With wildfire season fast approaching, Riverside Fire Department officials will be initiating citywide inspections to ensure residential and commercial properties maintain appropriate “defensible space,” which will be outlined Tuesday during a City Council hearing.
“Riverside’s extensive wildland-urban interface … Santa Ana wind exposure and high ignition potential continue to present wildfire risk across multiple wards,” according to an agency statement posted to the council agenda for Tuesday. “Fire Hazard Severity Zones — moderate, high and very high — guide mitigation planning and inspection efforts. The department’s focus is to strengthen community resilience by bringing residents, fire officials and stakeholders together before a wildfire occurs.”
During the council’s 1 p.m. session at City Hall Tuesday, fire personnel will provide details on the municipality’s “Defensible Space Inspection Program,” pointing out that some property owners will be required to create minimal protective buffers, from one to five feet, while others may be directed to establish up to 100 feet of cleared ground before the start of summer.
Several sections of the city have been designated by the California Office of the State Fire Marshal, a branch of Cal Fire, as red zones, bearing high wildfire risks, though the Fire Hazard Severity Zones marked out by the office last year were criticized for potential inaccuracies that unjustifiably caused homeowners’ property insurance rates to skyrocket.
Like Riverside County’s defensible space inspection program, the city can issue citations against properties where mitigation measures have been requested but not applied.
The fire department on Tuesday will provide information on how property owners can obtain “personalized fire risk reports” via the Free Home Assessment Program. Details and applications are available now by calling the city’s 311 service.