Fire Zone Plan Goes to Supervisors Today

A plan to designate several hillside and canyon areas as “very high fire hazard severity zones”--a designation that would require builders to include safety measures on new homes--is set for a vote by the Board of Supervisors today.

Some officials have expressed concerns about the proposal, saying that residents living within the zones could face much higher insurance rates.

But others said the designation would reduce fire danger and makes sense in light of the 1993 Laguna Beach firestorm, which destroyed hundreds of homes.

The proposal would establish fire hazard zones in many unincorporated areas along the eastern and southern canyon areas, roughly from Anaheim Hills south through Rancho Santa Margarita.

New homes in those areas would be required to have tile roofs and be cleared of brush and other flammable materials.

The county is required to establish such rules under a state law adopted after the Laguna Beach and Oakland Hills fires.

Officials said the county can write new rules for high-risk areas or apply the regulations to the entire county.