Maui Fire Department and partner organizations conduct training for home wildfire assessors

The Hawaiʻi Wildfire Management Organization (HWMO) partnered with the Maui County Department of Fire and Public Safety and the Maui County Mayor’s Office to provide Home Assessor Training last week.

The four-day training, attended by both Maui firefighters and community volunteers, covered wildfire and home ignition fundamentals, homeowner engagement and communication, HWMO’s home assessment process and software, and included classroom sessions as well as extensive hands-on field practice.

The home assessments assist homeowners in identifying the potential wildfire ignition threats to their home, and the steps they can take to make their home less susceptible to wildland fire ember intrusion and ignition.

This is a program that began in 2022, training community volunteer assessors from across the state, including several from Maui. Last week’s training will help build additional local capacity with both volunteers and county employees. Later in the year a program will roll out to provide these home assessments to Maui County homeowners.

“Home assessments are most useful when they are part of an ongoing relationship with the community,” said Maui County Fire Chief Brad Ventura. “By training both community members and County partners here on Maui, we’re building local capacity so residents have trusted people who can help them understand their wildfire risk and identify practical steps they can take around their homes. This week is not about creating experts overnight. It’s about giving people the knowledge, tools, practice and support they need to grow into that role.”

This program will add an additional layer of community wildfire preparedness, along with the support of the already established Firewise communities, the Maui County Wildland Urban Interface (WUI) Program, the Fuel Break Program that works with large landowners to create fuel breaks adjacent to residential areas, and the Fire Prevention Bureau’s brush abatement inspections which has seen Fire Inspectors make 537 inspections this year so far.