OCR Text |
Show Fire Season Is Approaching Rapid growth of brush and grass in the spring creates a fire hazard in the summer as the sun dries out the new growth. Grass fires are especially dangerous for those who live in brushy or wooded areas. Residents are urged to plan and prepare now to avoid loss of life or property to natural cover fires. A residential protection plan for grass and brush fires has four phases. The first phase is escape. At least two alternate routes should be preplanned. The second sec-ond phase is property protection. Systematic fuel removal to develop de-velop fire breaks is good planning. Third is early fire department notification no-tification and response. Just as important as the fire department's phone number is clear address identification of the endangered land and buildings. Fourth is fire suppression. The ability to self-extinguish self-extinguish small fires can prevent larger fires. Escape routes are only valuable valu-able if they carry one away from . danger. This means at least two alternate routes, ideally downhill, away from the fire. Natural cover i fire spreads most rapidly uphill, i prehearing the fuel ahead of it I Escape routes should be at least f 20 feet wide and clear of flash fuels such as arbor vitae, cedar, ' and scotch broom for at least 10 feet on each side. Low ground cover or bark dust is ideal for minimizing fire exposure hazard along driveways and rural access roads. On level ground, fire must have relatively continuous fuel to spread. Breaks in the fuel can slow or even stop fire spread. Residents in windy areas must consider the hazard of sparks or burning brands over wider dis- tances. People in brushy areas should consider the use of lawns, gravel, and bark dust to provide open space, especially on downhill down-hill exposures. Fifty to 75 foot openings between heavy brush and valuable property are minimum protection. One good idea is to minimize shrubs and lower branches under trees. Once natural cover fires climb into trees, the fire can grow explosively and burn over long distances. By eliminating shrubs and lower branches, the resident limits the ladder the fire can easily eas-ily climb to leaves and needles. The correct number to use in an emergency situation is 9-1-1. Phone stickers are available from local fire stations. Each phone in the house should be equipped with the 9-1-1 sticker. Residents should write their address on the sticker as well. Valuable time can be saved if the caller can rapidly give the correct address, including correct spelling of street name and geographic direction. Computers used in dispatching fire and emergency medical responses re-sponses are very sensitive to proper spelling of address. Residents can also speed response re-sponse by making access lanes and driveways with their address on a post or sign. If several homes share a lane, an inclusive listing is very helpful (1001-1051). (1001-1051). Individually addressed buildings should each be labeled with three-inch minimum numerals numer-als facing the access lane or road. People who live in wooded, bushy areas have considerable privacy and comfort. If they realize real-ize the hazards from fire that occur oc-cur as trees and shrubs dry out, the resident can ensure the threat of fire will be minimized. |