Marin County’s fire chief and emergency-management staff briefed the Board of Supervisors on April 22 about wildfire season preparations and introduced updated Local Responsibility Area (LRA) Fire Hazard Severity Zone maps.

Chief Jason Weber said the county has increased firefighting capacity since major North Bay wildfires, citing added staffing, expanded engine resources and 24/7 detection tools. ‘‘We have 30-plus firefighters added to every response in this county now that we didn't have before,’’ Weber said, and he described investments in fire crews, a new emergency command center and alerting systems.

The chief emphasized a ‘‘house-out’’ approach: defensible space around homes, home hardening and personal preparedness. Weber described practical, incremental steps to reduce risk — for example, clearing combustible material within the first five feet of a structure and upgrading vents — and noted grant programs and community assistance for seniors and low-income residents.

The county’s updated fire hazard-severity maps add ‘‘moderate’’ and ‘‘high’’ designations in addition to ‘‘very high’’ and use newer modeling focused on ember showers and projected hazard over a 30–50-year horizon. County staff stressed these are hazard-designation maps required by state law, not a property-level risk assessment or a building moratorium. The maps may appear to change some classifications but staff cautioned residents not to overinterpret single-map boundaries; they recommended homeowners prioritize defensible-space actions.

Supervisor Susan Lukin moved to introduce the ordinance adopting the updated LRA fire hazard-severity maps; Supervisor Milton Peters seconded. The motion passed by unanimous voice vote on first reading. The ordinance will return for a final adoption vote at a later meeting.

Why it matters: The updated maps will be used to align local codes with state wildfire risk standards and inform future building-code and planning actions. Staff said community mitigation (defensible space, home hardening) remains the most direct lever residents can use to reduce fire risk and insurance exposure.

Public comment: Several callers urged better community coordination and help for neighbors who cannot complete work themselves; speakers requested more outreach to seniors and more clarity on inspection notices.

What’s next: The board completed the ordinance’s first reading; staff will publish notices and return the item for final adoption and continue public outreach about defensible-space resources and grant options.