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Archive: UCSF Completes Urgent Fire Safety Measures on Mount Sutro
UC San Francisco has completed urgent fire-safety measures on approximately 12 acres on Mount Sutro, to help protect residents and homes adjacent to the Mount Sutro Open Space Reserve, as well as the UCSF Medical Center and facilities at Parnassus Heights.
The measures, which began Aug. 26, are in response to an assessment this summer by the San Francisco Fire Department that found “extra hazardous fire conditions” in the urban forest. Under state law, those conditions require 100 feet of fuel clearance around all structures within and bordering the Reserve – specifically shrubs and small trees that could provide a fire ladder into the forest canopy, should a fire occur.
The work comes at a time when California is experiencing extensive and severe wildfires throughout the state. The defensible space that was created will reduce fire risk and improve firefighters’ effectiveness and safety in the case of a fire.
The fire-safety work was conducted around the UCSF Aldea Student Housing Complex, Surge and Woods buildings, water tanks, and roadside forest edges within 100 feet of homes and other structures.
UCSF will continue working with the community to develop a long-term plan for the forest that further addresses safety issues and is responsive to the community’s concerns.
For questions about this project, please contact UCSF Community Relations at [email protected].