Austin City Council passed a resolution May 12 that aims to increase wildfire prevention and defense strategies and set a goal of zero fatalities from wildfires. The resolution was sponsored by District 10 Council Member Sheri Gallo who said the Community Wildfire Protection Plan passed in 2014 by City Council was only a starting point in addressing wildfire prevention. “The question is not will we have another wildfire, it is when will we have another wildfire,” Gallo said. “And it is my goal … to support the implementation of a comprehensive local-level community wildfire protection plan and be better prepared for when the next fire hits our community.” The Austin Fire Department reports there are about 246,000 homes in the community at risk of wildfire damage, and a 2013 national wildfire hazard risk report rated Austin the third most at-risk residential area for wildfire-related structural loss, according to the resolution. “The city of Austin is at extreme risk of major home, property and structural loss from wildfire; it’s that simple,” Firefighters Association President Bob Nicks said. “We know this because of what happened in 2011 where 47,000 acres burned in the Central Texas area to consume more than 1,800 homes. … There is a lot of work that needs to be done.” The approved resolution directs the city manager to ensure all high-risk areas be assessed for the need for local wildfire protection plans, lists wildfire risk reduction as a "high priority" of the CodeNEXT and Imagine Austin planning processes, and asks city staff to provide a progress report every six months.