Fire Prevention | City of Sierra Madre

The Sierra Madre Fire Department is committed to protecting our community through proactive fire prevention, inspections, and public safety programs. Our goal is to reduce wildfire risk, ensure safe construction practices, and promote defensible space throughout the City.

The Fire Prevention Division conducts:

• Plan reviews and construction inspections
• Annual inspections of businesses, apartments, and childcare facilities
• Residential inspections upon request or neighborhood concern
• Enforcement of fire code regulations

The Sierra Madre Fire Code can be found under Title 15 of the Sierra Madre Municipal Code.

Fire Hazard Severity Zones

Sierra Madre is located within designated Fire Hazard Severity Zones as identified by the California State Fire Marshal. These zones guide building standards, defensible space requirements, and wildfire mitigation efforts.

For detailed information, updated maps, and zone requirements:

View Fire Hazard Severity Page

Local Hazard Mitigation Plan Update

The City of Sierra Madre has completed the update of its 2025 Local Hazard Mitigation Plan (LHMP), which identifies and evaluates community risks such as wildfires, earthquakes, severe weather, flooding, and other natural hazards. The LHMP is a FEMA-required planning document developed in coordination with local stakeholders to help reduce disaster impacts, strengthen community resilience, and maintain eligibility for certain state and federal disaster mitigation funding programs. The City’s 2025 LHMP has been adopted by the City Council and submitted to FEMA for final approval.

View Hazard Mitigation Plan Page

Brush Abatement Program

The Sierra Madre Fire Department’s annual Brush Abatement Program begins June 1 and is designed to reduce wildfire hazards throughout the community. The program helps minimize the potential for fire to spread from one property to another while providing firefighters with safer and more effective access to protect homes and other structures during a wildfire.

Each year, the Fire Department conducts inspections throughout applicable areas of the City to identify hazardous vegetation and other conditions that may increase wildfire risk. Property owners are encouraged to maintain their properties year-round in a fire-safe condition and in compliance with the Sierra Madre Municipal Code.

Property owners whose properties do not meet the required standards will receive a written notice identifying the necessary corrective actions. Property owners are generally provided 30 days to complete the required work, after which the Fire Department will conduct a re-inspection. Properties that remain out of compliance may be subject to additional enforcement action in accordance with the City’s Municipal Code.

Sierra Madre Municipal Code Chapter 8.36 - HAZARDOUS BRUSH CLEARANCE (Nothing contained in this section shall be deemed to preclude the Fire Chief from requiring more than the minimum specific requirements set forth above when the fire chief determines that conditions exist which necessitate greater fire protection measures.)

These requirements are intended to reduce wildfire risk, improve defensible space, and help protect residents, firefighters, homes, and the Sierra Madre community.

What are Defensible Space Requirements?

If you live in the State Responsibility Area (SRA) or the Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone in the Local Responsibility Area (LRA), you are responsible for ensuring that your property complies with defensible space requirements that call for owners to take proactive steps to protect structures from wildfire.

Defensible space is an area where flammable material is removed or reduced to help protect people, homes, and communities from wildfire. Adequate defensible space aids in the safety of firefighters and helps to slow or halt the progress of fire that might otherwise overcome a structure.

Zone 0 (0-5 feet from a structure)

In response to the increased frequency and intensity of wildfires in California over the last decade, the Legislature passed AB 3074 (2020) and SB 504 (2024), making changes to Public Resource Code 4291. These changes require the Board of Forestry and Fire Protection (Board) to establish an ember-resistant defensible zone the first 5 feet around a structure, referred to as Zone 0. Follow the Zone 0 rulemaking process on the Board of Forestry's website.

Zone 0 is the first five feet around a home or structure and is designed to reduce the risk of wildfire ignition from wind-blown embers and nearby combustible materials. The proposed regulations focus on keeping the area closest to the structure clear of combustible materials while allowing certain properly maintained vegetation and existing trees within portions of Zone 0.

Zone 1 (5-30 feet from a structure or to the property line if less than 30 feet) is designed to reduce wildfire risk by minimizing flammable materials and maintaining vegetation in a way that slows fire spread.

Chimney- Remove any portion of a tree within 10 feet in all directions of a chimney. (Exempt- Oak Trees only require trimming when directly above chimney)
Roof- Remove all vegetation living or dead on roof
Overhang- Remove trees and vegetation within 5 feet above and below roofs, including climbing vegetation on a structure. (Exempt- Oak Trees)Recommendation- 3 feet horizontal clearance.
Decks/Balconies/Stairs- Remove flammable vegetation and items below or adjacent to Decks, Balconies or Stairs

Zone 2 (30-100 feet from a structure or to the property line if less than 100 feet) is designed to slow the spread of wildfire by reducing the amount of vegetation that could fuel flames.

Dead/dying- Remove dead or dying vegetation
Grasses/Weeds- 3 inches max. 18 inches max on slopes greater than 20%
Shrubs- Separate shrub fuels to a minimum of 4 feet or twice the shrub height, whichever is greater. When slope is greater than 20%, minimum of 8 feet or 4 times shrub height; whichever is greater
Shrub Under Tree-Clearance above shrub must be at least 3 times height of shrub
Trees- Prune branches from ground up to 6 vertical feet or 1/3 the height of the tree, whichever is greater
Wood Storage- All wood piles should be at least 30 feet from any structure and have 10 feet of clearance in all directions down to bare soil. Unless, completed covered in a fire- resisted material

Requirements for property owners that have no distance threshold: Maintain roads to have all vegetation cut back horizontally to the curb, with 13 ½ feet of vertical clearance from the curb.

Residents can search by address and view the current designation of their property HERE. This online map also allows users to compare the newly updated zones with the 2011 adopted maps. Learn more about "Defensible Space" from CalFire.

Providing this defensible space is YOUR LEGAL responsibility and the key to defending your home during a wildfire. Working together we can battle the wildfire problem, but you must start around your own home. The Fire Departments Brush Abatement Program begins annually on June 1st. If you have any questions, or would like additional information, please contact contact Scott Rosevear, our Community Risk Specialist, at inspection@sierramadreca.gov or call 626-355-3611, extension 607, or visit the California Fire Alliance.

Fire Sprinklers

Fire sprinklers are economical, reliable and a proven method to protect your family and home during a fire. The advantages of installing sprinklers in your home include assurance of a safer environment for your family, protection of your investment and irreplaceable family possessions. Studies by the Federal Emergency Management Agency's United States Fire Administration indicate that the installation of residential fire sprinkler systems could have saved thousands of lives; prevented a large portion of those injuries; and eliminated hundreds of millions of dollars in property losses.

To schedule a Fire Sprinkler Inspection: Please contact Dennis Grubb & Associates at (951)772-0007.