What did us in - October 2007 fires - AKA Lessons Learned

Yes, we had cleared 200 feet or more from the house. We have a fenced area of about 1 acre around the house. That area is mostly dirt. No grass. No shrubs. Trees, all watered. Roses, watered. Two gardens, watered - actually very lush this year.


So what did us in? A combination of two items. One, lots of fallen oak leaves. These are all over generally, but actually mostly cleared out by the high Santa Ana winds. Second factor was a tall palm tree just outside the fence. Damn thing just had to be on the eastern side didn't it.

This tree has been growing for years and has never had the old palm fronds cleared off. You can see in the photos below how this tree looked before and after the fire. These old fronds caught fire, and once they had burned down a bit, they flew off in the wind and flew towards our house like flaming fire grenades. I'm sure many hit dirt and burned out. But quite a few hit oak leaves and started a LOT of spot fires that then spread throughout the yard.

If that palm tree were not there I am 99% sure that we would not have had any fire within that fenced area. I can see all around the outside where the fire came to the fence and stopped.

So what have I learned?
Keep that clear area clear. That means raking up those dry dead leaves too.
And stay away from tall palm trees! If you have them, have the old dead fronds cleared off.
It just might mean the difference between having a home to return to or not.



Before the fire reached us.


Upon returning after the fire.