Cascade Canyon Firewise Evacuation Upd ate #5

May 2023

Clarification

For Evacuation Practice

The mock Evacuation Drill is scheduled for this Saturday, May 20 at 11:15 am. It is not a real evacuation, only a practice one for you to test and experience what you have learned and planned.

AlertMarin will send out a PRACTICE Evacuation Order at 11:15 AM to all people in Cascade Canyon who have registered with AlertMarin. It will be a test for AlertMarin and an opportunity for us to experience how the County Office of Emergency Management plans to communicate Warnings and Orders to us.

Participating in Evacuation Drill:

If you are participating in the practice drill, you have several choices:

Wait until you get the TEST Evacuation Order and then see how fast you can load your car completely, review your checklist, and start the engine.
Do your practice evacuation earlier or later.
Do one or more practice evacuations on other days.

We had planned for this Evacuation Practice to start at 10:00 AM. AlertMarin notified us that it will send a MOCK Evacuation Order to Cascade Canyon at 11:15 AM. (You can do an evacuation practice whenever you want and as many times as you want.). The purpose of this Evacuation Practice is for you to see how many minutes it takes you to evacuate your home - from start to driving away. Take note of the time you first get the mock Evacuation Order or whenever you start. When you drive away, note the time again. Previous evacuation times from Cascade Canyon ranged from 12 minutes to over 20 minutes.

Remember:

Review your checklist before driving off. If you have forgotten something, you might decide to go anyway, but at least you have the choice at the time.
Stay calm. Don’t panic or meltdown - until you are safe. Panic can cause accidents and blocked roads.

Other Items:

Ember Stomp: Going to Ember Stomp will be a very informative experience for adults and fun for kids. It is open from 11:00 to 5:00. There will be special parking and registration for those who have participated in evacuation drills around the county. May 20, 11:00 AM to 5:00 PM, at County Fair Grounds near the Civic Center.

Unwanted Vegetation: Besides pulling French and Scotch Broom while the ground is still damp, bull thistle is in bloom and should be weed-whacked ASAP before the seeds mature. If not, next year there will be many times more. Their flowers may be pretty, but their thorns are very sharp.

Fairfax Parade: Our Firewise group will have a contingent in the Fairfax Parade on June 10 @ 10 AM sharp. All of you are welcome to join in, including kids, who tend to be the most enthusiastic parades. (Kids need an adult with them.) We walk up Broadway and Bolinas from the Good Earth parking lot to Town Hall. Jack Hunt has a 1950 Hudson convertible to lead our contingent. Email to get connected!

Free Chipper Days: If you plan to have branches, small trees, and bushes cleared around your house, sign up for one of the free Chipper Days. Otherwise, you have to pay for the chipping and dumping by a private contractor.