What should you do to your home to be prepared before an evacuation order comes down? First of all, if you’re in immediate danger, GET TO SAFETY IMMEDIATELY. But if you have time, Cal Fire and FEMA have come up with a list of things to make your home safer:
1. Call 911 to let them know of your location and the location of the fire.
2. Shut off your house’s gas supply, and move propane tanks at least 100 feet away from the house.
3. Fill sinks and tubs with cold water.
4. Keep doors and windows closed but not locked.
5. Turn off air-conditioning. Unplug televisions, and small appliances, but leave lights on in every room to increase visibility in heavy smoke.
6. If you have time, remove debris from your roof and gutters
7. Clean the vents in your attic or crawl space. Cover your vents with plywood, metal tape or duct tape.
8. Connect all hoses to outside taps. Wet your roof by placing a lawn sprinkler on it. Use a sprinkler to soak shrubs within 15 feet of the house. Fill buckets with water and place them outside around the house. If you have a ladder, leave it out so firefighters can use it to get on the roof if needed.
9. Move furniture away from windows and doors, and take down lightweight or non-fire-resistant window treatments. Combustible patio furniture should be placed inside or in a garage.
10. Leave a note so that in the event of evacuation others will know where you are going.
And we can’t stress enough. If you’re in immediate danger LEAVE.
Here are more Cal Fire suggestions:
Así es como prepararse en español.