You two are clearly talking about very specific fires that occurred under very specific conditions. I'm not going to debate what happened or why. That's for the experts to weigh in on.
I however would like to point out that there are "best practices" for communities and structures in the wildland-urban interface. Relevant to this discussion is the following...
Guidelines for landscaping:
- Keep vegetation from around windows (heat will break glass).
- Keep plants farther than 5 feet (1.5 m) from walls; this is a bare dirt no-grow zone, optional to use mowed green lawn grass and non-combustible mulch with sparse deciduous plants.
- Keep trees from growing within 30 feet (9.1 m) of the structure.
- Keep vegetation thinned within 100 feet (30 m) of the structure.
Guidelines for outdoor maintenance:
- Prune tree limbs back 10 feet (3.0 m) from roofs.
- Separate tree branches from power lines.
- Clear fallen debris from roof, gutters, window wells, and under decks.
- Prune tree branches 6 feet (1.8 m) up from the ground.
- Burn ground of leaf litter and needles.
- Remove and dispose of dead trees and shrubs.
Guidelines for flammables:
- Keep clear of flammables 30 feet (9.1 m) around primary and auxiliary structures including firewood piles.
- Keep clear 10 feet (3.0 m) around propane tanks or fuel oil tanks.
These obviously aren't going to protect every house from every fire. But that doesn't mean people should ignore them.
I'm also not implying that anyone affected by the specific fires being discussed above didn't exercise appropriate caution for where they lived. Certainly some did. Others possibly didn't.
But the reason these guidelines exist is because there have been people who's homes were affected by other wildfires, and experts have concluded that the the above conditions have, at times, contributed to the problem, and that people should do their part to mitigate the problems on their property, and help bring awareness to their neighbors.