The Nugget Newspaper - News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon

Residents of rural subdivisions near Sisters are bracing themselves for fire season and taking steps to plan swift evacuations.

Forest fires are inevitable and solid preparation is critical, said Dorene Fisher, chairman of the homeowners association for the Crossroads community, which has 175 homes located off of Highway 242 west of Sisters High School.

"For the last five to six years, we have been very concerned," Fisher said. "The question is not if we have a fire, it is when we do have a fire, what do we need to do to be prepared. Everyone has been very concerned in the last few years with the fires in the area -- realizing this is a critical, real thing."

That preparation for neighborhoods located in at-risk locations has meant structuring individual fire emergency plans which outline how to alert and direct residents.

Familiarity with these plans can mitigate some hazards associated with evacuations, said Sergeant Mark Foster, who works on the fire and rescue team for the Jefferson County Sheriff's Department. Panic has led people to make crazy decisions, Foster said.

"The most important thing is planning," Foster said. "When the time comes, there is not time for planning. You must know what to do and move decisively. When a fire happens, people panic and throw a TV set out of a second-story window. They spend all this time on things that are not important. If you try to save everything, you won't be able to."

While panic may be unavoidable, preparation may help home owners to prioritize their time during a disaster, Foster said. A list of steps to take during an evacuation is available in a fire safety brochure called "Your Family Disaster Plan," from the local branch of the American Red Cross.

Betty Fadeley, the business manager for the Tollgate Property Owners Association, said the association distributed "Your Family Disaster Plan" to each of its residents in a newsletter in April.

"It's really informative," Fadeley said. "It gives a four-steps-to safety plan. It teaches your children when and how to call 911, teaches you to turn off the water and electric switch and it covers insurance."

Neighborhoods are also providing fire officials with helpful information.

Fadeley said the property owners' association gave an informative binder to the fire department in Camp Sherman. The binder includes a map of the 440 lots in Tollgate, the community's fire hydrants and a list of names and addresses of home owners who would need special assistance in case of an emergency. The packet also indicates which homes have wood shake roofs, which Fadeley said can ignite easily.

"Less than 30 percent have wood shake roofs," Fadeley said about Tollgate. "It used to be 100 percent.

In the last 15 years, many Tollgate home owners have replaced their wood roofs with asphalt roofs, partly for fire prevention, Fadeley said.

Fisher said her homeowners' association recently updated a similar list and gave copies to the fire department, the U.S. Forest Service, the Oregon Department of Forestry, the American Red Cross and law enforcement personnel. The list includes names of all the home owners, addresses of the 175 homes, phone numbers, the number of people in the home, number of children and pets and any disabilities.

Also, in accordance to Senate Bill 360, neighborhoods have been thinning trees and cleaning out bitterbrush and ground fuels. Fisher said earlier this month that personnel from the Oregon Department of Forestry (ODF) were cutting down trees around Crossroads.

"I've seen a tremendous fuel reduction, with clearing brush and cutting down trees," Fisher said.

Fadeley said Tollgate is mandating homeowners to do the same on their private property.

Fisher said the ODF marked each of Tollgate's four emergency fire exits with signs, which will direct residents to exit in case of emergency. Fadeley said three emergency exits in Tollgate will be flagged with bright red flags during an emergency.

Fisher and Fadeley said they have communicated fire safety plans to home owners through community newsletters and through town meetings.