Santa Clara County FireSafe Council Announces Partnership with Allied Disaster Defense for Home Hardening and Wildfire Risk Mitigation Services

November 27, 2023, Saratoga, CA— Today, the Santa Clara FireSafe Council announced a strategic alliance with Allied Disaster Defense to provide wildfire related home hardening and disaster mitigation services for its customers, partners and stakeholders throughout the Wildland Urban Interface (WUI) areas in Santa Clara County. The alliance will begin with a referral program roll-out to customers that have received previous Home Ignition Zone (HIZ) Assessments from the Santa Clara County FireSafe Council. There are many steps homeowners can take to reduce the risk of catastrophic loss from wildfire, with the two most important steps being maintaining safe defensible spaces practices, and investing in Home Harding to better protect homes and structures from flames, heat and embers.

According to Cal OES (Governor’s Office of Emergency Services), Defensible space is the buffer between a building on your property and the grass, trees, shrubs, or any wildland area that surrounds it. This space is needed to slow or stop the spread of wildfire and it helps protect your home from catching fire—either from embers, direct flame contact, or radiant heat. Proper defensible space also provides firefighters with a safe area to work in, to defend your home. Santa Clara County FireSafe Council works with homeowners through its Hazardous Ignition Zone (HIZ) Assessments to review a homeowner’s defensible space and make recommendations on action steps the homeowners can take to reduce wildfire risk-related defensible space.

Wildfire Home Hardening includes retrofitting homes with fire-resistant materials and creating defensible space around homes and communities. Home modifications include replacing the roof with metal, clay, or tile, installing metal gutters, ember-resistant vents and upgrading to dual-paned windows with one pane of tempered glass.

With our partnership, Santa Clara County FireSafe Council is now able to refer Allied Disaster Defense to follow up on HIZ inspections, and also refer clients interested in home hardening services to Allied for special promotional packages and pricing. Please visit the FireSafe Council page on the Allied Disaster Defense website here to learn more:

According to Seth Schalet, CEO of the Santa Clara FireSafe Council “our partnership with Allied Disaster Defense further expands the FireSafe Council’s community impact by offering additional wildfire mitigation options to our stakeholders through and well-established and leading solutions provider with a long history of home restoration and hardening services. We continue to take steps in deepen our impact in wildfire risk mitigation by expanding our programs, partnering with best-in-class organizations like Allied to mobilize the people of Santa Clara County to protect their homes, communities and environment from wildfires.”

"When two organizations with a passion for safety come together, the result is a formidable force against nature's challenges. Our partnership with the Santa Clara FireSafe Council is more than just a strategic alliance; it's a declaration to every homeowner in the WUI areas of Santa Clara County that we are here to fortify, educate, and protect. Combining our home hardening expertise with the council's dedication to defensible spaces, we are turning every home into a stronghold, one residence at a time. We're building a blueprint for a wildfire-resistant future", according to O.P. Almaraz, CEO & Founder, Allied Disaster Defense

About Santa Clara County FireSafe Council:

As a 501(c)3 nonprofit with a 20-year history, Santa Clara County FireSafe Council’s core mission is to mobilize the people of Santa Clara County to protect their homes, communities, and environment from wildfires. As a trusted partner across the government, fire service, corporate and WUI residential communities, SCCFSC has led some of the most complex hazardous fuel reduction projects in the region. With a board of directors and advisory board that has a deep expertise across the wildfire ecosystem including wildfire and environmental research, academia, emergency management, regional planning, technology products and wildland firefighting executive leadership, Santa Clara County FireSafe Council is uniquely positioned to lead cross-sector collaborations, government-private partnership in Silicon Valley, Santa Clara County and beyond. For more information, visit www.sccfiresafe.org

About Allied Disaster Defense:

Allied Disaster Defense was founded with the mission of solving the growing wildfire problem. Among their employees are active and retired Fire Marshals, Foresters, and Disaster Prevention experts. Allied Disaster Defense has a holistic approach that can help communities and property owners in the wildfire hazard zones all year round. The combination of ground applied long-term fire retardant, home hardening (e.g. ember-resistant vents and gutter guards) and vegetation management, customers can proactively secure their homes from wildfire damage.