Wildfire Preparedness

I was curious about what kind of preparations folks who live in wildfire prone areas have made.

The two major fires in my area, the Jungle and Derby fires have finally quieted down. I was out helping fight the Derby fire on August 30th when it blew up from 40,000 acres to over 150,000, and it was quite a site. I saw ranchers and landowners working with volunteer firefighters and federal firefighters. It really impressed me the measures these folks took to protect their homes and property. Those measures ranged from plowing fire breaks with farm machinery and setting up sprinklers to past timber reduction projects and helping fight the fire in any capacity they could.

(photo is of us doing structure protection up West Bridger Creek)
http://www.billingsgazette.net/articles/2006/09/01/news/state/20-derby_z.txt

http://www.billingsgazette.net/articles/2006/09/14/news/state/20-jungle_g.txt

At our ranch we keep the fields close to the house and outbuildings irrigated and grazed or baled. We also have a green lawn and keep materials clear from our house and deck. Our tractor has a blade attachment and we also have a water tank and pump that go in the back of a pickup that can pump enough water to run 1.5 inch fire hose. The water supply for the house does not rely on electricity.

Anyways like I said, I was wondering what other people have done or thought about doing to mitigate wildfire hazards.

PLEASE DON’T TURN THIS INTO A USFS “LET IT BURN” POLICY ARGUMENT I’ve heard enough of that recently.

There isn't too much that can be done on small properties (I have one acre). But I have a few fir trees, and try to keep them limbed as far up as I can reach with an extension saw.

Three-quarters of my place is field grass, so I keep it mowed, and trim it again just before July 4th. I live near a reservation, and they have about 130 fireworks stands (the illegal ones are the most popular).

My biggest threat in case of fire is a row of fir trees about 15-20 ft west of the house (on the windward side, naturally). The first morons who lived here planted these trees (which get 250' tall) three feet apart. When they got about 50 ft tall, they topped them, making them even more dangerous. The estimate I got for removing them was $2,000+. Did I mention that the power lines run through them?

I live four miles from the reservation. A couple of weeks ago, when things were so hot and dry, right in the middle of a strict burn ban, one of the Natives decided to set off fireworks and started a fire. Then he ran and hid from the law. When he was found, he tried to blame the fire on kids. The main moneymaker for the tribe (the casino) was directly downwind. My place is four miles in a straight line downwind. If they hadn't been able to stop it, I MIGHT have been able to get home in time to collect the animals and a few things to run with.

Plan for the worst, and never underestimate the stupidity of your neighbors.

Here's some info from my site:
http://www.redflarekits.com/info-fires_wildland.html

There doesn't need to be any debate over burn policies because by law all improved private properties must still be protected. Public properties, the forests themselves are a different issue. If we can get past vested interests and agendas and restore our forests to a healthy condition the huge fires we see will be largely eliminated ( baring a certain mega volcanic system under Yellowstone that could make all this a mute point.)

A major fire presents two scenarios; stand and fight, or, evacuate. Do you have livestock? How many real world evacuation routes are available? Do you have a pre determined meeting place, a 3rd party telephone out of the area to use as a central message center? Are there any immediate fire threats on your property itself, ie a particularly tall tree, flagpole or other literal lightning rod? If fire should overrun your property, is there a natural or man made refuge? I stood hip deep in a stockpond holding two horses when a fast moving brushfire overran the ranch I boarded at. It is directly across from the Reagan Library, so the illusion of urban resources are often just that- both to Nature and firecrews bluntly informing you a Presidential Library on a high hill across the valley gets priority <img src="/images/graemlins/mad.gif" alt="" />

You can always do what one guy I know did - add a small sized dozer to your list - yep, he's got a small dozer in the shed if needed - he also has a tendency to surround his house with a nice gravel parking area.. In the normal upwind area, it's about 200 ft of gravel - and yeah, it makes it easy to park...

The home I built in WA has a steel roof, and trees and other combustibles are kept at a distance. Here in SOCAL if a wildfire jumped the interstate, I'd be worrying about my neighbor's cedar shake roof. I've still got steel on mine. Once cinders start dropping and his house starts burning. . . By then my truck will have been packed with everything not replaceable

I've heard these fires can travel faster than you can run. I believe it, I just can't picture it.

Our last nasty one, coined 'The Malibu Fire' started just off the 101 Freeway a little south of me. I helped evacuate horses. By afternon I was cut off from returning home and helping Shirley McClain merge into the stream of cars heading south on the Pacific Coast Highway. I was holding two horses in the surf, embers falling into the ocean from the nightsky while lifeguard towers literally exploded. Fire is more than fast. That was just fire ecology hard and coastal chapparell. <img src="/images/graemlins/frown.gif" alt="" />

It can move very fast. During the Oct 2003 fire here in SD the truck was packed way early and stayed that way for quite a while. It gets easier to pack every time -- practice, practice.

One thing that never ceases to amaze me is watching the news or after-the-fact videos where the residents can clearly see the fire coming, but don't evacuate until they're told to do so. In the mountains of SoCal, there's often only one way out, and it's on a narrow, steep, curving road.

How stupid is that? Do people really think that standing between the fire and your house, wishing and cussing, is going to stop a fire that scares the s**t out of the firefighters?

If there's a fire coming, RUN!

Sue (scared of bears and fires)

It's called the "womb" syndrome. This is home, this is safe. Kills a lot of people. Simply because they take too long to make the mental gearshift from safe to threatened.

I live in suburbia so driving out is not an issue. Waiting until it's too late to pack is still ill advised. I could have been out of the area in 15 minutes from a dead sleep. The folks who live in the areas where fires start amaze me when they rebuild the same type structure that just burned down.