we were almost evacuated

liamsmom · #1 05-17-2007, 11:37 AM

we had an awfully scary experience due to the fires that were in our area the last two days. the fires were tremendous and the smoke was incredibly thick. hot ash was landing on our house. people were hosing down their property and homes. there were mandatory evacuations. yesterday. there were school buses driving up and down on our street with evacuees....and they were stopping at the curbs to take even more voluntary evacuees to the local shelters. there were more fire, police and other types of emergency vehicles than i've ever seen in my entire life. on our street and above our house.....there were from all different towns from surrounding areas as well as far away towns. there were numerous helicopters dropping water...planes spraying water...more planes and helicopters surveying the area. there news crews both on the ground and in the air. it was unbelievable!! we honestly felt that we were in a movie that wouldn't end. the entire ordeal made us realize how important it is to have evacuation plan. since we have three dogs, a cat and a parrot....being organized is key. we had all the dog's crates in our JEEP. the cat's carrier and the parrot's temporary cage were by the door ready all ready to go. all pet foods were packed...enough for a few days. we also had both of our vehicles packed with enough clothes and basic neccessites for a few days plus all of our important papers, etc. we were all ready to leave on a moment's notice.
i cannot stress enough how important it is to have an evacuation plan in place for yourself, your family and your pets. many temporary shelters do not accepts pets. become familiar with your township's evacuation procedures. make arrangements ahead of time so that you know which direction to head in if you are ever evacuated. our plans do not include going to shelters because we are always afraid that our pets will not be allowed. we feel that even if pets are allowed in a minor disaster....the pets will be the first to go if they need more space for humans. where will you meet up if you and other family members are ever separated? what if cell phone service is down? also, keep in mind that if you are evacuated...be sure you take your pets with you when you leave THE FIRST TIME. lots of times officials may say that you can come back for them....but what if you aren't able to get back in to pick them up? if you leave during a voluntary evacuation and then the evacuation becomes mandatory...YOU WILL NOT BE ALLOWED BACK IN UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES. even if it is to get your pets. also, if you are evacuated be sure you go far enough away so that you will not be evacuated a second time. in our case this time...we could move away from the fire and smoke by just driving a few short miles. however, if we are ever evacuated due to weather (hurricaine, flooding, etc) our plan is entirely different.
i just wanted to share this info with everyone because IT CAN HAPPEN TO YOU. wierd freaks of nature do happen. fire and flood can't be stopped when it's coming fast. don't think IT CAN'T HAPPEN TO ME. because it can. being prepared left us feeling like we were READY. yes, we were worried about our home but we knew we were ready to go if we had to. we weren't in a panic gathering things. we were calm, organized and in as much control of the situation as we could be.
please please please.....plan for evacuations. they happen FAST. in our area the people that were under mandatory evacuation were give 5 MINUTES to evacuate. that isn't really enough time to grab a toothbrush and find a bar of soap to bring with you.
keep in mind....there are no medals of honor awarded to those who choose to stay in an evacuated area. if you are told to evacuate.....do it. don't stay and hope for the best. just go. your life....the lives of your family and your pets are not replacable and evacuating will keep you all safe.

WeasleRocky · #2 05-17-2007, 12:48 PM

I will keep you all in my prayers...
Your post is much appreciated...

Stay Safe!!!

Slobberchops · #3 05-17-2007, 03:56 PM

The bush fire season here in Australia is so scary too,glad you were prepared,it always pays to have a plan,and for everyone in the family to be able to do their bit,so everyone stays safe

JoRoJoRy · #4 05-17-2007, 06:13 PM

I do hope that all is well! I just got through dealing with almost the same thing, except flooding. The Missouri river left it's banks a week ago and so they were issueing evacuations in my city and neighboring communities. All the creeks and small rivers (including the one that runs directly behind my house were overflowing their banks) One of Rocky's and I favorite walking trails is under water. There are still many people here without homes even though the rivers have crested.
Your advice should be well noted as we take so much for granted. Material items can be replaced but your loved ones cannot. You are in my prayers and please be safe.

kljarvis · #5 05-17-2007, 07:10 PM

I've been watching the news and wondering how our BW families are doing. I hope all is still well for all of you. You're in our prayers.

Chiefsmom · #6 05-17-2007, 07:47 PM

Thanks for the thoughtful post during such a traumatic ordeal!!!

It is a good idea; and many of us don't think about putting that plan into action (at least not until it's too late)!!! Glad you prepared yourself and your pets in case of evacuation!!! You and you're whole family are in our thoughts and prayers in hopes that all goes well!!!! Very scary!!

Stay safe! And keep us posted!!!

leeshie45 · #7 05-18-2007, 01:38 PM

I'm glad to hear that your'e all okay and it realyl is something to think about...what would you do if faced with a terrible situation like this? Are you prepared enough? wow...
Hope everything worked out...I'm not too far from you, so we've been seeing it and reading about it for the past few days. I heard today that the fires are about 75% contained now.

K8IE · #8 05-20-2007, 08:58 AM

I hope that everything is OK there! Thanks for the info, I just read something similar on another forum I visit and it makes me realize how important it is to be prepared and have a plan!

JHarper · #9 05-20-2007, 09:09 AM

it IS important to have a plan in case of an emergency.

when my daughter was 2 months old, we had a house fire. We're renting the home, and it's old and NOT up to code. Luckily we had just put in the smoke detector a few days before.

When the noise woke me, I said 'FIRE!' which woke up my husband, I ran into my daughters room, threw a blanket over her head, closed our dogs in my bedroom and ran out of the house, while telling my husband to grab the phone and dial 911. by the time the smoke had gotten to the smoke detector, the whole house was already filled with thick black smoke. Closing the dogs in the room prevented any of the smoke from getting in there, and also kept them from running around so the firemen could get them. Our 2 cats however were not in our room, but somehow, the firemen were able to find them within seconds of getting into the house (even the black one! lol)

It was just smoke damage, and we were only out of the house for 5 months while they fixed everything up.

even though I have constant nightmares about it, and my daughter seems to talk about fire an awful lot for only being 2 months old when it happened, we all were safe. Except for my comforter...which someone pooped on... lol