"The green metal roof on Mary Bradshaw's house gleams amid scorched earth and dead, blackened trees. All of the surrounding homes burned in last year's Beachie Creek Fire in Oregon's Santiam Canyon, but hers was untouched.
"We were shocked," Bradshaw said. "Having seen what the fire did, we really didn't expect it to be standing."
It's a shining example of how home-hardening measures can prevent houses from burning, even when they're surrounded by fire. Bradshaw and her husband built their home with concrete siding, a cement porch, no gutters or air vents on the metal roof, and no vegetation near the house. Those are all key fireproofing measures that experts recommend.
"We built it with fire in mind, although we never thought we would have a fire," Bradshaw said."
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