The Carolina Forest Civic Association wants to implement a wildfire protection program less than two years after one of the state's worst wildfires ravaged Horry County for eight days and caused more than $20 million in property damage.
The Firewise program, a national initiative adopted by the S.C. Forestry Commission, encourages neighborhoods to develop community wildfire protection plans and implement safer construction and landscaping practices.
Two communities in Carolina Forest - Walker's Woods and The Farm - signed on to the program earlier this year. The association hopes to encourage other neighborhoods to become Firewise certified, said association President Dennis DiSabato.
The group doesn't have the legal authority to force homeowners' associations to carry out any policy, but plans to heavily promote the program. S.C. Forestry Commission incident commander Mike Bozzo attended the association's monthly meeting Wednesday to drum up further support for Firewise.
Bozzo was the lead commander of the response team in April 2009 and showed pictures of the vicious fire Wednesday evening.
The incident commander called wildfires inevitable, but said the Firewise program limits damage and prevents the widespread loss of homes and lives.
Communities that agree to the program are given a free assessment by state and local officials about potential problems. The S.C. Forestry Commission then develops a community wildfire protection plan. The plan describes the community and recommends how to reduce the risks of wildfire, Bozzo said.
Officials from the commission then educate community members through a workshop and urge creation of a community Firewise board of directors to implement suggestions.
Bozzo said plans often call for less-flammable mulches and plants, debris removal and limb pruning, among other things. They also call for precautionary measures that make sure there are legible, reflective road signs, a fire hydrant system and multiple community entrances and exits.
There are national grants that can assist in the expenses of becoming Firewise certified, Bozzo said.
Currently, there are 13 Firewise certified communities in South Carolina.
"The goal is for firefighters to be able to make a quick and safe response," Bozzo said. "If communities agree, it should reduce the susceptibility that we'll have another Highway 31 fire."
Chuck Rhome, the homeowners' association president for the Inverness community in Carolina Forest, said he strongly supports the program.
His community is bordered by two golf courses and is surrounded by towering pine trees.
If a wildfire broke out in his community, Rhome said at least half of the homes would be in serious jeopardy.
"I think this is a fantastic program that should be looked at by all of the communities in Carolina Forest," Rhome said.
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