Firewise — How can homes and communities prepare for urban wildfire?
Welcome! This page will serve as a nexus for a Firewise Community of all the residences, parks, institutions, and businesses loosely centered around Collins View.
The threat of an urban wildfire is becoming more and more real as weather and climate heats up. There are many things home owners can do to reduce risks and exposure to wildfire. Please consider signing up for an assessment or at least doing a self-assessment. (Learn more on this page, after the Status and Meeting reports.)
Firewise Tips of the Week - An Outreach Effort
Example photo from Tip about Islands of Fuel
We are posting weekly tips on Nextdoor - bitesize things you can do so as not to overwhelm. After posting, we add the Tip of the Week page
[ToTW].
See the Tips of the Week page for full treatment of Tips:
Evacuation Tips, Part I & II
Keep valleys on your roof clear of pine needle accumulation.
What is a Ladder Fuel?
Clean your gutter of dry leaves and combustibles!
Space deck boards to allow embers to fall through deck<
To reduce the chances of embers entering your home, consider providing 1/8" or less screening over attic vents and foundation vents.
Avoid connecting a wooden fence to your flammable home.
Ready, Set, Go — Keep your important stuff together. Also make a checklist of things to gather in case you get the READY signal.
What is an Island of Fuel?
Future tips (this is a Work in Progress!) are listed on the page.
Feel free to share the Tip of the Week page
[ToTW]
with Neighbors, on FaceBook, email, wherever!
Sign up for a free, comprehensive, expert assessment!
Residents are able to have their properties assessed by PF&R Personnel for fire hazards and suggested mitigation.
Sign Up! It's FREE! There is no legal obligation for the owner to remedy situations.
It is an assessment of your exposure to wildfire.
The result is a useful list of suggested (not required) actions.
Signing up for the PF&R Firewise Assessment go to this
[PAGE], then find the WUI assessment link to 'Schedule free wild land – urban interface assessment at your home'. (Or just use this Direct link to the
[Sign-Up Form])
Registration is very short and non-intrusive. They will call you back to schedule, so the date/time you enter can be negotiated on that call. The assessment itself requires about 45 minutes.
Once you have the assessment, you'll want to act on it.
Think of it as a Marathon, not a sprint.
Please encourage your neighbors to sign up for an assessment, and for PUBLIC ALERTS (see blow).
FYI - We are working on a checklist based on the assessment form in case you'd rather do a self-assessment.
What more you can do!
Please visit the New Collins View Blog article:
[
Firewise Community Effort June 2022 ]
for LOTS of good information in a slightly different form.
See our Firewise Self-Assessment
[CHECKLIST]
— a work in progress.
Take our "What's Wrong in these pictures" Firewise
[QUIZ]
Public Alerts is a Bureau of Emergency Management (PBEM) program that sends urgent safety messages (stay inside, evacuate, boil water etc.) in the Portland-Vancouver metro area. News and information on major service disruptions (roads, transit, public health, safety, utilities, schools, weather) are sent to landline phones, mobile phones (voice and text) and email. To receive messages you must register at Public Alerts:
[LINK]
Wireless Emergency Alerts — Depending upon the nature of an incident, safety information is also provided through Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA) on most mobile phones, Twitter, Facebook, TV, Radio, and on-line newspapers.
On iPhones, tap your Settings app, scroll to Notifications, and scroll down to Government Alerts. Turn on Amber and Emergency Alerts by simply tapping the slide switch. The slide switch should turn green. Notifications arrive in banner format and can be accessed by swiping down from the top of your screen and tapping on the Notifications tab.
On Droids, Emergency Alerts are a separate default application icon. If you do not see it on one of your home screens, search for the app in your apps location. The icon is typically a yellow triangle with an exclamation point in the center, and you can view alerts simply by opening the app on your phone.
Firewise USA Logo
What is Firewise? What is a Firewise Community?
Firewise is a national program that shares tips on protecting residential property from wildfire. A number of fire-wise residents can form a community to tackle common goals.
We don't need to duplicate the EXCELLENT Firewise material here. See the
Firewise USA! website.
Collins View Firewise Community Status Reports
Since there were more than a few, in
August 2023 we moved the status reports to their own page
[LINK].
DEFENSIBLE SPACE!
There was an excellent ad on TV, sponsored by the Oregon State Fire Marshal. Here's a SHOUT OUT for this PSA! Did you see it?
The Fire Marshal's office made the 30 second video available, so it's posted on Nextdoor.
It's fun to see different presentations of the same Firewise information. Makes you want to do it!
October 2022 SW News has a full page Public safety report on Page 16. (swni.org)
Most of the remainder of the page is text is recycled from the NET page.
JM added URBAN WILDFIRE to the NET page some years ago (2016-18?). NET deals with all kinds of emergencies - quakes, wind, explosions, power outages, whatever.
URBAN WILDFIRE (from NET)
What's the danger of an Urban Wildfire?
Climatologists reported that 2014 was the hottest year on record. The summers are getting hotter and the vegetation is getting drier each year.
(2023 is on its way — it exceeded the record in July !)
Accumulating brush on the hillsides becomes potential fuel for fires. A carelessly thrown cigarette, or a fire in a homeless camp, or a downed power line can all spark fires.
Strong winds coming out of the east and northeast could drive a fire up into the west hills very quickly.
How can the community be better prepared?
Everyone should be aware of Red Flag days when the danger of fire is particularly high.
Neighbors should be warned of imminent fire danger somehow.
Escape routes need to be identified and publicized.
Here are tips on evacuating your family:
[TIPS].
The Portland Fire Bureau also advises property owners to take steps to protect their homes. Among them are:
Creating a space around your home that provides a clearing of inflammable materials or vegetation. Remove invasive trees and shrubs, plant trimmings, firewood, fiberglass boats and recreational vehicles around the home.
Using fire resistant building materials, particularly roofing and siding as well as decking and pavers.
Landscaping with fire resistant plants.
For more information about wildfires and preventing and preparing for them go to
[DEAD LINK].
What You Can Do: Prepare! (from NET)
... Emergency Preparedness ...
Be part of the solution, not part of the problem!
Go Kit —
If you are forced to evacuate on a minute's notice, do you have a Go Kit packed with necessary medicines, cash, clothes, and important documents that are ready to grab and go? Most Go Kits are described as 72-hour Survival Kits and can be purchased or homemade as do-it-yourself kits.
[GO/STAY KIT page]
Prepare Your Pets for Disasters —
See this page on [PETS.
Download and print this Pet preparedness flyer
[PDF]
FYI - The Dangers of Asbestos
The Collins View Firewise Community was contacted by The Mesothelioma Center, which is focused on reducing cancer caused by asbestos in general. Their web site (below) has general information about asbestos and the dangers of asbestos exposure during and after a fire.
We prepared a standalone page from information they provided. Asbestos mitigation is not part of the Firewise Program. FYI only.
[LINK]
