HIDDEN VALLEY LAKE >> For the third consecutive year, Hidden Valley Lake held a Wildfire Community Preparedness Day.
The event, which took place Saturday, was no small feat. It’s a national program in which the community was allowed to participate after successfully winning a grant that only 150 out of 420 entries receive.
Following contest guidelines, Hidden Valley Lake (HVL) entered a proposed project that detailed how groups or individuals would help minimize the risk of a wildfire or impact of a recent fire, and spread wildfire preparation awareness in their community. Thanks to the support from State Farm, which oversees entrees and helps fund projects along with the National Fire Protection Association, HVL received $500 to execute their project.
Event organizer Phil Bayles said the HVL proposal was to have an event where people could “get informed and also interact with representatives from Cal Fire, the California Highway Patrol, and emergency services.”
With over 500 votes in favor of the proposal, the event had a name, date, and list of participating organizations to help communities prepare given the recent history Lake County has had over the recent years with wildfires.
Organizations present varied from Cal Fire to the American Red Cross, to the Lake Evacuation Animal Protection. Booths had fliers, information graphics, and even CPR manikins available for participants to get a visual and hands-on learning experience. Attendees also had the opportunity to enter raffles throughout the day for a chance to win items such as smoke detectors and fire extinguishers.
Environmental Control Coordinator Elizabeth Eaholtz sat at her booth that welcomed people with a fair share of plants — fire resistant plants, that is. She shared information about plant arrangement, spacing, and maintenance when considering fire safety.
“Plants with open growth forms, no dead wood, and well watered are less likely to burn,” Eaholtz pointed out in an information packet she had available to the public. The four-page packets had lists of fire resistant plants, trees, and shrubs including all succulents, Maple trees, and barberry shrubs. She also reminded people about the July 15 weed abatement deadline. The enforcement, to help reduce the spread of fires, is said to have a fine of up to $300 for individuals who take no action.
Cal Fire also provided other measures attendees could take to help reduce the spread of fires. Representative Brandon Pierce said it is important to remember “defensible space.” In the context of fire, the term refers to a safety procedure that improves the chances of saving one’s home.
According to Cal Fire’s Ready for Wildfire site, it is “the buffer create[d] between a building on [a] property and the grass, trees, shrubs, or any wildland area that surround it. This space is needed to slow or stop the spread of wildfire and it protects [one’s] home from catching fire—either from direct flame contact or radiant heat.”
Piercy added that one can ensure defensible space by applying the Zone 1 and Zone 2 rule. This means removing all dead vegetation that extends 30 feet out from buildings and decks and creating horizontal spacing between shrubs and trees that extends 100 feet out.
Attendees of Saturday’s event left with more than just lessons in fire safety, however.
Bayles said, “Yes, we have many organizations and programs available for everyone, including children, to learn about fire precautions and emergency situations, but the big focus is neighbors helping neighbors.”
Underneath the uniforms and title badges, the men and women working, handing out fliers, and conducting demonstrations at the event were, as Bayles said, just neighbors helping neighbors.
