NFPA Offers Workshops on Home Wildfire Risk Assessment

March 5, 2012

Curriculum to focus on reducing wildfire risks around the home; resources to mitigate damage 

The National Fire Protection Association is offering a Two-Day Assessing Wildfire Hazards in the Home Ignition Zone Workshop (HIZ) at several U.S. locations in 2012. The curriculum is aimed at fire service professionals, urban and state foresters, developers, community planners, insurance professionals, and others who are committed to understanding and learning about ways to reduce losses from these fires, and increasing wildfire risk awareness among residents and communities.

As part of the two-day course, the HIZ workshop incorporates NFPA 1141: Standard for Fire Protection Infrastructure for Land Development in Wildland, Rural and Suburban Areas and NFPA 1144: Standard for Reducing Structure Ignition Hazards from Wildland Fire as the basis for assessing these hazards and recommending appropriate mitigation measures to reduce damage and losses of homes, developments, communities and subdivisions.

According to Dave Nuss, NFPA’s wildland fire operations division manager, the workshop is designed by wildfire experts and based on research of how wildfires ignite homes and the steps that can be taken to reduce losses.

“Much of the technical content of this course is based directly on wildfire home ignition research conducted by Jack Cohen, a renowned research physical scientist from the USDA Forest Service’s Rocky Mountain Research Station in Montana,” said Nuss. “His research on the causes and context of wildland/urban interface (WUI) disasters has been universally applied, and has also played a key role in guiding our national Firewise® Communities Program.”

Workshop dates include:

  • Monday and Tuesday, March 26-27, 2012
    IAFC 2012 Wildland Urban Interface Conference
    Grand Sierra Resort and Casino, Reno, Nevada
     
  • Tuesday and Wednesday, May 15-16, 2012
    Hilton Ontario Airport Hotel, Ontario, California
     
  • Tuesday and Wednesday, September 11-12, 2012
    Crowne Plaza Austin, Austin, Texas
     
  • Tuesday and Wednesday, October 16-17, 2012
    DoubleTree Hilton Hotel, Aurora, Colorado


For more information and to register for the workshops, visit NFPA’s courses and training page on the Firewise web site.

About Firewise
The Firewise Communities Program encourages local solutions for wildfire safety by involving homeowners, community leaders, planners, developers, firefighters and others in creating fire-adapted communities – places where people and property are safer from the risk of brush, grass and forest fires. Firewise is a program of the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) and co-sponsored by the USDA Forest Service, the US Department of the Interior and the National Association of State Foresters.

About the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA)
NFPA is a worldwide leader in fire, electrical, building, and life safety. The mission of the international nonprofit organization founded in 1896 is to reduce the worldwide burden of fire and other hazards on the quality of life by providing and advocating consensus codes and standards, research, training, and education. Visit NFPA’s website at www.nfpa.org for more information.