The Western Wildfire Crisis Is Getting Worse. Here's How Automated Exterior Fire Protection Can Help.
- Shawn Gardner
- 4 days ago
- 6 min read
By Shawn Gardner, Co-Founder & Director of Wildfire Systems and Operations at FireRoofs
I've spent over 20 years in irrigation design, arboriculture, construction management, and municipal public works. As Parks Manager for the City of Saratoga, a big part of my job was overseeing fire-fuel reduction projects and large-scale infrastructure. I thought I understood wildfire risk. Then the last two years happened, and it became clear the problem had outpaced what most of us were prepared for.
This isn't a scare piece. It's a look at what's actually happening across three western states, what the science says about protecting your home, and what you can do before the next fire season.
The Problem: Wildfire Season Doesn't Have an Off Switch Anymore
Officials in Colorado recently said a "normal" fire season now means roughly 6,000 wildfires burning 160,000 acres, and that communities need to be ready for fires in any month of the year 1. That's what normal looks like now.
In California, the January 2025 Palisades and Eaton fires ripped through more than 37,000 acres and destroyed over 16,000 structures 2. Santa Ana winds hit 100 mph 3. Estimated property and capital losses landed somewhere between $76 billion and $131 billion 3. Those fires happened in the middle of winter.
New Mexico isn't getting a break. The period from November 2025 through January 2026 was the warmest in 131 years for the state and nine other western states 4. The Rio Grande Basin's snow-water equivalent sat at just 6% of the historical median as of mid-February 2026 4. Without snowpack, the landscape is a tinderbox.
The Evidence: Numbers That Should Keep You Up at Night
The National Interagency Fire Center and the Insurance Information Institute track these numbers, and the trajectory is clear.
State | 2024 Fires | 2024 Acres Burned | 2025 Fires | 2025 Acres Burned |
California | 8,316 | 1,081,144 | 9,002 | 505,994 |
Colorado | 894 | 60,539 | 1,123 | 255,968 |
New Mexico | 823 | 82,531 | 907 | 179,388 |
Colorado's 2025 season was the most destructive since 2020. The Lee Fire alone scorched over 137,000 acres in Rio Blanco County, making it the fourth-largest fire in state history 5. Fires aren't waiting for summer, either. In February 2026, the County Road 169 fire burned nearly 5,600 acres on Colorado's Eastern Plains 6.
The NIFC's March 2026 outlook flags above-normal fire potential from the southern Rockies into the southern Plains, with risk expanding into central New Mexico and Colorado's West Slope by June 7. Nationally, acres burned by late February 2026 were running at 422% of the 10-year average 7. Federal firefighting suppression costs hit $3.17 billion in 2023 alone 8. These aren't abstract numbers. They're the cost of a system that's overwhelmed.
The Science: Why Some Homes Survive and Others Don't
Here's where homeowners actually have leverage.
After the 2025 Los Angeles fires, the Insurance Institute for Business and Home Safety (IBHS) studied which homes survived and which didn't. Homes with multiple hardening features, things like a Class A fire-rated roof, noncombustible siding, enclosed eaves, and double-pane windows, had a dramatically higher survival rate than homes with just one of those features 9. It wasn't any single upgrade that made the difference. It was the combination.
IBHS also found that "Zone Zero," a noncombustible buffer within five feet of the home's perimeter, cut the risk of ignition in half 10. Swap out bark mulch for gravel or pavers within that five-foot ring. Simple, and it works.
But passive hardening has limits. A fire-rated roof won't help if embers land on dry wood siding while you're stuck in evacuation traffic 30 miles away. That's the gap we built FireRoofs to fill: automated exterior fire protection that responds whether you're home or not.
The Solution: Automated Exterior Fire Protection
California's building code has recognized layered protection for years. Chapter 7A sets specific requirements for roofing, siding, windows, and vents in wildfire hazard zones 11. Starting January 1, 2026, a new standalone California Wildland-Urban Interface Code (Title 24, Part 7) consolidates those standards into a single document 12. That's progress. But codes are minimums. They tell you what you have to do. They don't tell you what you should do.
The FireRoofs automated exterior fire protection systems protect the exterior of a home with water and Class A fire foam through automated sprinklers and two layers of wildfire detection.
The logic is straightforward: Detect, Alert, Defend.
Property detection sensors and visual cameras monitor the immediate surroundings. Satellite wildfire alerts track fire activity up to seven miles out. When a threat is confirmed, the system sends an instant alert to the homeowner's phone. Then, without waiting for anyone to press a button, the automated exterior sprinkler system activates.
What separates this from a basic sprinkler kit is the escalating response. Three programmed threat levels, each calibrated to match the severity of the incoming threat.
Threat Level 1: Pre-Wet Structure and Perimeter. Sprinklers run water cycles to wet the structure and surrounding perimeter. The system then pauses, checks for escalating fire conditions, and continues only if needed. This is the early posture, getting surfaces saturated before embers arrive.
Threat Level 2: Intensive Saturation. Sprinklers run to heavily saturate the area. Water cycles by default, with a Class A foam option available for equipped properties. The system pauses again, reassesses the threat, and adjusts accordingly.
Threat Level 3: Maximum Protection. The system runs a continuous Water, Foam, Pause cycle, repeating until the fire threat is eliminated. Foam valves activate if equipped.
That escalating logic is what makes this different. The system reads real threat data and responds to it, not a single on/off switch. Suppression layers include roof sprinklers, eave protection, and perimeter defense, all fed by a pool or tank backup holding 10,000 or more gallons. The system operates independently when municipal water fails, which is exactly when you need it most.
My co-founder Walt Mullins brings 30-plus years as a licensed California General Contractor and president of Mullins Construction Inc. His background in high-end custom homebuilding means every installation is engineered for the specific property. Every home sits differently on its lot. Every neighborhood has different exposure points.
The FireRoofs app keeps you connected from anywhere. The Sensor's Dashboard shows real-time status of all detection sensors. Map and Fire Alerts delivers a live wildfire map with proximity notifications. The Controls section gives you manual override and remote activation. Settings lets you customize alert thresholds and preferences. Backup satellite connectivity keeps the app running even when cell and internet service go down.
We're currently protecting estates across the Bay Area, East Bay and Santa Cruz Mountains, including Aptos, Soquel, Portola Valley, Scotts Valley, Los Gatos, Saratoga, Los Altos Hills, and Woodside. These are properties where the stakes are high and the terrain makes wildfire risk personal.
Real-World Proof: What Happens When You Don't Prepare
The 2021 Marshall Fire in Superior, Colorado, destroyed roughly 1,000 homes and caused over $2 billion in damages. An estimated 92% of those homes were underinsured 13. Nine out of ten families who lost everything didn't have enough coverage to rebuild.
The insurance market has pulled back in response. In California, major carriers like State Farm, AIG, and Allstate have stopped issuing new home insurance policies in fire-prone areas 13. In Colorado, premiums jumped more than 51% between 2019 and 2022 13. Protecting your home from wildfire isn't just about saving it from flames. It's about keeping it insurable. Some insurers are now offering premium reductions for homes with verified hardening and suppression measures.
What Comes Next: 2026 Is Already Looking Rough
The 2026 fire season is shaping up to be severe. Dry conditions across the West, a record snow drought in New Mexico, and above-normal fire potential forecasts from the NIFC all point the same direction 7 14. The wildfire protection industry is projected to reach $7.8 billion by 2033, up from $3.5 billion in 2024 15. More people are realizing that waiting isn't a strategy.
Take Action Before Fire Season
If you're in the Bay Area, East Bay, the Santa Cruz Mountains, or anywhere in California's wildfire zones, the time to act is before the next fire. We've walked through neighborhoods where one house stood and the one next door was ash. That difference almost always comes down to preparation.
Schedule a free property evaluation with FireRoofs and let us assess your home's specific vulnerabilities. We'll walk your property, identify the weak points, and put together a plan that fits your situation and budget. No pressure, no generic recommendations. Just honest, field-tested guidance from people who've spent their careers in construction, land management, and automated fire suppression.
Don't wait for the smoke to remind you.
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