I lived in Los Alamos during the Cerro Grande fire, and remember friends who lost everything, and their immediate neighbors who lost nothing Defensible space a

I lived in Los Alamos during the Cerro Grande fire, and remember friends who lost everything, and their immediate neighbors who lost nothing Defensible space and choice in building material plays some part, but ultimately there are so many factors that it's basically random. People who had big old piñon trees right up against their house wouldn't see a bit of damage, while the guy next to them, who had a xeriscape yard, had their house burned down to the foundation