Wildfires continue despite a pandemic, but one can take safety measures to prepare.
Coronavirus has limited CAL FIRE's ability to conduct annual defensible space inspections that help protect communities from wildfires, according to a news release.
Officials define defensible space as "two zones extending 100 feet from any home or structure cleared of dead trees, brush and vegetation."
In response, CAL FIRE is encouraging residents to conduct their own defensible space inspections through this self-assessment.
California property owners in "wildland-urban-interface communities" will also be receiving a flyer with more information about the assessment and creating defensible space, according to the release.
“This self-assessment helps our inspectors comply with social distancing recommendations while still collecting vital information,” Chief Thom Porter, CAL FIRE director, said in the release. “We urge you to participate in the survey and do your part to protect your community by creating defensible space and hardening your home to increase its chances of surviving a wildfire."
