How Fire Aside helped Berkeley Fire implement this innovative program with targeted emails
When a home in the wildland-urban interface is set ablaze, most of the time it’s not due to flames lapping at the roof or the siding. Often, wind-driven embers, or firebrands, will find an open eave or vent, setting the house ablaze from the inside.
This devastating problem has a simple solution: use a fine mesh to cover the vulnerable areas as a way to significantly mitigate ember entry. Fire scientists and other experts have long known that one-eighth (or even one-sixteenth-inch) size mesh screens are the way to go. (Finer meshes require more frequent cleaning to allow continuous airflow.)
But the question that has long befuddled fire agencies is this: how do we get residents to actually make change by installing mesh on their homes?
Berkeley Fire Department Found a Solution
Since December 2024, the Berkeley Fire Department (California), a Fire Aside customer, has had a very simple idea: give it away, for free. Berkeley Fire inspectors will deliver one-eighth inch wide mesh to any resident that has had a “full access Defensible Space Inspection." (If it’s more convenient, residents can also come pick up the mesh at the fire department.)
The best part? Mesh is probably the most cost-effective single thing that a homeowner can do to protect their home. Of course, mesh cannot and should not be used in isolation – it works best when combined with numerous other defensible space and home hardening measures.
In 2024, the City of Berkeley approved $400,000 to cover thousands of homes with materials from Wildfire Defense Mesh, a company based in Austin, Texas. As Chief David Sprague noted in a June 2024 memo to city officials:
“Most homes in the Wildland Urban Interface (WUI) were built prior to a modern understanding of fire spread in the WUI environment, much of which can be mitigated by measures such as these,” he wrote. “While other measures are also important, mesh is readily available, cost-effective, and requires little to no modification of the existing structure, making it easy for residents to complete.”
Where Teamwork Comes into Play
Fire Aside has worked directly with Berkeley Fire in numerous ways to drive maximum impact.
First, Fire Aside sent out targeted emails announcing the program to affected residents. Second, we included it on the post-inspection resident report, notifying those that had not already put up mesh, to do so. Finally, we tracked over time how this mesh has been adopted in a real-world setting so that Chief Sprague and Berkeley Fire can identify resilient homes.
Berkeley’s program has been met with such success that it is currently on pause, and is not accepting new requests, but likely will be resumed before next wildfire season.
Contact Fire Aside today to learn more about how to advance your agency’s wildfire evaluation program.