Firefighters Halt Grass Fire In Ashland Wednesday

ASHLAND, CA — There have been several small grass and brush fires in the East Bay over the past week, including one near homes in Ashland on Wednesday. Fortunately, this one was halted at around two acres.

Is your home ready in case a wildfire approaches? Here are tips from Cal Fire on maintaining a defensible space:

Zone 1

Zone 1 extends 30 feet out from buildings, structures, decks, etc.

• Remove all dead plants, grass and weeds (vegetation).
• Remove dead or dry leaves and pine needles from your yard, roof and rain gutters.
• Trim trees regularly to keep branches a minimum of 10 feet from other trees.
• Remove branches that hang over your roof and keep dead branches 10 feet away from your chimney.
• Relocate wood piles into Zone 2.
• Remove or prune flammable plants and shrubs near windows.
• Remove vegetation and items that could catch fire from around and under decks.
• Create a separation between trees, shrubs and items that could catch fire, such as patio furniture, wood piles, swing sets, etc.

Zone 2

Zone 2 extends 100 feet out from buildings, structures, decks, etc.

• Cut or mow annual grass down to a maximum height of 4 inches.
• Create horizontal spacing between shrubs and trees. (See diagram)
• Create vertical spacing between grass, shrubs and trees. (See diagram)
• Remove fallen leaves, needles, twigs, bark, cones, and small branches. However, they may be permitted to a depth of 3 inches.

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