Oregon Professor's Research May Help Protect Homes During Wildfire Season

(CANBY, Ore.) In the fall of 2020, Dr. David Blunck’s parents received an evacuation notice due to a fire approaching their home in Canby, Oregon. When Blunck arrived to check on them, he noticed their well-watered grass could make it hard for a fire to make it to the home–but he also knew that the embers from a fire, called 'firebrands,' can be picked up by wind and travel.

“People just don’t think about firebrands as a major driver of fire spread," Dr. Blunck explains. "I’m just as susceptible as everyone else to think, ‘Oh, it won’t happen here.’”

Blunck’s firebrand research is now used to help predict wild firebrand behavior. It involves lab experiments and simulations using a small-scale wind tunnel to help him see how various firebrands from different trees act among temperature and wind changes.

He says it's every homeowner’s responsibility to take steps to keep their home safe from firebrands, and decided he needed to share his research in order to help people do just this.

According to Blunck, homeowners should remove leaves from their roofs, replace bark dust or dry grass with gravel, and keep homes properly ventilated–especially with screens on windows, which can stop the progression of firebrands within a home.

“The bigger challenge is being disciplined enough to consistently address these issues," he says.

Dr. Blunck’s advice is for homeowners to do a safety audit of their home at least once every Spring, and to clean up around their property and re-check it every month or two during fire season.