Northwest Austin works to address wild re risk From the cover
The big picture
Wild re proximity The Texas Wild re Risk Explorer maps varying wild re threat levels to prioritize mitigation e orts. Little to no exposure: Flames/embers unlikely in this zone; smoke and evacuations could impact Indirect exposure: Embers, home-to-home spread could reach this zone Critical reshed: Fires here pose immediate threat of reaching other structures Sources of ember load to buildings: Burnable land cover; embers can reach nearby structures
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More than 60% of structures in Austin are within the WUI, per city data. While more populated areas are less susceptible to wild res, brush res are still common due to greenbelts and parks, Landi said. “You have urban and wildland [areas] next to each other or surrounding each other, and then you have the problems that grow because you’re trying to do both wildland re ghting as well as structural re ghting,” Landi said. Weather events in recent years have increased the re load in areas such as Northwest Austin, said Chris Dibrell, Fire Adapted Communities coordinator for the Austin Fire Department Wild re Division. Dibrell said 90% of homes that catch re are from embers carried by the wind, which can carry re up to a mile and a half. “[That] has increased the zone of urban development a ected by a possible wild re,” Dibrell said. Some Austin communities are also part of Firewise, a National Fire Protection Association program that recognizes communities that meet a certain standard of wild re preparation, Dibrell said. These communities conduct wild re risk assessments, implement evacuation plans and more.
78729
620
78727
183
78759
78750
MOPAC
35
Direct exposure: Burnable land cover
78758
Engaged communities: Taking the steps above to become Firewise certi ed Firewise communities: Conducted risk assessment, formed action plan and committee
360
2222
N
©GOOGLE EARTH
SOURCE: FIRE ADAPTED COMMUNITIES, TEXAS A&M FOREST SERVICE WILDFIRE RISK COMMUNITY IMPACT
What’s being done
A closer look
re department of its size to complete the Inter- national Association of Fire Fighters’ Responding to the Interface program last year, which teaches re ghters strategies for responding to wild res, particularly within the WUI. At the state level, Landi said there is legislation currently going through the O ce of Risk Manage- ment to assist re ghters, such as adding a eet of air tankers that drop water and re retardant over wild res.
City Council rst adopted the WUI Code in 2020, making Austin the rst major city in Texas to do so, per city documents. Its April 10 update included an amendment by Mayor Kirk Watson for the city manager to present council with an annual report on the code, and explore options for voluntary retro tting of exist- ing residential structures to mitigate wild re risk. Other mitigation e orts have been implemented at the local level. Dibrell said AFD was the rst
The e ects of climate change are also esca- lating wild re potential, Dibrell said, as hotter temperatures for longer durations create dry conditions. “All of those things add to the fuel’s ability to be available for re,” Dibrell said. Austin Water o cials said wild res in recent years have not impacted the city’s water supply, but the department has strate- gies in its 100-year resource plan to mitigate drought impacts as wild re risk continues. Wild res in Northwest Austin Between Jan. 1, 2022, and March 20, 2025, there were: 464 wild re incidents* 10 measurable acres burned* 6,884 residential properties and 63 commercial
WUI Code updates* The updated codes will take e ect July 10, 2025.
Provisions/additions
Description
Old code
New code
A structure's distance from wildland; determines level of ignition-resistant construction required
Named Proximity Class C; includes structures within 1.5 miles of 750+ acres of wildland
Renamed Proximity Zone C; adds structures within 0.5 miles of 40+ acres of wildland to the zone
WUI Proximity Zone
properties considered to have an "elevated" or "above" wild re risk
5-foot-wide noncombustible area required around structures within the WUI; no combustible materials or vegetation allowed on property
Area surrounding a structure at risk of ignition by embers
Ember Ignition Zone
EIZ not de ned
*THESE FIGURES ARE ESTIMATES AND COULD BE AN UNDERCOUNT, PER OFFICIALS. NOTE: THIS DATA PERTAINS TO ZIP CODES 78727, 78729, 78750, 78758 AND 78759. SOURCES: AFD RESEARCH & DATA ANALYTICS, AFD WILDFIRE DIVISION COMMUNITY IMPACT
*THIS LIST IS NON COMPREHENSIVE.
SOURCES: AUSTIN CITY COUNCIL, AUSTIN FIRE DEPARTMENT COMMUNITY IMPACT
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