With the fire that broke out last night in Sonoma County in Northern California and the hundreds of people evacuated so far, it didn’t take long for this week’s fire weather risks to become reality for the people who live there.
The fire was only hours old this morning having grown quickly to 10,000 acres and the people there who have been ordered to evacuate haven’t had a lot of time to think about it.
And that’s why San Diego fire officials here have sent out repeated warnings this week about being prepared.And when there’s a risk of wildfires, being prepared means being prepared to leave your home quickly and safely.
Firefighters will tell you that people who are told to evacuate and don’t are risking not only their own lives but the lives of firefighters and other first responders.
So if you haven’t thought about how to be prepared, it’s not a bad time to think about it now, just in case.
And that means having a plan that if you would have to evacuate, includes having what you want to take with you in a place where you can get to it easily and quickly.
Because being prepared means planning to be prepared and not waiting till the last few minutes, because you may not have those minutes when it comes to a wildfire.
For info on how to be prepared go to ReadySanDiego.org.
(Photo credit Getty Images)