Safer West County
Fire Safe Groups
Newsletter
September, 2024
News in West County
What do a shovel and a gallon of water have in common?
Do Fire Mitigation work now
Journey towards becoming a Fire Wise Community
Seeking a Fuel Reduction Contractor
September 15, Sunday at 11am - 2pm,
Monte Rio - GMRS Training
Fire Safe Occidental and Camp Meeker
Had A Great Event at the Altamont
What do a shovel and a gallon of water
have in common?
Together they can make a world of difference in fire prevention.
Did you know ...
When doing work outside on your land with mowers, weed eaters, chainsaws, or other mechanical devices, placing a shovel and one gallon of water somewhere nearby can save you a lot of damage, stress and danger. We know too well that all it takes for a devastating fire is a few sparks and time spent looking for supplies to quell the growing flames.
Be prepared while you are working to stop sparks where they start.
In a time of crisis, having that shovel and gallon of water on hand is equivalent to:
50 gallons of water five minutes away at the barn or house, or
500 gallons on a fire truck 15 minutes out.
This dynamic pair can be used to shovel dirt onto sparks to snuff out flames, dampen the area and prevent the spread. A gallon of water and a shovel are inexpensive, common household items - have a few on the property if you’ve got multiple projects going on, and make sure everyone in your home knows where to find them if anything goes awry!
Do Fire Mitigation work now
As fires blaze elsewhere in the west, it is a great reminder to continue making your home more and more fire resilient. It is no longer a question of whether defensible space and home hardening work, it really just boils down to what you can afford, what you can do yourself, and how much time you invest.
To learn more about both home hardening and defensible space go to https://saferwestcounty.org/risk-mitigation/
And to help reduce the burden of this work for residents of Camp Meeker, Forestville, Monte Rio and Occidental you can get free chipping of debris and a $1000 rebate for defensible space work. Both are easy to receive. Below are the steps to take:
How do I get FREE Chipping
Limb and trim trees and ladder fuel, and remove dead and dying vegetation
Create piles for chipping in an easy to reach location
Apply at https://saferwestcounty.org/grants/ (If you haven’t had a home assessment in the last year, let us know on the application you need one and Safer West County will do an assessment for free to help you prioritize projects.)
Once approved, have a contractor complete the defensible space project
Send in your invoice from the contractor
Receive $1000 rebate for a $1500+ invoice or ⅔ of the invoice if less than $1500.
NOTE: if you cannot afford the $500 portion, let us know in the application and we can provide a $500 scholarship for the first 40 people to apply
Its that easy! Don’t delay!
Journey towards becoming a Fire Wise Community
Advice from one neighborhood
By Vesta Copestakes, Forestville neighborhood leader
After attempts to get a Fire Safe Forestville group started, I took the advice of local small groups who say door-to-door close neighborhood organization works best. My neighborhood is easy to define because it is literally one road that loops from River Road back to River Road bordered by canyons on two sides. This led us to investigating becoming a FireWise Community.
It’s a complex process that can be daunting, but with neighbors being denied insurance, and others getting letters that they can have reduced insurance rates if they are registered as FireWise, there is more incentive to go through the steps.
But defining the area your group wants identified as Fire Wise is not as simple as downloading a parcel map and drawing a line around the border of your neighborhood. Your identified community needs to be submitted to an Outreach Coordinator in order to be OK’d by SoCo Fire. Getting assigned an Outreach Coordinator seems to be the most important step so that your application gets accepted and processed step-by-step. Information can be found on this website:
Our neighborhood group has had three meetings so far and with each meeting we get more neighbors on-board. In the meantime, as we work on the FireWise process, people are clearing their yards for flammable material, getting tree work done, and applying for grants through the Safer West County Defensible Space Incentives Project:
When we learned that “priority will be given to applications of neighboring parcels” for the rebates people got inspired to connect, which was also the next step in FireWise, as well.
We had questions around getting a FireWise assessment and it took some digging to understand that it’s a self-assessment online that allows the organization to compile and compare data from individuals residents in our defined neighborhood. Which took us back to the drawing board of getting our neighborhood defined. Once we get the go ahead from SoCo Fire and our Outreach Coordinator on our boundaries, then we will be on to the next step - getting the assessment; and, if all goes well, onward to becoming registered Fire Wise.
Seeking a Fuel Reduction Contractor
Safer West County was awarded an Open Space grant to conduct fuel reduction work along the old Hampton Fire Rd in Camp Meeker and is seeking a qualified local contractor to do this critical work. Contractors can learn more about the project and application process at: https://saferwestcounty.org/rfp-hampton/
Monte Rio News
There will be a GMRS training: Sunday, September 15 · 11am - 2pm PDT
Monte Rio Community Center
20488 Highway 116
Monte Rio, CA 95462
This training aims to educate community members on using two-way radios for emergency communications when all else fails. Additionally, each participating household will receive a free programmed radio!
Fire Safe Occidental and Camp Meeker
Had A GreatEvent at the Altamont
What a fantastic turnout Fire Safe Occidental and Camp Meeker had at the Altamont a few Sundays ago! Over 75 people visited tables learning about the $1000 rebate, defensible space, emergency alerts, GMRS, evacuations, home hardening, fire extinguishers and more!
The Altamont was such a great place to meet! Inside and outside spaces, plus great food and drinks, really were the perfect backdrop for everyone to socialize and get to know their neighbors.
In addition to our heartfelt thanks to the Altamont for hosting us, we want to give a shout-out to Kistler Vineyards and Osmosis Day Spa, who sponsored a Safer West County silent auction, helping us raise money for these types of events across West County and other services we provide.
If you missed our event and would like to learn more, please contact your neighborhood leader to help organize a local meeting where we can bring similar information to your area. Or contact us at info@SaferWestCounty.org with specific questions.
Fire Safe Occidental
Neighborhood 11 Meeting
Fitzpatrick Lane will be holding an FSO meeting for Area 11 residents only (Fitzpatrick Lane plus the first few homes on lower Coleman Valley Rd) on Sunday September 8th at 4:00pm, at the "Gray Barn" at 18605 Fitzpatrick Lane.
The agenda centers on a presentation and discussion on being prepared for a wildfire, and a discussion on the future leadership of group 11.
Snacks and drinks will be provided. Just bring yourselves.
Please RSVP to Ann Hines, 707-874-2085 so we know how many people to expect.
Save the Date
Defensible Space hands on workshop with Resilient Landscape Coalition @ OAEC October 13th. More info to come
