FIREPRIME boosts wildfire resilience in WUI communities with tools for public awareness and civil protection
Wildfires present complex civil protection challenges, particularly for Wildland–Urban Interface (WUI) communities, which face serious threats to lives, property, and businesses due to limited risk awareness and insufficient preparedness. Emergency responders are often overwhelmed by demanding operations that may involve prioritising between communities and managing unplanned evacuations or shelter-in-place situations.
To address these challenges, the European project FIREPRIME has developed a suite of tools and materials designed to enhance homeowners’ fire safety, strengthen infrastructure resilience, and foster community engagement and education. These resources aim to establish an EU-wide programme that promotes a culture of fire resilience among WUI communities, with a strong emphasis on civil protection.
Pont de Vilomara (Barcelona) Wildfire in 2022. Source: ACN.
About WUIs
The Wildland-Urban Interface (WUI) represents the areas where human development meets or intermingles with wildland vegetation, creating a high-risk environment for wildfires. As urban expansion continues, more communities are being built in fire-prone regions, increasing the exposure of homes, infrastructures, and human lives to devastating fires. Climate change further exacerbates this risk by extending fire seasons, raising temperatures, and drying vegetation, making wildfires more frequent and intense. The lack of forest management has led to an accumulation of vegetation in forests, which intensifies the severity of wildfires.
One of the critical issues in the WUI is the vulnerability of structures. Many homes are constructed with flammable materials, and inadequate defensible space around properties allows fires to spread rapidly. Additionally, this is also critical for electrical stations, transport infrastructures, factories or warehouses in forested areas. When fires break out in WUI areas, protecting infrastructure and evacuating residents can be extremely challenging due to the low wildfire risk awareness among the population. Addressing this challenge requires proactive mitigation strategies. Fire-resistant structures and a community preparedness programmes are essential in reducing wildfire risks in the WUI.
