Speaker to help residents get firewise

MAT-SU -- With summer in full green splendor, it may be difficult to imagine that one spark could make it all go up in smoke. But it could, and the Mat-Su Borough is encouraging homeowners to be aware of potential danger and how to protect their homes.

To help homeowners gain insight into terms such as defensible space and the home ignition zone, as well as to answer questions such as what should determine whether a family should evacuate or shelter in place and how to prepare a home to fend off wildfire, a free meeting will be held Tuesday, June 24, at the Central Wasilla Public Safety Building from 7 to 9 p.m. The building is located at 101 W. Swanson Ave.

Jack Cohen, Ph.D., a research physical scientist with the U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service's Fire Science Laboratory in Missoula, Mont., will be on hand to tell homeowners how to make their homes more safe. According to information from the Mat-Su Borough, Cohen has studied many wildland-urban interface fires around the country, working to gain a better understanding of how homeowners can be fire safe.

Bea Adler, the borough's Project Impact coordinator and organizer of the event, said Cohen has been working for more than 30 years to learn more about fires.

"He's known for building walls in the woods and setting houses on fire," Adler said. She mentioned a recent experiment in which Cohen stacked dry pine needles on several types of roofing materials to see how they responded. Metal roofs, Adler said, fared well, as did asphalt shingles. Wood shingles, however, burned quickly. Materials used for siding and wall construction have been tested by Cohen as well, Adler said, so those building or remodeling a home may be interested in attending.

This isn't Cohen's first trip to Alaska, Adler said, and the Valley won't be his only stop. Cohen, she said, is spending two weeks in Alaska and has a rigorous speaking schedule. He'll be speaking in Fairbanks and Anchorage prior to speaking in the Valley, Adler said. Area residents are welcome to attend meetings in other communities, she said, including the Anchorage presentation held June 23 from 7 to 9 p.m. at Service High School. His trip is being funded by the Anchorage Fire Department and the Alaska Division of Forestry, Adler said.

For more information about the meeting, contact Adler at 373-8822.