Developing accurate assessments of risk and hazard requires thorough on-the-ground assessments that consider a wide range of variables that contribute to wildfire threats in communities.
SWCA routinely completes on-site community assessments as part of our community fire planning projects, utilizing national standards for assessing potential structural ignitability, ingress-egress concerns, firefighting capability, hazardous fuels, and topographical concerns. Our field teams are supported by our GIS and technology development staff, who develop hand-held technology solutions for capturing and compiling data, mapping features of concern, and providing a database of critical information that can be easily transferred to clients. These hazard and risk assessments inform the development of mitigation measures for reducing structural ignitability, hazardous fuels, firefighting response, and community education related to preparedness and fire adaptation.