The coastal chaparral is a different beast from the forest. My neighborhood was destroyed in the 2003 Cedar Fire. 15 years later, you wouldn't know it burned, it grows back so quickly. Not only that, this stuff burns like gas green. The property behind me is owned by a wildlife preservation fund. They maintain a 100 ft clear space. With 50 mph winds, embers the size of your fist are traveling football fields and it's just a matter of luck where they land. No one should have natural fuels up against their house. Sometimes the property can be defended by fire fighters. Sometimes not.
