few guidelines to protect your home

Firefighters in San Diego are gearing up for what looks to be a dangerous fire season.

However there’s a limit to what they can do to protect homes, said Javier Mainar, Fire Chief with the San Diego Fire and Rescue Department.

"If you've taken the right precautions to prepare your home, you have defensible space, you've done all of the things that you can do, there's a greater chance that your home will be selected to be protected by the firefighters."

He lists a few tips to prepare your home:

  • Make 100 feet of defensible space by thinning or removing vegetation down to around 50 percent of what exists there now
  • Remove tree branches, to make sure they're at least 10 feet away from your chimney.
  • Cover openings in your attic and beneath your home with 1/8 of an inch mesh.
  • Clear dead leaves off your roof and gutters
  • Clear combustible vegetation from beneath your deck
  • Evacuate immediately if you're asked to do so

For more resources to help you better prepare for a wildfire, check out the Fire Rescue Department's website.

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