Wildfire Evacuation Checklist for campers

This is per Debra Dickinson’s YouTube Channel. She and other members of their Nomad Tribe had to flee from the Pipeline Wildfire a few days ago. Here, with Debra’s permission, is her checklist for camping in areas with a burn ban in effect:

1) Always be ready to roll, quickly. (Break camp and move).

2) Limit your camp sprawl. (Keep those items out that you need, stow what is not being used)

3). Top off all fuels (gas, diesel, propane, etc) before you get to your campsite and when you go to town for more supplies.

4). Know the Emergency Evacuation Routes from your campsite. (2 different routes is the minimum).

5). Don’t “box yourself” into your camp. Have your vehicle pointed towards the exit route.

6). Know where you can go to next (destination) if you must leave quickly.

DISCLAIMER: I know very little about wildfires and nothing about western forestry. This lady has a great deal of experience.

Watch Debra’s last 2 videos to get the entire context of the events and of her checklist items.

These ar good guidelines whether or not a burn ban is in effect. Fires and other emergencies can originate anywhere, anytime..

It's a good, common sense list.

I would go a bit deeper and add:

- Information sources: How will you get early information about potential threats? How confident are you that cell phones will be operational? Do you have other options than Facebook?

- Threat evaluation: Should you be out there camping at all? Would it be smarter to go elsewhere or stay home? The best response for a disaster is to be somewhere else.

I live by the following pretty much day to day:

1) Always be ready to roll, quickly. (Break camp and move).

3). Top off all fuels (gas, diesel, propane, etc) before you get to your campsite and when you go to town for more supplies. [When I am home I keep my gas tank above half most of the of time, when I am on the road, I fill up my tank before resting for a night, camping, vacation, etc.]

4). Know the Emergency Evacuation Routes from [wherever]

5). Don’t “box yourself” into your [anywhere]. Have your vehicle pointed towards the exit route.

6). Know where you can go to next (destination) if you must leave quickly. [Maybe have a few options in mind...]

That's an excellent plan.

Re "Have your vehicle pointed toward the exit route:" I have done some consulting work for oil companies. All sites require that vehicles back in to the parking stalls, in case a rapid evacuation is required. It takes a fraction of the time to get everyone out in comparison to "nose first" parking.

I wonder: lots of folks use their big RV as their seasonal "house." It seems to me they need a bug out bag like everyone else. A fast moving fire might mean leaving the "house" behind and getting the hell out right-freaking-now.

After more than 25 years of full time RV living, mostly in remote areas, I make the following observations.

The most dangerous threats are fire, flood and trees.

Fire: If you are in a remote area, a lightning caused fire will prompt heavy traffic into the affected area. You may be required to leave the area with less than 10 minutes warning. The road will be restricted to fire traffic only so you will have to abandon your rig and ride out with only hand held baggage. They do not want to risk a camper blocking the access road. We (wife & I) keep pelican cases with important items like medicines, papers, laptop radios etc. Under crowded conditions, you may be required to stack your gear in the back of a dump truck which then travels miles over washboard roads while you get stuffed into a van or other conveyance. Only a small personal items bag can be carried. The advantage of the pelican case is that during normal times, it can sit open on our seat next to us, allowing easy access and ready for quick inspection to make sure all needed items are present. When we have to leave, a quick scan assures us we have all the important stuff. The small handbag contains meds, radio, cellphone and other must have items.

Situational awareness is the most important task while in the back country. We carry radios which are capable of monitoring the controlling agency major radio traffic. Most is not encrypted and signals are usually very strong so no expensive equipment is needed. Usually there is a daily situation report that will warn you of unusual dryness or other "red flag" conditions as well as road closures etc.

Flood: Never camp at the lowest spot. A major rain storm miles away can cause very rapid flooding, from dry to raging stream in 2 minutes or less. So keep track of weather not only where you are, but in the surrounding areas as well. Inspect the roads as you travel. Look for low spots that may be flooded blocking your exit.

Trees: We have pulled into prospective camping spots to find a large limb laying right on the best camping location. Sometimes it is hard to see a dead limb above you. I usually walk away and scan the trees over our prospective spot with binoculars. Look for limbs with no leaves or broken branches which may mean parts of the tree are rotten.

Take simple precautions and you will be ready for most things. Our camper is a Dodge 1 ton 4x4 with a slide in camper. In our 25+ years we have managed to avoid loss or injury while enjoying life in the most remote areas in the USA, Canada, Mexico and South America. Situational awareness has allowed us to be preemptive with our actions, staying clear of potential threats and reducing the stress of the unknown.

Nomad, thank you for your excellent post. Awesome!

This thread deserves a bump. Excellent advice above!

Last week, a colleague had to bug out from his acreage due to a fast moving wildfire (foothills terrain / boreal forest). He's no fool, so he was packed and rolling out hours before the evacuation order officially came down.

What he noticed was that once the main highway was blocked, people were following a westward gravel side road with their trucks and big 5th wheel campers. The road was blocked up pretty fast. Big campers do not move fast on rough roads. To my mind, that situation was a trap if the fire shifted.

He got out of there and headed north on a secondary highway (which was closed 2 hours later due to yet another fire). Good call.

This makes me question (again) the wisdom of campers as bug out vehicles.