Be prepared to evacuate: local phone books have evacuation checklist

With wildfires already occurring near homes, firefighting experts are encouraging homeowners to be prepared to evacuate in the event that a wildfire threatens their neighborhood.

"People really need to prepare before a wildfire ever occurs," explains Ed Smith, natural resource specialist, University of Nevada Cooperative Extension. "There probably won't be time to gather everything they need and do everything they need to do if they wait until an evacuation is actually ordered," he said.

The University of Nevada Cooperative Extension teamed up with local telephone directories to provide a "Living With Fire" Evacuation Checklist in local phone books. The checklist is on Page A-36 of the AT &T Reno/Sparks Directory, and Page 1 of the Carson City Directory.

It tells homeowners:

• what to wear, such as long-sleeved shirts and long pants, and what to bring for safety, such as gloves, goggles, and a flashlight,

• what to do to their home before they leave to best protect it and to aid firefighters, such as turning off all pilot lights, closing all interior doors, and closing all exterior vents,

• what items to have gathered to bring with them, such as insurance papers and birth certificates, medications, and credit cards, and

• many other useful tips.

Ann Grant, Chapter Leader, Skyland Fire Safe Council, practiced evacuating her home. "I was very well prepared, yet couldn't get out of my house in under eight minutes," she says. "It made me very fearful for those people who are not prepared at all."

Smith says that homeowners should take time now, to review the checklist, place items they would need to take with them in one place, make additional notes and lists, and even plan a mock evacuation.

Homeowners can also view the evacuation information on streaming video at www.livingwithfire.info. The information is also available in Spanish.

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To learn more about evacuation procedures and protecting your home from the threat of wildfire, visit www.livingwithfire.info or contact Smith at University of Nevada Cooperative Extension, 782-9960 or smithe@unce.unr.edu.

Living With Fire is an interagency program coordinated by University of Nevada Cooperative Extension.

• Contact By Sonya Sistare at 784-4848 or by e-mail at: sistares@unce.unr.edu; or

Claudene Wharton, public information officer at 784-4848 or by e-mail at: whartonc@unce.unr.edu.