Altadena rebuilding should meet tougher building codes, institute argues
An insurance-backed research group has called for an expansion of fire hazard zones in Altadena to ensure that rebuilding throughout the community complies with more stringent fire-safety building codes.
Construction in “very-high” fire hazard zones must comply with California’s wildfire building code, which mandates use of fire-resistant materials like Class-A roofing and heat- and ember-resistant windows, doors and vents. But recently released state fire maps only include a fraction of the area burnt in the Eaton fire last January.
As a result, more than 3,500 homes destroyed in the blaze can be rebuilt without complying with the wildfire building code, according to the Insurance Institute for Business and Home Safety, or IBHS.
See also: Altadena fire zones grow under new state maps
Reconstruction is “moving at a very fast pace, much faster than I’ve seen on other fires,” said Steve Hawks, wildfire director for IBHS and a co-author of a letter to city and county leaders. “Time is of the essence to get these things put in place.”
State fire maps released March 24 show the new fire designations extend only about six to 11 blocks south of the San Gabriel Mountains into Altadena. But the Easton fire devoured homes as far as 18-28 blocks south of the mountains, destroying nearly 5,400 houses and more than 400 apartments and condominiums, county figures show.
Most of Altadena’s homes were built before California’s wildfire building code took effect in 2008.
“We know that this fire burned this deeply into the community. It is reasonable to assume that another event like this could occur,” Hawks said.
“That entire (Eaton fire) footprint, therefore, should be included in this process of the rebuild, ensuring that they’re built to a higher standard to be able too withstand a very similar event in the future.”
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The L.A. County Board of Supervisors has until July 22 to adopt the state-designated fire areas in unincorporated areas. While the board can’t vote to shrink the fire zones, they can expand them, which the IBHS wants it to do before rebuilding gets underway.
L.A. County Board of Supervisors Chair Kathryn Barger issued a statement Thursday, April 10, saying she plans to study the IBHS recommendations, vowing to take “a balanced approach.”
“I’ll be looking through the lens of ensuring community safety while also supporting my constituents’ right to rebuild quickly and without insurmountable costs,” she said.
Fire-hardening a home does add to the cost of construction, but only about 2% — equivalent to about $16,000 for an $800,000 construction job, according to a 2018 study. Another study found that the cost of retrofitting older homes with fire-safe materials could range from $2,000 to $100,000, depending on how much protection is added.
L.A. County residents appear to be more supportive of fire safety in the wake of January firestorms that destroyed more than 11,200 homes in in the Pacific Palisades and Altadena areas.
Seventy percent of people responding to USC’s recent LABarometer Wildfire Survey said homeowners in high-risk areas should be required to use fire-resistant materials.
See also: Southern California fire danger zones increase 76% in new maps
In addition to expanding fire zones in Altadena, IBHS called on L.A. city and county leaders to require all homes in fire zones have a 5-foot-wide, fire-free zone around homes and buildings. The institute also supported setbacks to keep fires from spreading house to house and retrofitting of older homes with fire-resistant materials.
IBHS also is calling on local leaders to maintain fuel breaks around neighborhoods in very-high fire zones.
State law mandates a 5-foot, non-combustible “Zone 0” around homes and buildings in very-high fire zones, meaning plants, wooden gates and flammable mulch can’t be next to a structure.
But the Zone 0 rule won’t take effect until the state Board of Forestry finishes new regulations for that requirement, which isn’t expected to occur before the end of this year.
IBHS wants city and county leaders to impose that requirement now for all homes, new and existing, in very-high fire zones.
“The science is pretty clear that Zone 0, that first 5 feet, is such a critical area for defensible space,” Hawks said. “The local jurisdictions don’t have to wait for the Board of Forestry to complete the regulatory process.”