{"id":1442,"date":"2019-05-13T13:49:12","date_gmt":"2019-05-13T20:49:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/brooksresources.com\/?p=1442"},"modified":"2019-05-13T13:51:04","modified_gmt":"2019-05-13T20:51:04","slug":"part-prepare-live-wildland-fire","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/brooksresources.com\/2019\/05\/part-prepare-live-wildland-fire\/","title":{"rendered":"Doing Our Part to Prepare for and Live with Wildland Fire"},"content":{"rendered":"

I recently attended a workshop designe<\/span>d to\u00a0<\/span>discuss the preparedness of Central Oregon for a wildland fire disaster.\u00a0 The big question for the workshop was, \u201cCan Central Oregon become another Paradise?\u201d, referring to the tragedy in Paradise, CA last year from the Camp Fire.\u00a0 Before I attended the workshop, I\u00a0<\/span>thought\u00a0<\/span>that Bend would never see a tragedy like Paradise, due to our different topography and surrounding landscape.\u00a0 I was wrong.\u00a0 The fire professionals who volunteered their time to speak at the workshop and produce a fire modeling simulation of large, catastrophic fire in Central Oregon proved to me and\u00a0<\/span>my fellow\u00a0<\/span>attendees, that yes, a horrific disaster like the Camp Fire can happen in Central Oregon.\u00a0 And it is not a matter of \u201cif\u201d this happens, it is a matter of \u201cwhen.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Wildfire is the single largest natural disaster threat to us in Central Oregon.\u00a0 We live in a landscape that is susceptible to wildland fire, primarily starting from lightning strikes, but also from humans.\u00a0 A wildfire threat to Bend may not be imminent, but it is inevitable.\u00a0 As we have seen most recently in the past 30 years, the Awbrey Hall Fire, the Skeleton Fire, the Two Bulls Fire,\u00a0<\/span>have all impacted forest lands and residential communities in and around Bend.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

One of the consistent messages presented at the workshop by survivors of the Washington fires from 2016, the Tubbs fire in Santa Rosa in 2017, the Thomas fire in Santa Barbara, and the Camp Fire in Paradise, was \u201cdon\u2019t think that this can\u2019t happen to your community \u2013 it can!\u201d\u00a0 I feel extremely confident with the emergency responders in our area and have seen over the years the collaboration and efforts the different agencies and organizations have made to work together so that when a fire occurs there is cohesion and cooperation in how resources are deployed and utilized.\u00a0 We will be in good hands when the fire strikes.\u00a0 But we must take responsibility ourselves to help protect not only our families, pets, neighbors and friends, but also our fire professionals who are risking their lives to help evacuate and protect us.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

There are a few tips that I\u2019d like to share with you that are easy to apply to your personal situation so that in the case of a wildland fire in or around Bend,\u00a0<\/span>you can be prepared and learn how to live with\u00a0<\/span>this risk<\/span>.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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  1. Defensible Space around your home:\u00a0<\/span>One of the easiest and most impactful way<\/span>s<\/span>\u00a0that we can protect our homes and ourselves is by creating defensible space around\u00a0<\/span>our homes.\u00a0 This means reduc<\/span>ing<\/span>\u00a0ignitions\u00a0<\/span>in close proximity<\/span>\u00a0to<\/span>\u00a0our homes, i.e.\u00a0<\/span>removing pine needles from the roof, removing debris from underneath trees, pruning\u00a0<\/span>and thinning trees.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>Visit\u00a0<\/span>http:\/\/www.firefree.org\/10steps\/<\/span><\/a>\u00a0for easy steps to help\u00a0<\/span>protect your home from being destroyed or damaged by wildfire.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>Visit\u00a0<\/span>http:\/\/www.firefree.org\/firefreeevents\/<\/span><\/a>\u00a0for more information<\/span>\u00a0about\u00a0<\/span>free dumping of yard debris at Knott Landfill during the month of May<\/span>.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
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    1. Another consideration\u00a0<\/span>in creating defensible space\u00a0<\/span>is to plant fire resistant plants in your yard and around your home.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>Fire resistant plants are those that do not readily ignite from a flame or\u00a0<\/span>other ignition sources.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>Here is a wonderful resource<\/span>\u00a0for those of us living in the Pacific Northwest:\u00a0<\/span>http:\/\/www.firefree.org\/fireresistantplants\/<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
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      1. Ready Set Go evacuation planning:\u00a0<\/span>Residents should\u00a0<\/span>do what they can to prepare themselves and their properties against\u00a0<\/span>the threat of fire<\/span>.\u00a0 The Ready Set Go program was developed\u00a0<\/span>t<\/span>o help fire departments engage in a dialogue with residents about\u00a0<\/span>ways to<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>create<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>defensible space\u00a0<\/span>around their homes\u00a0<\/span>and protect their properties against fire threats.\u00a0<\/span>A<\/span>\u00a0great resource is the Personal Wildland Fire Action Guide<\/span>,\u00a0<\/span>https:\/\/www.wildlandfirersg.org\/Explore\/Resources-and-Tools<\/span><\/a>\u00a0,\u00a0<\/span>which provides easy steps for creating defensible space zones around your home and outlines\u00a0<\/span>the process for preparing and evacuating in the case of a fire.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>For more information<\/span>\u00a0and resources,\u00a0<\/span>visit\u00a0<\/span>https:\/\/www.wildlandfirersg.org\/<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
          \n
        1. CentralOregonFire.org<\/span>\u00a0\u2013<\/span>Living with wildland fire means living with smoke and\u00a0<\/span>using prescribed burns\u00a0<\/span>to help restore ecosystems that depend on fire.\u00a0 Visit\u00a0<\/span>www.centraloregonfire.org<\/span><\/a>\u00a0to learn more about when and where prescribed burns are taking place in our region,\u00a0<\/span>and\u00a0<\/span>to monitor air quality.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

          These are just a few ideas and resources that we can\u00a0<\/span>consider and use to help prepare\u00a0<\/span>and defend\u00a0<\/span>our properties\u00a0<\/span>from a fire and prepare our families for an evacuation.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>I encourage everyone to read through these websites and learn as much as you can about how to\u00a0<\/span>successfully live in a\u00a0<\/span>fire-adapted community.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>And\u00a0<\/span>if you live in a community with design guidelines and an owners<\/span>\u2019<\/span>\u00a0association, be sure\u00a0<\/span>any steps you take are<\/span>\u00a0compliant with your guidelines and rules and regulations.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>www.projectwildfire.org<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n


          \nAbout the Author<\/strong><\/p>\n

          \"\"
          Romy Mortensen,Vice President of Sales & Marketing<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

          Romy has been with Brooks Resources for over 25 years. After graduating from the University of Oregon, School of Journalism, she started her career with the company as the administrative assistant to the general manager at Mount Bachelor Village. In 1996 she began working as the marketing coordinator at the corporate office, then was promoted to Director of Marketing shortly thereafter. She now serves as the Vice President of Sales and Marketing, overseeing all aspects of sales and marketing for each Brooks Resources project. In 2004 she was named project manager for North Rim and in 2013 became project manager for The Tree Farm. Romy is a licensed real estate broker in the state of Oregon.<\/p>\n

          Having a passion for civic engagement and connecting people, Romy serves on the boards of the Oregon Community Foundation, High Desert Museum, and Art in Public Places. She is chair of the Oregon Community Foundation Leadership Council of Central Oregon, and serves on the Advisory Board for The Bloom Project, of which she was a founding board member. This past year Romy concluded a nine year term as a board director for Oregon Public Broadcasting and continues to serve as a Central Oregon Ambassador.\u00a0 An Oregonian, avid outdoors enthusiast and animal lover, Romy and her husband are parents to two pitbulls and take full advantage of the recreation Central Oregon has to offer.<\/p>\n

          Romy is a Leadership Bend alumna, Class of 2000.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

          I recently attended a workshop designed to\u00a0discuss the preparedness of Central Oregon for a wildland fire disaster.\u00a0 The big question for the workshop was, \u201cCan Central Oregon become another Paradise?\u201d, referring to the tragedy in Paradise, CA last year from the Camp Fire.\u00a0 Before I attended the workshop, I\u00a0thought\u00a0that Bend would never see a tragedy […]\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":1443,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"xn-wppe-expiration":[],"xn-wppe-expiration-action":[],"xn-wppe-expiration-prefix":[]},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/brooksresources.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1442"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/brooksresources.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/brooksresources.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brooksresources.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brooksresources.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1442"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/brooksresources.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1442\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1446,"href":"https:\/\/brooksresources.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1442\/revisions\/1446"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brooksresources.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1443"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/brooksresources.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1442"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brooksresources.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1442"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brooksresources.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1442"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}