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.