Much of unincorporated Tulare County's foothills and mountains is a Cal Fire State Responsibility Area with high and very-high Fire Hazard Severity Zones — the 2020 SQF Complex (Castle) Fire burned this terrain. New CAL FIRE hazard maps reached the county in March 2025. Properties in these zones face 100-foot defensible space, ignition-resistant building standards, and hazard disclosure requirements.
Unincorporated Tulare County spans the San Joaquin Valley floor and the Sierra Nevada foothills and mountains. The foothill/mountain belt is a Cal Fire State Responsibility Area (SRA) and is mapped with moderate, high, and Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zones (VHFHSZ); communities such as Three Rivers, Springville, and Camp Nelson sit in high-risk terrain that burned in the 2020 SQF Complex / Castle Fire — addressed by the county's SQF Complex Fire Disaster Recovery Ordinance (Chapter 4-31). CAL FIRE's updated Fire Hazard Severity Zone maps were received by Tulare County Fire on March 10, 2025; under Government Code 51179, the county must designate the zones by ordinance within 120 days of the State Fire Marshal's recommendation. Being in a Fire Hazard Severity Zone has real consequences: it triggers 100-foot defensible space under PRC 4291, mandates ignition-resistant exterior construction (California Building Code Chapter 7A / WUI materials) for new and significantly remodeled buildings, requires a natural-hazard disclosure during real-estate transactions, and imposes development standards on road width, water supply, and signage. Property owners should check their parcel on the CAL FIRE FHSZ viewer and the Tulare County LRA fire-severity-zone resources.
Failure to maintain required defensible space is enforced through the county weed/rubbish abatement process (Chapter 4-11) and PRC 4291 (CAL FIRE in the SRA), with abatement costs and liens. Building in a Fire Hazard Severity Zone without meeting WUI construction standards will not pass plan review or inspection and can block permits and occupancy.
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Side-by-side rule comparisons with other cities in Tulare County.
See how Visalia's wildfire zones rules stack up against other locations.
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