When Sun Valley fire chief Jeff Carnes urged the City Council to ban shake shingles in favor of fire-proof roofing on all new construction, he ran into a wall of architects and developers who oppose the change, primarily on aesthetic grounds. Members of the council showed only tepid support for the ban.
If the city doesn't listen to Carnes, the next wall residents may see is a big wall of fire. Sun Valley's homes are surrounded by sage-covered hills, a perfect stage for a perfectly awful fire.
Yet, like many before them, this council is loathe to believe that wildfire will ever happen in its city—despite the evidence. To continue to believe in invulnerability is foolhardy public policy.
When the Ro fire engulfed Croy Canyon, two things saved houses there. First, the canyon held only a few houses. Second, the diligent efforts of firefighters—as well as the fact that some homes were built of stucco with tile or asphalt roofing—prevented more damage. Had more homes been there, it's likely some would have burned.
The speed with which a fire can strike is astonishing. People who watched the Warm Springs fire, which was sparked by a lawnmower, were amazed at the speed the fire advanced up the sage hillsides.
Witnesses to the devastating fires in San Diego, Calif., speak with undisguised fear about the speed at which fires engulfed whole neighborhoods whose residents thought it could never happen.
Residents of Sun Valley have billions of dollars of structure at risk, and only a few firefighters. To refuse to protect it with fire-proof roofing is like playing Russian roulette—it's not a matter of if it will burn, only when it will burn.
Sun Valley should listen to the chief.
