THE SURVIVABLE HOME: PNWCG

Your roof is the most vulnerable part of your house in a wildfire. If you have a wood shake roof, consider replacing it with class C or better fire-resistant roofing.
Remove dead branches hanging over your roof.
Remove any branches within 15 feet of your chimney.
Clean all dead leaves and needles from your roof and gutters.
Cover your chimney outlet and stovepipe with a nonflammable screen of one-half inch or smaller mesh.

Build your home away from ridge tops, canyons, and areas between high points on a ridge.
Build your home at least 30 feet from your property line.
Box your eaves.
Use fire-resistant building materials.
Enclose the underside of balconies and above-ground decks with fire resistant materials.
Limit the size and number of windows in your home that face large areas of vegetation.
Install only dual-paned or triple-paned windows.
Consider sprinkler systems within the house. They may protect your home while you're away or prevent a house fire from spreading into the wildlands.

Stack woodpiles at least 30 feet from all structures and clear away flammable vegetation within 10 feet of woodpiles.
Locate LPG tanks (butane and propane) at least 30 feet from any structure and surround them with 10 feet of clearance.
Remove all stacks of construction materials, pine needles, leaves and other debris from your yard.
Contact your local fire department to see if open burning is allowed in your area; if so, obtain a permit before burning debris.
Where burn barrels are allowed, clear flammable materials at least 10 feet around the barrel; cover the open top with a non-flammable screen with mesh no larger than one-quarter inch.

Maintain an emergency water supply that meets fire department standards through one of the following:
- a community water/hydrant system
- a cooperative emergency storage tank with neighbors
- a minimum storage supply of 2,500 gallons on your property
Clearly mark all emergency water sources and notify your local fire department of their existence.
Create easy firefighter access to your closest emergency water source.
If your water comes from a well, consider an emergency generator to operate the pump during a power failure.

Identify at least two exit routes from your neighborhood.
Construct and maintain roads that allow two-way traffic.
Design road width, grade, and curves to allow access for large emergency vehicles.
Construct driveways to allow large emergency equipment to reach your house.
Design bridges to carry heavy emergency vehicles, including bulldozers carried on large trucks.
Post clear road signs to show traffic restrictions such as dead-end roads and weight/height limitations.
Make sure dead-end roads and long driveways have turnaround areas wide enough for emergency vehicles, and construct turnouts along one-way roads.
Clear flammable vegetation at least ten feet from roads and five feet from driveways.
Cut back overhanging tree branches above roads.
Construct fire barriers, such as greenbelts, parks, golf courses, or athletic fields.
Make sure that your street is named or numbered, and a sign is visibly posted at each street intersection.
Make sure that your street name and house number are not duplicated elsewhere in the county.
Post your house address at the beginning of your driveway, or on your house if it is easily visible from the road.

Designate an emergency meeting place outside your home.
Practice emergency exit drills regularly.
Make sure that electric service lines, fuse boxes, and circuit breaker panels are installed and maintained as prescribed by code.
Contact qualified individuals to perform electrical maintenance and repairs.