Coal Creek Canyon
Community Wildfire Protection Plan
Neighbors Helping Neighbors Protect Our Homes From Wildfire
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Review Your Resident Action Plan
Step 5
Pika
Resident Action Plan
Here's an overview of the neighborhood as it relates to Fire Potential and Mitigation Efforts.
The Pika Plan Unit has a MODERATE Relative Risk Rating.
Under extreme fire weather and during a fire:
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39% of the area could experience very high to extreme fire behavior.
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56% of homes are exposed to radiant heat from burning vegetation.
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100% of homes are exposed to embers from burning vegetation.
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23% of roads (0.5 miles) have potentially non-survivable conditions.
County:
The entire plan unit is in Boulder County.
Vegetation, topography, and potential fire behavior:
Pika has a mix of dense mixed conifer and open ponderosa stands with tall grasses throughout. Dense vegetation creates the potential for extreme fire behavior. There are many steep slopes, with many narrow valleys and ridges that could increase unpredictable fire behavior.
Hazards in the home ignition zone:
The main threat to the homes in this plan unit is embers landing on roofs or within 30 feet of the home and igniting it. Many homes are built on hillsides and are at higher fire risk. Firefighters may not be able to protect these homes in an extreme wildfire event due to the steep slopes and limited road access with no escape routes.
Many homes in the unit are newer and were built with ignition-resistant materials. However, most of the homes have fire hazards in home ignition zones 1, 2, and 3. Many have branches near or over the roof, pine needles and leaves in the gutters.
Roadway accessibility and evacuation capacity:
There are two ways in and out of this community. Most roads are wide and accommodate two-way traffic. Switchbacks would make evacuation here slow.
Fire suppression considerations:
Pika has few pressurized fire hydrants and very limited access to water for firefighters from other sources. There are overhead powerlines throughout the plan unit. Downed powerlines can be an ignition source and hazard to firefighters and residents. Some homes do not have consistent and legible address signs, which make them difficult for firefighters to find.
Your Ambassador is ?
Ambassadors are volunteer liaisons to members in their own Plan Unit to help them learn about programs available to them. Ambassadors provide information, community resources and help organize community mitigation projects to reduce wildfire risk around homes and in neighborhoods.
Contact Pika
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Recommendations for Residents in
Pika
1. Prepare your home for wildfire. Mitigating wildfire risk in home ignition zones 1 and 2 is highest priority for homeowners here. Most homeowners have taken actions to harden their home such as by replacing combustible construction materials with Class A roofs and ignition-resistant siding. It is recommended that every homeowner in this plan unit gets a home assessment to identify specific mitigation actions that need to be taken, as actions will vary among homes. Contact Boulder County Wildfire Partners about getting a home assessment and becoming Wildfire Partner Certified.
2. Develop an evacuation plan for your family, sign up for emergency notifications from Boulder County, and coordinate with neighbors who might need additional support during evacuations.
3. Form a fire mitigation group in your plan unit and with neighbors in Mountain View Fire Protection District. Organize community-wide home hardening and defensible space tours to demonstrate effective mitigation practices. Find out how to organize a neighborhood event with your local Saws and Slaws group and volunteer at those events.
4. Install visible, reflective address and street signs. Address signs can be purchased from CCCFPD. Contact your county for installation of reflective street signs.
5. Remove trees, shrubs and tall grasses along private roads and driveways to improve evacuation safety and firefighter access during a wildfire.
6. Install community cisterns in coordination with CCCFPD.
7. Work with neighbors to create linked defensible space. Projects that span multiple properties are more effective at reducing wildfire risk. Contractor costs can sometimes be shared among homeowners, reducing the cost for everyone involved. On average, residents in Pika should expect to work with 1 neighbor to ensure their HIZ is mitigated.