🔥 Wildfire: what to do, step by step

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If you live near woodland, fire can reach you in minutes. Leaving early saves lives; leaving late, through the smoke, is the most dangerous thing you can do.

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Step by step

You see smoke or flamesCall your local emergency number (112 in Europe, 911 in North America): say where you are, what's burning and which way the smoke is going. Don't go closer to look.
Evacuation orderLeave right then, with the go bag, medication and pets, by the route you're given. Don't wait until you see the flames.
Shelter-in-place orderStay inside: close doors and windows, take curtains down from the windows, fill the bathtub and buckets with water and wet down the surroundings if you have time.
If the fire reaches youShelter in a solid house, away from the windows, in cotton or wool clothing that covers you completely. The fire front passes in minutes; afterwards, go out and put out the embers.
AfterDon't go back until it's allowed: trees can still fall, and there are embers and hot ground.

Before

  1. Keep a strip around your home clear of brush, dry leaves and firewood (your local authority sets the distance). Clean the gutters and don't stack firewood against the wall.
  2. Have a hose that reaches the whole perimeter and know two ways out of your neighborhood.
  3. Don't burn debris or barbecue in the countryside when it's banned. Most wildfires are caused by people.
  4. When the risk is high, keep the go bag in the car, the tank full and the car parked facing the exit.

During

  1. If you're driving and the smoke blocks your view, don't carry on: stop in an area with no vegetation, with the windows closed and the engine running, and take cover on the floor of the car under a wool blanket.
  2. If you're on foot, head for areas that have already burned, have no vegetation or have water. Never go uphill or into ravines: fire climbs very fast.
  3. Against smoke, an N95/FFP2 mask helps with particles but not with gases. Breathe close to the ground and cover yourself with damp clothing.
  4. With smoke indoors even if the fire is far away: close the windows, turn off any air conditioning that draws in outside air and stay in the most airtight room (with a HEPA purifier if you have one).

After

  1. Check the roof, the attic and the surroundings for hours afterwards: embers can rekindle the fire.
  2. Don't drink tap water if you're told the supply has been affected.

What you need for this emergency

See the full kit: Evacuation go bag →

Figures and sources

Other emergencies