South San Francisco updates its fire hazard map

“If we had received any other severity zone identification in our jurisdiction, we would have had significant things to do, and the impacts to homeowners in those areas would have been greater,” Fire Marshal Ian Hardage said.

Per state law, zones deemed “very high” severity must adhere to stricter property maintenance and building codes, often known as Chapter 7a, which mandate the use of ember- and ignition-resistant siding, roofs and vents.

But those same rules don’t necessarily apply for moderately-zoned areas, though cities can choose to adopt stricter standards. In Belmont, for instance, the city’s ordinance dictates the 7a requirements apply not just to “very high” zones — as laid out in the state mandate — but it is now applying to those deemed high or moderate.

South San Francisco has not passed additional code restrictions beyond state-level requirements, but Fire Chief Matt Samson said the fire department continues to work on their fire mitigation efforts throughout the city. In 2020, a section of Sign Hill caught fire, triggering risk reduction efforts, including tree removal, particularly from nonnative species such as eucalyptus.

“Much more can be done on Sign Hill, but a tremendous amount has been done in terms of tree removal,” City Manager Sharon Ranals said. “The parks department has created defensible space around most of the property up there in collaboration with the fire department, and that’s been an ongoing effort.”

Other locations are considered important for fire mitigation as well, however, the city does not have access to all areas in need of fuel reduction or related work.

“The south slope of San Bruno Mountain used to be primarily grass and now, because it never burns, there is a bush that grows to some height … it could be a problem if there was a significant fire,” Councilmember Mark Addiego said during a May 14 council meeting. “Some portions are county parks and some are state, but maybe we should get those initial conversations going about what those entities should be doing.”

While South City has only seen some “moderate” zones added, about six jurisdictions in San Mateo County have seen the opposite trend.

Half Moon Bay, Pacifica and unincorporated areas saw some of the largest increases. The former now has more than double the number of acres listed as “very high” in its new map compared to 2011. An additional 1,050 acres are considered high severity. Millbrae didn’t have any land listed as “very high” in the previous map, but now it shows 353 acres as “very high” and 186 acres as “high.”