Wildfire Evacuation Tips for You and Your Pets

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Hundreds of thousands of California residents have been displaced and millions are without power as major wildfires rage throughout the state for the third consecutive year.

While communities devastated by the Camp, Woolsey, Hill, Paradise and dozens of other fires are still recovering from their nightmares, other major enclaves in Sonoma, Ventura and Los Angeles Counties are being torched. Many of the blazes were sparked by power lines downed by high winds. Some residents had only moments to evacuate.

Herding everyone out of a threatened home is challenging to any family, but especially so for those with pets. In urban and rural areas, pet parents stuffed furry friends into carriers and horses and other farm animals into trailers before scrambling to safe ground. Some fled to recreation centers converted to evacuation posts. Many facilities offering animal evacuation facilities filled quickly.

On a Ventura County road swirling with smoke, one horse charged back into harm’s way to retrieve her straggling four-legged family. Across the state, humans have followed her example, braving blazes to save animals lost or left behind when families beat a hasty retreat.

The progressive “drying” of California thanks to climate change underscores the need for wildfire preparedness. Rescue Legacy offers these tips:

  • Battery-powered or hand-crank radios are a must to track news developments in case power is lost.

  • Learn the ins and outs of your neighborhood - literally. What’s the quickest route to the open road? If access to that road is blocked by fire, what’s the alternative? It’s easy to get pinned on a narrow street or cul de sac or in a steep canyon where access is limited.

  • Keep essential pet supplies - including food, water, crates, medication and waste disposal - in a designated, uncluttered area that can be accessed quickly. Car trunks and hatchbacks should be cleared in advance for easy loading.

  • Post rescue alert stickers on your front door or window to notify first responders as to the number and kinds of pets in your home. Also include the name and phone number of your vet. If you are able to evacuate with your pets write “Evacuated” across the stickers.

  • Choose a safe haven and make sure that it is available. It could be a friend’s or relative’s house or a makeshift evacuation center such as a school auditorium. Check for pet-friendly lodging or whether your local shelter can provide emergency care. Whenever possible, it is best to keep your pets with you. Never leave them behind!

  • Assign a trusted caregiver to retrieve and care for your pet(s) in the event you cannot get to them in time to evacuate. This person should be thoroughly vetted, apprised of your expectations and who knows and loves your pet(s).

  • Remember that areas seeking FEMA assistance must make accommodations for rescuing your pets in the event of an emergency. It’s federal law.

  • Follow mandatory evacuation orders. Chances are good you won’t survive trying to hose down your homestead.

So far, my wife, Susan, our Boston terrier, Lilly and I only have choking smoke and barricaded boulevards to deal with. Others have lost so much. Click here to donate to vetted charities.

May we only know fire as a comfort radiating from winter’s hearth.