Impact of Home and Lot Characteristics on Structure Survival during a Wildland-urban Interface Wildfire

Erica Fischer
Civil and Construction Engineering
Oregon State University

ABSTRACT
Recent fire activity and “mega-fires” resulted in record breaking fire events that have damaged civil infrastructure throughout wildland-urban interface (WUI) communities. These fires are causing massive impacts to civil infrastructure due to burning of homes. Erica Fischer summarizes a study that used machine learning algorithms to examine housing survivability in the 2021 Marshall Fire, investigating the role of housing, parcel, and neighborhood characteristics. The Marshall grass fire affected suburban communities and destroyed more than 1,000 houses. The identification of the most important parameters showed that the majority of the most impactful variables were not within the homeowner’s control. This conclusion demonstrates the importance of neighborhood and community characteristics that are controlled by the jurisdiction on housing survival, especially in a home rule state where building codes and planning may differ across jurisdictional boundaries.

SPEAKER
Erica Fischer, PhD, PE, is an Associate Professor of Civil and Construction Engineering at Oregon State University. Fischer’s research interests revolve around innovative approaches to improve the resilience and robustness of structural systems affected by natural and man-made hazards. She has participated in post-earthquake reconnaissance team missions in diverse regions including Haiti; Napa, California; Italy; and Mexico City. She has led post-wildfire reconnaissance after the Camp Fire in California and after the Marshall Fire in Colorado. Fischer performs research on a variety of structural systems including steel, timber, and composites subjected to hazards such as earthquakes and fires. Fischer has experience as a practicing structural engineer and holds a Professional Engineering license in the states of Washington, California, and Oregon.