Wildfire Risk Assessments: What Businesses and Municipalities Should Review Each Year

Quick Answer:

A wildfire risk assessment is an annual review that helps businesses and municipalities identify wildfire hazards, evaluate fire safety, and update response plans to reduce risk and improve emergency readiness.

Wildfire risk assessment is no longer a “nice-to-have” for businesses and municipalities, it’s a critical annual exercise. With longer fire seasons, hotter temperatures, and expanding urban-wildlandinterfaces across the Okanagan and the BC Interior, businesses and local governments need a repeatable, documented process to identify risks, reduce vulnerabilities, and prepare for fast-moving wildfire events.

This guide outlines what should be reviewed each year to keep people safe, protect infrastructure, and maintain operational continuity within British Columbia’s unique landscape..

Review Changes to Your Wildfire Risk Profile

A wildfire risk assessment should begin with an updated understanding of your exposure. Conditions change year over year, and assumptions from last season may no longer be valid.

Key areas to review include:

• Nearby vegetation growth and fuel loads
• New developments or land-use changes
• Updated wildfire season prepardness info from the BC Government
• Current wildland urban interface risk class maps from the BC Government
• Historical fire activity from the past season

Municipalities should also factor in population growth, infrastructure expansion, and changes to evacuation routes or access roads that may have been impacted by previous seasonal shifts..

Conduct a Comprehensive Fire Safety Audit

An annual fire safety audit helps identify weaknesses in physical infrastructure and operational readiness before wildfire season begins. While certain sectors require specialized niche strategies—such as wildfire protection for farms and ranches or orchards—municipalities and commercial businesses must look at broader structural vulnerabilities.

Your audit should assess:

• Building materials and fire resistance ratings
• Roofs, vents, siding, and ember intrusion points
• Defensible space compliance and vegetation clearance
• Presnece (and functionality) of fire suppression systems and water access.

For businesses, this step often uncovers overlooked maintenance issues that can significantly increase wildfire vulnerability during a Kelowna or Central Okanagan fire event.

Update Your Wildfire Response Plan

A wildfire response plan must reflect current risks, staffing realities, and operational priorities. Plans that aren’t reviewed annually often fail when conditions change or personnel turnover occurs.

Important updates include:

• Evacuation procedures and shelter-in-place criteria
• Roles and responsibilities for staff or municipal teams
• Communication protocols with emergency services
• Continuity plans for essential operations or services (including preparedness for high-occupancy sites like those found in campground wildfire preparedness).

Municipalities should also coordinate response plans with neighboring jurisdictions to ensure consistency during large-scale wildfire events common in BC.

Evaluate Emergency Communications and Alerts

Effective communication is one of the most common failure points during wildfires. Annual reviews should test whether alerts reach the right people at the right time.

Consider:

• Public notification systems and redundancy
• Internal staff alert processes
• Accessibility for vulnerable populations
• Backup communication methods during power outages

Running tabletop exercises or drills can help validate that communication systems work under pressure and identify “dead zones” in coverage.

Review Training, Drills, and Staff Readiness

Even the best wildfire risk assessment is ineffective if people don’t know how to act on it. Annual training ensures preparedness doesn’t erode over time.

Recommended reviews:

• Staff wildfire awareness training
• Evacuation and emergency drills
• Incident command or emergency management roles
• Contractor and third-party preparedness expectations

Municipalities should also assess volunteer capacity and mutual aid agreements to ensure they meet provincial standards.

Document Findings and Track Improvements

Each wildfire risk assessment should produce clear documentation that supports compliance, funding applications, and continuous improvement.

Your annual review should result in:

• Updated risk assessment reports
• A prioritized mitigation action list
• Budget considerations for risk reduction
• A timeline for corrective actions

Tracking progress year over year helps demonstrate due diligence and may assist with internal risk management and insurance documentation.

Why Annual Wildfire Risk Assessments Matter

An annual wildfire risk assessment gives businesses and municipalities a structured way to reduce exposure, improve response, and protect lives and assets. When paired with a fire safety audit and an up-to-date wildfire response plan, it becomes a powerful tool for managing one of today’s most serious environmental risks across the Okanagan.

FAQ: Wildfire Risk Assessment