Aaron Anderson from Strong Tower Insurance Group located at the Village at Mountain Park, is helping homeowners with their responsibility in protecting their property to reduce potential losses.   

Research shows that during a wildfire, embers can travel more than a mile through the wind.  With this knowledge, it is important to limit the amount of flammable vegetation, materials, and construction techniques, while conducting periodic outdoor and indoor maintenance.  

“The homeowner plays a vital role being the first line of defense and this can make a big difference in a wildfire”, says, Anderson, Vice President of Personal Lines at Strong Tower Insurance Group. Many homes are built and maintained without regard to wildfire.  You probably cannot change the slope of your property much, especially in mountain communities, and we know you can’t change the direction of the wind, but you can control what fuels the fires on and around your property.  Anderson explains that fire restrictive construction materials such as roofing and vents, decks and porches, siding and windows are all homeowner mitigation efforts that will affect your fire risk and your insurance.  

Developers, HOA’s, Architectural Review Committees, Builders and Landscape Designers all play a huge role in helping to mitigate wildfire in subdivisions and communities.  Those individuals should be aware of the topography, vegetation, weather risks, and fire behavior to help design fire-safe measures.   New construction, remodels and resale homes all need to be able to identify hazards.  Clearing the lot and creating a defensible zone around the perimeter of the property, allowing construction building materials that are not considered fire resistive, such as reclaimed wood siding or a wood shake roof, create a large hazard.  If building a new home, interior fire sprinkler systems are something to consider.  For new and existing homes, installing a monitored home security system with emergency fire services.   Firescaping is a landscape design and maintenance using plants and fire-resistant ground cover that help reduce a home’s vulnerability to a wildfire. 

Conducting an annual insurance policy checkup to adjust for local building costs to rebuild, added renovations, and updating home inventory.   As property insurance rates continue to be volatile, there are opportunities to improve your risk profile.  An Independent Insurance Broker such as Strong Tower Insurance Group is in a unique position to help customers mitigate risk prudently without jeopardizing their financial stability, and offering customized coverage options and dwelling replacement costs from several highly rated carriers.   

As an added benefit, some insurance carriers work with a variety of vendors to assist in helping their insureds mitigate their exposure to the threat of wildfire.  For example, if an insureds home is in danger of a wildfire, the carrier could dispatch a team that will arrive at the property to apply fire retardant to the home and roof and remove combustible debris around property.     

Walk around the exterior of your home and look around.  Do you have at least 30 feet of defensible space that is healthy and irrigated throughout wildfire season? 

Stored firewood    Pet houses & toys

Outdoor furniture    Lawn tools 

Fabric cushions    Outdoor rugs

            

Know how to contact your immediate and local first responders.   Be sure your neighborhood has legible and clearly marked street names, house numbers, and locate where the nearest fire hydrant is to your property.  Prepare a wildfire evacuation checklist for your property and know what to do with your propane tanks, extra vehicles, yard hoses, exterior lights, etc.  Have an emergency action plan and be ready to evacuate.

South Carolina Forestry Commission    www.scfc.gov    

South Carolina Emergency Management Division www.scemd.org    

Firewise USA® www.firewise.org

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