Live Burn Test to Reveal How Landscaping Affects Wildfire Risk

The California Fire Chiefs Association's Fire Marshal Section and the Insurance Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS) are partnering on a live burn demonstration designed to show how design and landscaping decisions made in the immediate vicinity of a structure can determine whether a wildfire reaches it at all.

The event, scheduled to take place at the IBHS research facility in Richburg, South Carolina, will use side-by-side comparisons to illustrate the difference defensible-space choices make in real fire conditions. The premise centers on what researchers and fire officials call the "first five feet" — the narrow zone directly adjacent to a home's foundation, walls, and vents that is considered the most critical buffer against ember intrusion and flame contact.

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The demonstration reflects a growing consensus among fire scientists and insurers that wildfire losses are not inevitable. Structural ignitability — shaped by materials, landscaping, and the management of that immediate perimeter — plays a significant role in whether a home survives when fire moves through a neighborhood. The collaboration between fire chiefs and an insurance-backed research institute signals alignment between the public-safety and private-risk communities on prevention-focused messaging.

For California in particular, where wildfire risk has driven insurers to reduce coverage in high-exposure areas, the findings carry direct policy and financial implications for homeowners. Events like this burn demonstration are increasingly used to translate laboratory research into visible, persuasive evidence for both residents and local officials weighing building codes and land-use decisions.

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