On a Thursday in June, a group of neighbors gathered at Tahoe Paradise Park in Meyers. They talked about wildfires.
“It’s not a matter of if our next fire is coming, it’s when our next fire is coming,” said Leona Allen, who’s been the neighborhood leader for the North Upper Truckee area in Meyers for about seven years.
These meetings are part of a growing effort across the basin called the Fire Adapted Communities program. Allen said it’s not just about protecting your own home, it’s about caring for the entire neighborhood.
“If your house burns, my house burns,” Allen said.
The idea is neighbors working together to reduce risk. That means clearing dry vegetation, removing pine needles from roofs, replacing wood decks with fire-resistant materials, and making evacuation plans. But it’s a lot to take on alone, said Cricket Baldwin, a wildfire resiliency fellow with South Lake Tahoe Fire Rescue.
“We recognize that it can be really tough to do all that work by yourself, and to feel very isolated while doing so. And so to come together as a neighborhood or a larger community takes that burden off of the individual,” Baldwin said.
Even if one homeowner takes all the right steps, it may not be enough, Baldwin said.
“You could be doing your defensible space and have perfect defensible space. Your zone zero is clear and your home is totally hardened against embers. But if your neighbors aren't also doing the same work, it doesn't have the same benefits,” she said.
That’s why leaders like Allen help inspect properties, track defensible space progress and connect residents with local fire agencies.
According to the Tahoe Fire and Fuels Team, more than 99,000 acres have already been treated through thinning and prescribed fire, but community action is critical.
"The fire adapted communities model or approach really isn't a one size, everybody does the same exact thing. It's the community leaders who really are the backbone of a fire adapted community,” said Jason Brand, manager of the Fire Adapted Communities Program for the Lake Tahoe Basin. Nearly 100 neighborhoods are now part of the program.
“The goal of the Fire Adapted Communities Program is to make the entire Lake Tahoe Basin a fire adapted community,” he said.
Still, there are challenges, especially when it comes to part-time and vacation homeowners.
"I get it. People come up here on vacation, they don't have as much time. It's not what they want to do with their free time, and they hopefully are raking their house while they're here on vacation, or getting whoever is staying in the house to do that, raking up the pine needles and staying on top of that,” Brand said.
And even if not all neighbors are on board yet, it’s worth starting with your own property.
“Do the best you can on your property and become an example of what you can do,” Brand said.
Allen agreed and encouraged others to take action.
“Don’t let the amount of work that it takes stop you from becoming a fire adapted community, because the benefits far outweigh the work that has to be done,” she said.
