Grants to Help Fire Harden Oregon Homes

Phoenix, Ore. – October 9, 2020 – Damage from the Almeda wildfire. (David Yost / FEMA)

Oregon State University graduate Yana Valachovic is a forest advisor for the University of California Cooperative Extension. She says research on the Camp and Marshall fires, can teach us a lot, including that homes built before 1997 have a much greater risk. “You look at this interaction with time periods so the older homes, there was a uniform loss,” says Valachovic.

Being closer to other destroyed structures doesn’t help either. “The closer your subject home is to a destroyed structure, the probability of survival decreases.”

Home and business owners in 8 Oregon Counties who suffered damage in the 2020 wildfires can apply for fire hardening grants. They can rebuild with materials for siding and roofing that resist igniting during a wildfire. Examples include $2200 per roof or $1750 for a wall covering, up to $6,000 per structure.

The Oregon Building Codes Division is partnering with the counties on the grant program to help owners of homes and businesses rebuild.

People who own a home, including a manufactured home, or business that the 2020 wildfires damaged or destroyed, can receive money for using more fire-resistant methods and materials when they rebuild. Those who have already rebuilt also can qualify.

Fire hardening includes actions to make a home or business more resistant to damage from a wildfire, such as using materials for siding and roofing that resist ignition during a wildfire, installing fire-resistant windows to protect openings, or using attic ventilation devices that help reduce ember intrusion.

“These improvements are particularly effective at preventing ignition from embers, which can travel great distances from wildfires,” said Alana Cox, administrator of the Oregon Building Codes Division. “We hope this program will help people affected by the wildfires build back more fire-resistant communities.”

The counties involved in the program are Clackamas, Douglas, Jackson, Klamath, Lane, Lincoln, Linn, and Marion. To learn more and apply, visit https://www.oregon.gov/bcd/Pages/firehardening.aspx.

To qualify, a person must own a home or business damaged or destroyed in the 2020 Oregon wildfires. Applicants can receive grant money through their county building department after completing one or more qualifying improvements.