OCFA explains CA fire‑hazard severity maps after small Buena Park area added; agency says maps set by CAL FIRE/OES

Division Chief Matt Sheets of the Orange County Fire Authority briefed the City of Buena Park on May 27 about the recently updated fire hazard severity zone maps and what they mean for the city.

Sheets said Southern California faces elevated wildfire risk in 2025 due to drought and dry fuels. He explained the maps—developed by CAL FIRE with input from the Office of Emergency Services—use factors such as vegetation, topography, flame length and ember exposure to delineate areas subject to specific defensible‑space and building‑code standards. "These maps are developed by Cal Fire and OES," Sheets said. "The severity zones maps evaluate hazards, not risks."

Sheets noted a small area off Rosecrans in Buena Park was recently designated within the severity‑zone mapping. He emphasized that OCFA does not set those map boundaries: "The Orange County Fire Authority, just for the record, has no say in these maps whatsoever." He encouraged residents in mapped areas to pursue home hardening, defensible landscaping, and other pre‑fire management steps the agency can support.

Councilmembers raised concerns about the potential effects on homeowner insurance and property values in District 1 where the new map overlay appears. Sheets said the maps look at burn history and long‑term patterns (sometimes going back a century) and that while local engagement and maintenance (for example irrigation, vegetation management) can be part of mitigation, moving map boundaries is not a matter OCFA controls; CAL FIRE and state processes govern changes.

Sheets offered to participate in a town‑hall meeting with affected residents and emergency planners to explain defensible‑space measures, evacuation planning and code implications. The council asked staff to coordinate that outreach in the affected neighborhood.