Fire Safety and Evacuation Info For Fire-Prone Areas
Many of our colleagues live in areas affected by California wildfires.
If you live in a fire-prone area, here's some evacuation information the
fire department wants you to know:
***Park vehicles facing outward for quick evacuation, and to avoid tying up
traffic.
***Leave the motor running during the last few minutes of packing up. If you
wait too long, smoke will clog the engine and the car won't start.
***Be sure to bring: pets (and their leashes and carriers), pet food and
water, medicines,
glasses or contacts, important documents and phone numbers, laptop computer
and cell phone, family pictures, and a couple of changes of clothes.
***Keep your keys in your pocket at all times during preparations to avoid
misplacing them while you're packing up.
***Close windows and blinds before you leave.
***Remove outdoor furniture from near the hillsides and put it in the garage
so flying embers won't ignite it and spread the fire .
***Remove woodpiles from the side of the house, away from the hillsides.
Some fire department spokespeople recommend they be placed at the front of
the house on the street side of the house (not the hill side), not near the sides
of the house.
***If you live in Southern California and have not yet cleared the brush away from your home, it's
imperative that you do so. The lack of rain this past "rainy season" has made
grasses and foliage extra dry this year, and many
plants native to CA are highly flammable.
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