As fire danger grows, here is how to prepare your family for evacuation
Jun 26, 2024, 5:10 PM | Updated: Jun 27, 2024, 1:07 pm
SALT LAKE CITY — If a wildfire threatens your home, you may have just minutes to gather your family and flee. Emergency experts told KSL TV that some advanced planning will prepare you, and now is the time to get started.
If the evacuation is for a few hours or much longer, there are several things to have ready to go.
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“When we evacuate, we don’t know what’s going to happen to our home when we’re gone,” Wade Matthews with the Utah Division of Emergency Management said. “We need to have copies of our important documents, wills, deeds, insurance, stocks and bonds, financial records.”
Other basic needs are also important. Along with documents, have a quick, small go-bag ready to go.
“Make sure you’ve got plenty of water,” Matthews said. That means at least one gallon per person and can be in the form of pounches of water or bottled water. Next comes food.
A fast-moving wildfire in central Oregon prompted evacuation orders as crews work to contain the flames.
The fire had burned more than 2,415 acres and was 30% contained as of Wednesday morning. pic.twitter.com/GMLnvatOvY
— AccuWeather (@accuweather) June 26, 2024
“Personalize your kits; Have the kind of food in there that your family likes to eat,” he said. He also recommends a battery-operated AM/FM radio.
“This might be our only way of communication or receiving emergency public information.”
Other items include a flashlight and batteries, a first aid kit with bandages, roll tape, rubber gloves, survival candles, and matches. But that isn’t all.
“Emergency poncho for wet weather, emergency blanket — even these little mylar blankets. They’re thin but they’ll keep the insulation and heat in so that’s better than nothing,” he said. “You should have medications in here, obviously.”
Matthews said updating is important, including making sure documents are up to date.
“One of the important things to remember is to rotate and update the contents within your kit. Make sure it’s not expired; Make sure the batteries are fresh. Make sure the clothes are fitting as our kids grow.”
Matthews recommends going through emergency bags every six months.
#BREAKING: Mandatory evacuations are in place for a wildfire burning north of Wellington in northern Colorado.
Evacuation map here: https://t.co/jnXN9W9ZZw pic.twitter.com/0yo3zFCOAX
— Denver7 News (@DenverChannel) June 26, 2024
Those are the items those evacuating need to have, but what about the items you want to have?
“Start going around the house and looking for those irreplaceable items, those types of things,” Matthews said. “Write down the location you keep them. Keep this with an empty container, a Rubbermaid container or a cardboard box, a duffel bag, something that you can quickly put these items in.”
Planning for pets is important too with needs for food, water and possibly medications. Having a leash, a cage, and vaccination records is important, too, in case the pet needs a kennel or other facility.
It’s recommended that families have individual kits like a backpack or a box or a suitcase on wheels for each family member.
To read more about family emergency preparedness kits visit beready.utah.gov.