Adventurer, outdoorsman, four-wheeler, author, and defender of sustainable outdoor motorized recreational access.
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| Solutions exist; stewardship matters. |
By Del Albright, Fire Chief, Retired
Twenty-five years ago, we didn’t know there was a mega-fire generation. Back then, a 10,000-acre wildfire was a major event. Today, fires of 100,000, 300,000, and even 500,000 acres have become part of the annual conversation across the American West. That should concern all of us.
25-30 years ago, a 10,000 – 15,000-acre fire was a huge conflagration. Now, we regularly experience 100,000 - 400,000-acre fires.
Stacie Albright on Relief and Recovery After the “Camp”
Fire
2018 Recap of the Destructive Mega-Fire Called the Camp
Fire
Wildfires in the West, especially California, have blown
out of control - literally. The raging infernos of 2018 are beyond the
capability of the fire service as it exists today. The fuels are too dry; too
many people live in the wildland that needs their homes protected; there are
too few resources to go around when hundreds of thousands of acres are
involved; and the radical environmental groups have pressured politics to the
point where we can no longer manage our forests and wildlands.
Be that as it may, wildfires are also causing evacuations
like never before. ModernJeeper Stacie Albright decided to jump in the middle
of the evacuations and help people with relief, shelter, and recovery.
As of November 2018, the Camp Fire is the deadliest and
most destructive wildfire in California history. Named after the origin, Camp
Creek Road, this inferno has destroyed 12,000 structures, homes, and
apartments. Displaced residents are fleeing the area looking for help, relief,
food, a place to stay, and someone who cares.
Churches, fairgrounds, town halls, and community centers
become evacuation sites, relief locations, and donation drop-off places. But
guess what? Someone has to organize all these relief centers and drop-off
locations. Clothes, shoes, coats, food, water, and more started arriving in
Yuba City and Oroville nearly immediately. Hundreds of truck and car loads.
To the rescue -- Stacie Albright and dozens of like-minded
citizens wanting to help. Stacie hooked up her vintage Terry trailer to her
1988 Jeep Wagoneer and headed north to help.
First of all, she will be the first to tell you that you
should know where you’re headed before you try to drive into a fire area. It’s
best if you have a club group or organization you are reporting to duty for as
a volunteer. Online resources and
Facebook are a wealth of info on what YOU can do to help.
The job of a volunteer in a relief center is
multi-tasking: Sorting, organizing, being a parking lot attendant, finding
places to pile and store stuff, answering thousands of questions from evacuees,
helping people find their pets, labeling piles of clothes and sizes; and more.
Here is how Stacie described the experience:
“I’ve never seen so many people left homeless, stranded,
evacuated, and feeling hopeless in one area. It looked like a nuclear bomb went
off. You could see folks everywhere, walking in the ashes with a glazed look in
their eyes. It was awful. But boy, were they glad to see me bringing supplies,
water, clothes, and more. When they went to base camp, we gave them some hope
in an awful situation. I’m so glad I was able to volunteer and help the victims.”
MORE HELPFUL LINKS:
DEL'S BOOKS (LAND USE, WILDFIRE, DEATH VALLEY, COWBOY POETRY, AND MORE)
WEBSITE (HOME PAGE)
PINTEREST (BOOKS, ARTICLES, AND MORE)
DEL'S ARTICLES (LAND USE, LIFE, WILDFIRE, VOLUNTEERISM, AND MORE)
More land use and volunteerism help here:
It's all about the 6 P's:
1. People and Pets
2. Papers
3. Prescriptions
4. Personal Needs
5. Priceless
6. Plastic
Read the whole story here and get the full list of tips and suggestions, that start
with defensible space and being in touch with your local fire department.
NOTE: Have a plan; tell everyone in your immediate family; practice it; be ready to survive. Wildfires have no conscience. And as a retired Fire Chief, I will tell you what I told countless evacuees; if you can replace it; leave it when someone says evacuate! Do not die for stuff.
A DRAFT
PLAN FOR THE 6 P’S
PEOPLE and
PETS
1. TEXTS:
Tell everyone to stay on top of texts (better than phone calls) during fire
times in the area – no matter what, stay in touch.
2. EVAC
ROUTES: Designate a north, south, east, and west escape route and meet-up
location, depending on your roads. Brief your family.
3. PETS: Have
a plan to get them and their needs/food to safety.
4. FOOD and
FREEZERS: During evacuations, you may be able to leave a generator running to
keep foodstuffs from spoiling. Do not store extra gas anywhere near your
structures. But food can be replaced. Check with local fire officials to make
sure you are not making the problem worse.
5. LIGHTS:
Turn on every light in the house, inside and out. Make your home visible in
smoky conditions.
6. WINDOWS:
Close all windows and vents. Stop any drafts.
7. FURNITURE:
Move flammable furniture to the middle of the rooms. And make sure you have no
firewood or other flammables stacked against the house.
8. CURTAINS:
Remove flammable curtains.
9. HOSES:
Hook up every hose you can, and fill any tubs or trash cans with water stored
near your house.
PAPERS
1. Bring
laptops, tablets, and hard drives if you store valuable documents in them.
2. Bag up and
have ready to transport any documents you cannot replace.
3. Bring your
password list for financials and accounts.
PRESCRIPTIONS
1. Bag up and
have ready to transport your key medical needs and instruments.
2. Bring
extra batteries for any devices you rely on.
3. Have your
pain meds ready to go with you.
4. Do not
forget your vitamins.
PERSONAL
NEEDS
1. WATER:
Have extra bottled water ready for transport.
2. PHONES:
Gather up and have ready, spare cords, and chargers.
3. CLOTHES:
Bag up some comfy clothes, like for a camping trip. Include boots, hats,
sunglasses, swimwear if appropriate, and skin lotions.
4. FOOD:
Prepare a Go-Bag with some food, canned or dried, for a few days. You can buy a
commercial one as well. Bring hand snacks and trail mixes.
5.
FLASHLIGHTS: Have an assortment of extra flashlights packed up and ready to go,
with batteries.
PRICELESS
1. PICTURES:
Put irreplaceable pics in the fire safe now; or safe deposit box. Otherwise,
have them stacked and ready to move with you.
2. JEWELRY:
Decide and pack now what you think you might not be able to replace.
3. WALL
HANGINGS: Decide what you can replace. If you must take it with you, have a
plan and proper packaging that does not slow you down during evacuation.
PLASTIC
1. Make sure
you have with you or have in your escape Go-Bag your critical credit card and
ATM cards.
2. Have cash
on hand and ready to go during an evacuation. If electricity is out; cash is
king.
SUMMARY
Do not die
for stuff! But to survive and perhaps save your home, follow the 6 P’s for
Preparedness. Meet with your local fire department or volunteers for a home
fire risk assessment before you are breathing smoke. Take this plan and make it
yours. Go over it and practice it with your family. Put the info on your
smartphone. BE READY. Wildfires have no conscience and will take your home in
minutes.
Read my take on being part of the Mega-Fire Generation and what we can do about it NOW! Get my book from Amazon here.
#wildfire #fire #firepreparation #firepreparedness
MORE HELPFUL LINKS:
DEL'S BOOKS (LAND USE, WILDFIRE, DEATH VALLEY, COWBOY POETRY, AND MORE)
WEBSITE (HOME PAGE)
PINTEREST (BOOKS, ARTICLES, AND MORE)
DEL'S ARTICLES (LAND USE, LIFE, WILDFIRE, VOLUNTEERISM, AND MORE)
More land use and volunteerism help here:
Depending
on where you recreate and live and, of course, the weather, you may see this
type of fuel reduction burning on federal lands this time of year. Usually,
there will be signs along roadways where you can see the smoke so you don't
report it (because it is controlled and conducted on purpose).
What you will
see are piles of debris, logging slash, and timber stand improvement trimmings
and thinning. They may have sat over the winter with a tarp on them to dry
them out for a good burn day in spring or early summer, perhaps even in fall.
This is all good for the forest.
The USDA
Forest Service has undertaken a 10-year strategy to confront the wildfire
crisis (especially in the West and particularly in CA). Speaking as someone who
served for nearly 30 years in the wildland fire service and the same guy who
wrote about how we are now in the Mega-Fire Generation, I am always happy to
see more prescribed (controlled) burning in most forests of the West.
Read more here: https://www.fs.usda.gov/.../forest-service-has-vision...
HELPFUL LINKS:
DEL'S BOOKS (LAND USE, WILDFIRE, DEATH VALLEY, COWBOY POETRY, AND MORE)
WEBSITE (HOME PAGE)
PINTEREST (BOOKS, ARTICLES, AND MORE)
DEL'S ARTICLES (LAND USE, LIFE, WILDFIRE, VOLUNTEERISM, AND MORE)
MEGA FIRES: Living with pandemics, riots, and wildfire.
By Del Albright
The following link is to a great article from Jon Miltimore of the Foundation for Economic Education (FEE), which clearly points out how forest fires are NOT at some historic high (number of fires and acres burned).
The 1930s and 1940s were the big number years. But more importantly, he drives home these key points:
He really captured my attention when he pointed out the work of economist Robert Higgs (Crisis and Leviathan) who said when crises come, “governments almost certainly will gain new powers over economic and social affairs.”
In other words this serves as a reminder that with every messy crisis someone gains more power (over us) and to not abandon your liberty!
https://fee.org/articles/forest-fires-aren-t-at-historic-highs-in-the-united-states-not-even-close/
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By Del Albright
Happy Veterans Day, you old (and young) warriors! We're still here, still standing, and still proud to have served. To my fellow...
