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MOFD Is Burning Ridgelines: Here's Why That's Good News
Starting June 8, MOFD crews began prescribed burn operations at Orinda Oaks Park, near Donald Drive. Over the coming weeks, burns will continue along ridgelines in Orinda and Moraga, conducted during cooler morning hours and wrapped up by noon each day. If you live near Donald Drive or along the treated ridgelines, you may see smoke and active fire from MOFD crews. This is intentional, planned, and staffed.
The district is burning for four reasons: to establish fuel breaks that slow a wildfire's advance, to improve evacuation corridors so roads stay clearer longer during an emergency, to create safer operating space for firefighters, and to support native grassland ecosystem health. Prescribed fire does what mechanical clearing can't: it resets the fuel load all the way down to the soil.
- If you see smoke from the operations: Keep windows and doors closed during burning. Operations wrap up by noon, though drift smoke may linger in valleys into the early afternoon. If you don't have central air, keep windows closed during peak morning smoke and use fans to circulate inside air.
- If you smell smoke unexpectedly: Note that prescribed burns are suspended during Red Flag Warnings: if a Red Flag Warning is active, no burns are underway. Outside of posted morning burn windows, treat any unexpected smoke as unplanned: check MOFD's Nixle or NextDoor for daily burn status, and call 911 immediately if you see an active flame column that isn't the known burn area or if smoke appears during evenings or weekends.
- This is not a substitute for your Zone Zero: Prescribed burns reduce community-level risk; they don't protect individual structures. Home hardening and defensible space around your house remain among the highest-impact steps most homeowners can take.
→ What MOFD's prescribed burns mean for your neighborhood: full explainer
Source: KRON4: Prescribed burn in Moraga, Orinda area
Is Your Street on the Inspection List? Check Before July.
MOFD has hired two additional fire inspectors and is working through a comprehensive defensible space inspection schedule through at least July. Inspectors will visit properties on the following streets. If your address is here, now is the time to walk your parcel and make sure it meets the 100-foot clearance requirements.
- Through June 19 (Unincorporated / Moraga area): St. Mary's Road, Moraga Road, Rheem Boulevard, Glorietta Boulevard, Camino Pablo
- June 22 (Unincorporated areas)
- June 23–24 (Moraga): School Street to Canyon Road
- June 25–July 2 (Orinda): Monte Vista Ridge Road, Claremont Avenue
- July 20–31 (Moraga): Camino Pablo
⚠️ Camino Pablo is listed in both the June and July windows as reported by Lamorinda Weekly (this reflects different segments of the road across different inspection cycles). Verify your specific address with MOFD if you are unsure which window applies to you: call the Fire Prevention Office at (925) 258-4599.
Free defensible space assessments are also available through MOFD's Community Wildfire Safety Ambassador Program. You can request one at mofd.org/wildfire-ambassador. An Ambassador will walk your property and identify what needs attention before an official inspector does.
→ What inspectors look for and how to prepare your parcel
Source: Lamorinda Weekly: MOFD reveals which areas will be inspected (June 10, 2026)
Community Bulletin
Vehicle fire ignites vegetation on Fish Ranch Road (June 11). At 3:45 AM during the height of the Red Flag Warning, a vehicle fire near the Fish Ranch Road freeway entrance spread to nearby vegetation. MOFD crews, CAL FIRE, and ConFire responded under full alarm. The fire was contained quickly (approximately half an acre, no structures threatened). Fire Chief Jeff Isaacs called it a reminder of "the importance of continued regional cooperation and rapid resource deployment during elevated fire weather conditions." This is mutual aid working exactly as intended. Full incident report →
MOFD Demonstration Garden coming to Station 42. MOFD and Contra Costa Master Gardeners have started construction of a fire-resistant landscaping demonstration garden at Fire Station 42 on Moraga Road, across from Rheem Shopping Center. When complete, it will showcase plant species, spacing, and ground cover choices that reduce ignition risk around structures, giving neighbors a hands-on reference for what fire-resistant actually looks like in a Lamorinda yard. Worth a stop when it opens.
One Thing to Do This Week
Walk your 5-foot zone. Inspectors and fire scientists agree: the area directly against your house (within 5 feet of exterior walls and under decks) is where most ignitions begin. Embers land, accumulate, and smolder. This week, clear anything combustible from that zone: potted plants, doormats, stored wood, patio furniture cushions, cardboard, mulch. It takes less than an hour on most properties and it's among the highest-impact steps you can take before the next Red Flag event.
→ The Zero-Foot Perimeter: what to clear and what to replace it with
Where to Start if You're New Here
The best first step is the Home Fire Readiness Score, a 10-minute self-assessment that tells you where your home stands and what to prioritize. After that:
- The Big Three: roof, vents, and defensible space: the highest-priority moves for a Lamorinda home
- Gold Protocol: what to do each week from now through October
- Free MOFD programs still open: chipper and broom puller loan available through the season
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Lamorinda Ready is a community education resource. This newsletter is for general educational and informational purposes only and does not constitute legal, insurance, financial, construction, or emergency response advice. Inspection schedule dates are based on Lamorinda Weekly's reporting as of June 10, 2026; verify current schedule directly with MOFD before relying on specific dates. Always consult qualified professionals and official agencies (MOFD, your city building department) before making decisions about your home or property. Content available through links in this newsletter is subject to the same limitations.
Lamorinda Ready
Practical resilience for Lafayette, Moraga, and Orinda.
1480 Moraga Rd Ste C #188, Moraga, CA 94556