The University of Nevada Cooperative Extension has teamed up with local telephone directories to provide a "Living With Fire" evacuation checklist. Homeowners are encouraged to refer to the list before a wildfire occurs in their area, so that they are as prepared as possible if they need to evacuate.
Attire and equipment: Wear only cotton or wool clothes, long pants, long sleeved shirt or jacket and boots
Carry: Gloves, a handkerchief to cover your face, water, goggles, flashlight and portable radio
Evacuate: All family members not essential to preparing the house for wildfire first. Designate a safe meeting place and contact person. Evacuate pets.
Vehicles: Put inside the garage pointing out with the keys in the ignition. Roll up the windows and close the garage door but leave it unlocked. Disconnect the electric garage door opener so the door can be opened manually.
Take: Important documents, bank, IRS, trust, investment, insurance, birth certificates, medical records, credit and ATM cards, medications, prescription glasses, driver's license, passport, computer backup files, inventory of home contents (consider videotaping if there's time), photograph the exterior of the house and landscaping if there's time, address book, cell phone and charger, personal toiletries, change of clothes, family photos, videos and heirlooms. Put them in the car.
Inside: Close all interior doors, leave a light on in each room, remove lightweight nonfire-resistant curtains and other combustible materials from around the windows, close fire-resistant drapes, shutters and venetian blinds, turn off all pilot lights, move overstuffed furniture to the center of the room.
Outside: Place patio furniture inside the house or garage, shut off propane at the tank or natural gas at the meter, close all exterior vents if possible, prop a ladder against the house for firefighters, connect garden hoses to faucets and attach nozzles set on spray, close all exterior doors and windows, but leave them unlocked, turn on outside lights. If possible cover windows, attic openings and vents with 1/2 inch thick plywood, wet down woodshake of shingle roofs before leaving, fill trash cans and buckets with water where firefighters can find them. Those with a pool, pond and or portable pump mark their locations so they can be seen from the street so firefighters can use them as emergency water sources.
This list can be found on:
• Page 1 in the Information Section of the Carson City-Tahoe Telephone Directory by Tahoe Telephone Directory
• Page A-36 in the Customer Guide Section of the Lake Tahoe Directory by SBC and El Dorado County
• Page A-40 in the Customer Guide Section of the Reno/Sparks Directory by SBC