With the U.S. bracing for another wildfire season, researchers at the Institute for Building and Home Safety are testing new ideas about fire resistant construction and conducting controlled burns to demonstrate countermeasure effectiveness.
According to the National Fire Protection Association, a global non-profit devoted to eliminating death, injury and loss from fire, two wildfires in California late last year were the largest ever recorded in the state. The fires killed 45 people, destroyed more than 10,000 structures and burned almost 553,000 acres.