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Prepare Yourself
Find out how to prepare yourself and your home for wildfire.
Alert and Warning Systems
In an emergency, Marin officials may use many different tools to communicate information and instructions to the community. The primary systems include: Alert Marin, Wireless Emergency Alerts, Nixle, County of Marin Emergency Portal, KCBS Radio, local TV and social media. Learn how these systems work and register now. Prepare yourself to use these systems before an emergency occurs.
Red Flag Warnings
Fire agencies monitor weather conditions daily and use indexes and predictions to make decisions about how to fight fires and how to prevent new fires from igniting. Catastrophic wildfire events are most likely to occur during Red Flag weather conditions. Residents and visitors to areas where wildfires are likely to occur should be aware of current and predicted weather conditions, and should take additional actions to prepare their family, home, and community when wildfire risk is elevated.
Be Ready to Evacuate
Extreme fire behavior, failure to receive alerts and delays in departure contribute most to wildfire deaths. Make sure that you and your family are prepared to evacuate at a moment’s notice. Create an evacuation plan, make a go kit, learn how to safely evacuate in your car, make a plan for pets and large animals. It is particularly important to plan in advance if you have mobility issues. Evacuation maps can be found here. Check out tips for renters.
Help for Those Needing Assistance
People with access and functional needs may need time or assistance during an evacuation. If you or a family member are likely to need help with evacuation, it is critical to pre plan and prepare in advance. Are you signed up for alerts? Do you have transportation? During red flag warnings, if you live in a hazardous area, it might be prudent to stay with friends or family if possible. Another option is to have a caretaker who can drive stay with you.
Get Wildfire Insurance
Having insurance is critical to rebuilding your home and protecting your family after a wildfire. A large percentage of property owners who experienced loss of homes during Northern California wildfires were either uninsured or underinsured. Many were unable to rebuild after the fires. Make sure you know how to shop for the right insurance coverage, what to do if your insurer doesn’t renew your policy, and what to expect during an insurance inspection.
Invest in Backup Power
It’s very common for the power to go out before a fire strikes since fire and winds can damage electrical infrastructure. Power loss during scheduled Public Safety Power Shutoffs has become more common. You still need to receive emergency alerts and have the ability to safely evacuate even if the power is out. Fire Safe Marin strongly recommends that all Marin residents invest in lanterns, backup batteries, uninterruptible power supplies, and battery-powered radios.
How to Prepare for All Types of Hazard
Marin has experienced many types of disasters including earthquakes, power outages, weather emergencies as well as wildfires. Learn five easy steps to be disaster ready and access specific information to help you prepare for every type of disaster. We have prepared a series of short videos that will help you to protect your family and home.
