As temperatures rise and wildfire risks increase across Alberta, taking steps to protect your home and neighbourhood has never been more important. The FireSmart homeowner program empowers residents to reduce wildfire risk through simple, practical actions on their property, helping to safeguard homes, families, and the natural spaces we value. All residents are encouraged to start by completing a FireSmart self-assessment to better understand their property’s risk and identify easy improvements. For those living in higher-risk areas, Red Deer Emergency Services (RDES) also offers free on-site assessments, providing personalized recommendations to help make your home and neighbourhood more resilient to wildfire.
The RDES Fire Prevention Bureau, in coordination with numerous City departments, continues to put an emphasis on safeguarding our community against wildfire events. Know your risk, and work to reduce it.
All homeowners are encouraged to complete the self-assessment. From there, many simple and practical improvements can be made to reduce wildfire risks to your homes and properties.
Download the self-assessment here
Additionally, the following areas have been identified as having a higher-risk of wildfire and therefore, they qualify for a free in-person assessment with the RDES Fire Prevention Bureau.
If you live in one of the areas listed above, please request a free on-site assessment with RDES Fire Prevention Bureau.
Request a FireSmart Assessment
The City of Red Deer is deploying FireSmart in many ways with a distinction between the FireSmart homeowner campaign and the work being done by The City in the publicly forested area (urban forest).
Red Deer’s proximity to natural forested areas and green corridors creates unique wildfire risk, particularly in neighbourhoods where residential development meets dense vegetation.
FireSmart matters because it:
Things like spring cleaning, yard design & development and alternative products used on your home can all be done in ways that create healthy, fire-resistant communities and homes.
Increasing climate resilience in the community. During the development of The City’s climate adaptation strategy in 2023, it was identified during a climate risk assessment that favourable conditions for wildfires will increase over time. The projections indicate a lowering of overall precipitation, increasing summer temperatures and changing ecosystems all of which increase the risk of wildfires.
While publicly forested areas are being prioritized through The City of Red Deer Parks team, work on private lands must be completed by homeowners – with a little help from Fire Prevention. Mitigation work in the urban forest area in The Pines neighbourhood has occurred within 30m of properties and along the trails. This emphasis is now expanding into the home ignition zone around properties. As this area falls on private property, The City is engaging residents to actively participate in risk mitigation strategies around their homes.
Your first step is to complete a FireSmart self-assessment or, if you are in one of The City’s designated zones, sign up for a free assessment with the RDES Fire Prevention Bureau.
If your property is in one of the designated areas, you can submit an assessment request via the link. From there, a member of our RDES Fire Prevention team will reach out to schedule an assessment.
The following areas qualify for a free in-person assessment with the RDES Fire Prevention Bureau. Please visit www.reddeer.ca/FireSmart and click on the ‘Free Assessment’ link to submit a request.
No, the assessment is free of charge for those residing in the designated high risk zones.
The City of Red Deer is encouraging all residents to adopt FireSmart principles on their property. Due to resourcing, as a part of the 2026 program, we are focusing on a number of high risk neighbourhoods. These zones have been identified as areas of risk in the 2020 Wildfire Hazard and Risk Assessment.
FireSmart is about finding the balance between protecting our environment and protecting our homes and community. Wildfires are becoming more frequent and more intense across Alberta. Proactive actions can reduce the chance that a wildfire spreads into neighbourhoods. FireSmart measures are designed to:
For more information on how The City of Red Deer Parks team is managing FireSmart in the urban forest, please connect with them at parks@reddeer.ca
For additional resources please visit FireSmart Alberta.