Marin County is entering the most dangerous part of the fire season. Are you, your family and your home prepared? Here are some steps you can take right now to help protect your family and home from wildfire:
Prepare Yourself: Subscribe to Alert Marin and Nixle warnings. Familiarize yourself with your evacuation zone on the county’s emergency web portal. Keep informed and know what to do to stay safe.
Check the Weather Regularly: “Critical fire conditions” means warm temperatures, low humidity, and strong, gusty winds from the northeast. Fires can spark and grow very quickly during these conditions. A Red Flag Warning is issued when critical fire weather conditions are happening or are about to happen.
Prepare for Evacuations: Make an evacuation plan, pack a Go-Kit and be ready to leave if an evacuation order is sent out. Keep a flashlight and extra batteries on hand in case the power goes out. Make sure your car has gas and your EV is fully charged.
Prevent Ignitions: Mowing and outdoor power tool use should only be done on cool, foggy mornings, with a hose or fire extinguisher nearby. During critical fire weather, don’t park or drive on dry grass, use outdoor barbeques, smoke outdoors, or use outdoor fire pits. Avoid visiting public lands.
Harden Your Home: A few simple projects can make your home more resistant to ignition from burning embers—the most common cause of home destruction.
- Maintain “Zone Zero”: Removing combustible items from 5 feet around your house creates defensible space that could help save your home.
- Prepare Your Yard: Cut the grass and remove leaves and dead vegetation from your yard so spot fires don’t ignite and spread. Clear out debris under your deck. Move firewood away from your house. Keep tree limbs 10 feet away from your house.
- Create a Fire-Smart Yard: Plant choice, placement, and maintenance are important factors in a fire-smart landscape. Make a plan that will interrupt the spread of fire in your yard. For more information, please visit the Marin Master Gardeners Fire Smart Landscaping website and FIRESafe MARIN’s Fire Smart Landscaping website.
Prepare Your Community: We’re all in this together. Join or start a FireWise Neighborhood and do your part in making Marin a fire adaptive community. To learn more about FireWise Neighborhoods, please visit FIRESafe MARIN’s FireWise.
Learn more about how to prepare at firesafemarin.org