May is National Wildfire Awareness Month, and it’s the ideal time to put on your garden gloves, grab a rake, and tackle the outdoor cleanup needed after a long fall and winter. As the weather warms, so does the risk of wildfire and preparation is key. Creating Defensible Space around your home remains one of the most effective strategies for reducing wildfire risk. Defensible Space is divided into three zones, each with specific recommendations:

· Zone 0 – Ember-Resistant Zone (0–5 feet): Keep this area closest to your home clear of anything combustible. Remove wood piles, wood mulch, dead leaves, pine needles, and weeds. Use non-combustible materials like gravel, rock, concrete, or pavers.

· Zone 1 – Lean, Clean, and Green Zone (5–30 feet): Minimize flammable vegetation and remove all dead or dry debris. Maintain healthy, irrigated plants and space them to prevent fire from easily spreading.

· Zone 2 – Reduced Fuel Zone (30–100 feet): Eliminate dead or dying vegetation and ensure pine needles do not exceed three inches in depth. Space out shrubs, trees, and ladder fuels to reduce fire intensity. Home Hardening is another critical step in wildfire preparation. This means upgrading or modifying parts of your home to reduce its vulnerability to embers and radiant heat. Key areas to evaluate include the roof, gutters, vents, eaves, siding, windows, decks, garages, chimneys, and fences. Strengthening these components can increase your home’s chance of survival during a wildfire.

Combining Defensible Space with Home Hardening offers the most comprehensive protection against wildfire. To learn more visit Tahoe Living With Fire. Additionally, we encourage neighbors to work together in creating Fire Adapted Communities or becoming a recognized Firewise USA® site. These programs foster collaboration among residents and agencies to collectively reduce wildfire risk and increase community resilience.

Stay informed. Be alert. Sign up for emergency notifications specific to your county by following the links below: · Placer County: placer-alert.org · El Dorado County: ready.edso.org · Douglas County: douglascounty.onthealert.com · Washoe County: washoecounty.us/em/RegionalAlerts.php

Let’s work together to keep our communities safe, prepared, and wildfire ready — this month and every month.