05-05-2025
Los Angeles wildfire survivors look to rebuild fire-resilient homes to increase insurability
Following the deadly Eaton and Palisades fires that destroyed thousands of structures and left survivors without homes, now communities are looking to build back better and harder.
California already has strict building codes for properties in fire-prone areas, but experts told KCAL News that even though fire danger can't be stopped, resident can build their homes, so they are less likely to burn.
J. Lopez's home in Altadena has survived two wildfires. He is urging neighbors who are in the process of rebuilding to make sure they are hardening their new homes.
KCAL News
J. Lopez is a retired Los Angeles County fire captain and a homeowner in Altadena. His hillside home has escaped two major wildfires, including the Station and Eaton fires.
"This is a precious possession for me; this house is valuable for the family, we want to preserve it," Lopez said.
To preserve his most expensive asset, Lopez remodeled it to be fire-ready. He gave a tour to members of the non-profit After the Fire USA and Eaton Fire survivors, pointing out the steps he took to harden it.
"It's important to work as a team, so one home by itself is the start, but if more property owners do the work, the resiliency of a community increases tremendously," Lopez said about why he thought it was important to share his home with others.
Lopez estimates he spent between $70,000 and $80,000 on improvements, such as closing the eaves around his roofline, sealing all cracks like the space around his garage to keep embers out, and switching out all vents for ones with smaller openings.
"So, the embers get in and bounce around and become even smaller and fall apart and by being baffled, you don't have flames getting in either," Lopez said.
Lopez also has a 5-foot clearance around his home, cutting back tree limbs and removing bushes. Even his entryway mats are fire-resistant metal, not fabric.
He also added a brand-new roof with thicker insulation to promote better cooling and heating. Cement boards instead of wood ones sit on top of the fascia around his roof line and Lopez put stainless-steel mesh around his property, in case a fire starts at a bordering home.
Lopez did such a good job of making his home fire-ready, he was given an award by the Insurance Institute for Business and Home Safety. Even better, he was able to get off the FAIR Plan insurance.
"My home is gone and a rental property that I built with my own two hands, eviscerated," said Io Wright, one of Lopez's neighbors in Altadena.
After seeing Lopez's home, Wright said that making a home fire-ready is doable and achievable. He said there are practical steps residents can take when they are building from the ground up, but also retrofitting.
Jennifer Gray Thompson, founder of After the Fire USA, said this kind of construction needs to be the new normal and a neighborhood-wide effort.
"If there are 10 homes that do it, it's much easier for the insurance companies to come in and say we have seen what you've done here, and we will insure you," Gray Thompson said. "We have to build back here very insurable, very resilient and there is an opportunity to be a model of insurability and to go way beyond what has ever been done in any other mega fire community before."
Some of the improvements Lopez made on his home cost less than $10 each. Even if residents only replace their old vents, that is making progress.
