Our Firewise application was approved!
Amazingly, our Firewise application was approved by both Firewise CA (i.e. Calfire) and Firewise USA: We are all incredulous, as we expected a long time and multiple re-applications!
This is great news for many of us who are in the process of insurance renewals: most insurance companies now systematically ask about Firewise. While this factor is not sufficient for a renewal, it is definitely a plus, and more of one than it was a year ago. So good on us!
The urgent work many of you did to fill the last-minute surveys we sent, and the streetside estimates by many volunteers to fill the gaps, were critical to our application success: the work we accomplished together was really awesome!
The SoCal fires are proving us right:
The bulk of the destruction we are seeing in SoCal is due to ember fires spread by winds–Photos from the LA fires show how houses catch on fire | Business Insider: “With the proper perimeter, Cohen said, even homes caught in conflagrations like the Palisades and Eaton fires could survive.” BFD told us the same thing, and we now know that most ember fires are preventable if we do the right things. We can make a true difference to the survivability of our neighborhood.
2025 dates, and fuel removal activities: mark them on your calendar! Be sure to come to the March 23rd mtg to discuss and decide 2025 plans.
Sunday March 23rd, at 3:00pm at 981 Creston Rd
- discuss and agree on Creston Firewise activities for the year
- presentation: five cheap and easy fire hardening steps
- presentation: fire considerations when planning remodel projects
- presentation: landscaping for fire prevention
Saturday May 3rd National Wildfire Community Preparedness Day
- Lessons learned from the 2025 SoCal fires, other activities
July 12-13 weekend (tentative)
- Fuel removal activities, in collaboration with other Hill Ridge Firewise groups, with access to free dumpsters
August 9-10 weekend (tentative)
- Fuel removal activities and neighborhood BBQ, in collaboration with other Berkeley Hills Ridge Firewise groups, with access to free dumpsters
New website
- We set up a new “website” where we can access Creston Firewise information, located here: Creston Firewise. It is a part of the HelpBerkeley website, which allows Firewise organizations to create subcategories, so you can also scroll down from the main website go.helpberkeley.org.
Happy new year to all,
Michel and the Creston Firewise crew