Fire Action Plan

Prioritization is key with a fire rapidly approaching. Prioritize the following Six P's in your Fire Action Plan.

The Six P’s:

1. People and pets
2. Papers, phone numbers, and important documents
3. Prescriptions, vitamins, and eyeglasses
4. Pictures and irreplaceable memorabilia
5. Personal computer hard drive and disks
6. “Plastic” (credit cards, ATM cards) and cash

CREATE A FIRE ACTION PLAN

Your Wildfire Action Plan should be made in advance of fire season. Ensure all family members are aware of the plan well in advance of a wildfire. Use the checklist below to help create your plan. Each family’s plan will be different. Based on their needs, and circumstances.

Ensure you plan with COVID-19 in mind. Ask friends or relatives outside your area if you would be able to stay with them. If you do need to evacuate and plan to stay with friends or relatives, ask if people in their home at higher risk for serious illness. If that is the case, considering asking another person. Check with hotels, motels and campgrounds to learn if they are open.

Your Checklist

Create an evacuation plan that includes:

• A designated emergency meeting location well outside the potential burning area. This is critical to determine who has safely evacuated from the affected area.
• Plan several different escape routes from your home and community. Practice the contingencies, so everyone in your family knows their options
• Have an evacuation plan for pets and large animals such as horses and other livestock, if necessary.
• A Family Contact Plan designates an out-of-area friend or relative as a point of contact. They will as a single source of communication among the family, in case of separation. This is in case cell and internet towers are not consistently working.

Be Prepared:

• Have fire extinguishers on hand and train your family how to use them. Ensure they are not past the expiration date.
• Ensure that your family knows where your gas, electric, and water main shut-off controls are located and how to safely shut them down in an emergency.
• Assemble a Wildfire Emergency Kit for each person.
• Maintain a list of emergency contact numbers posted near your phone, in your cell phones, and in your emergency supply kit. You cannot be too careful in these situations.
• Keep an extra Wildfire Emergency Kit in your car in case you cannot get to your home because of fire or another emergency.
• Have a portable radio so you can stay updated on the fire.
• Tell your neighbors what you’re doing to prepare for the fire so they can be ready too.

What to do if trapped near a fire? Always stay calm. Each minute matters, so you need to be alert and decisive.

At Home:

• Keep your family together.
• Call 911. Tell authorities where you are in the house, and your address.
• Fill sinks and tubs with cold water.
• Keep doors and windows closed to prevent smoke from coming in, but leave everything unlocked for authorities.
• Stay inside your house.
• Stay away from all outside walls and windows.

While Outside:

• Go to an area without any flammable material (plants and trees), a ditch or depression on level ground if possible.
• Lie face down, cover yourself, but leave room to breathe.
• Use your cell phone to advise officials—call 911.

In Your Car:

• Park your car in an area without flammable material.
• Close all car windows and vents.
• Cover yourself with wool blanket or jacket.
• Lie on vehicle floor.
• Use your cell phone to call authorities (911).

Preparation is key. Knowing your routes, who to call, back up plans and having your emergency kit ready are vital in the little time you have to respond to a fire threatening your community, and home. If you have not made an emergency kit already, please look at the checklist on our site.

Sources:

https://ucanr.edu/sites/fire/Safety/Burnover/

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/tripping/wp/2017/10/13/what-to-do-if-youre-trapped-in-a-vehicle-in-the-middle-of-a-wildfire/

https://www.fire.ca.gov/media/4996/readysetgo_plan.pdf

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