The Marin IJ profiled a Defensible Space sucess story in Marin last night, when two vegetation fires burned near homes in Tam Valley.
Residents who cleared brush from around their homes on a Tamalpais Valley hillside were credited with helping prevent two grass fires from engulfing the neighborhood Wednesday evening.
Two small fires erupted near County View Drive and Deer Trail about 7:30 p.m., but were quickly doused by Southern Marin, Mill Valley and county firefighters before spreading beyond a half-acre of hillside just west of the Tamalpais Valley Community Center.
Southern Marin Battalion Chief Jeff Allen credited neighbors who cleared “defensible space” around their homes for helping save the day.
“One neighbor just the day before had cut a safety zone around his home,” Allen said. That work, and recent brush and grass clearing by others in the area, “kept those fires in check,” the chief said.
Two dozen firefighters converged on the scene, Allen said.
The two fires may have been sparked by a malfunctioning auto seen in the area at the time, but the case remains under investigation.
