Fire and Smoke Safety in the Gorge
Summer in the Pacific Northwest is now fire and smoke season. There are several things you can do to keep yourself and your family safe and healthy when fire danger is high.
Wildfire Safety
Sign up for emergency alerts and monitor local fire activity. All counties and states have emergency alert texting systems. This ensures that you receive the most up to date, official information about fire danger, evacuations, and other emergencies. Volunteers in the Gorge operate a local fire resource and update page on Facebook called the Columbia Gorge Wildland and Fire Information Page. This is a good source of information about fire activity, developments, and resources.
Have a wildfire evacuation and action plan. The plan should include a meeting location for all family members, plans for pets and livestock, and knowing escape routes out of your community. More information here and find a comprehensive wildfire action plan here.
Make sure your insurance policies and personal documents are up to date and in a safe location. More information about financial preparedness here.
Prepare an emergency supply kit/evacuation bag. Find a list of items for emergency supply kits here. It's also a good idea to write out a list of items you are planning to take with you. For immediate evacuations, remember the “six P's”:
People and pets
Papers, phone numbers, and important documents
Prescriptions, vitamins, and eyeglasses
Pictures and irreplaceable memorabilia
Personal computer hard drive and disks
“Plastic” (credit cards, ATM cards) and cash
Smoke Safety
Monitor air quality where you live, work, and play, especially if you have health conditions like asthma or COPD that may make you more sensitive to poor air quality.
When outdoors, wear an N95 or other high-quality mask mask. Avoid outdoor physical exertion if there is smoke in the air.
Close windows, doors, and other areas of your home that vent outside as much as possible. Keep indoor air clean with an air purifier with a HEPA filter. You can make an inexpensive air filter with a box fan and filters from a hardware store - instructions here.