The fire danger level in Clallam County has been raised to the “moderate” level by the Department of Natural Resources effective July 10, said Sam Phillips, Chief of Clallam County Fire District 2 and president of the Clallam County Fire Chiefs Association.
Phillips is urging local residents and visitors to be extra careful with ignition sources. Both Fire District 2 and the City of Port Angeles Fire Department have responded to brush fires in recent days some of which have been close to nearby homes.
“We are entering into a busy fire season and our firefighters need the help of everyone to prevent fires from starting,” said Phillips.
Fire officials urge residents to follow these five safety tips:
• Follow the burn ban and curtail all outdoor burning.
• Keep a 30-foot to 100-foot area clear and defensible space around your home free of tall grass, brush and flammable vegetation.
• Remove flammable debris like leaves, pine needles and limbs from around the roof line of your home and outbuildings.
• Trim low hanging limbs and “ladder fuels” up 6-10 feet from the ground.
• Be extra careful outdoors with mowers, barbecues, chainsaws and off-road vehicle exhausts.
County Fire Marshal Sheila Roark Miller has implemented a “burn ban” in Clallam County prohibiting outdoor burning with the exception of “recreational fires” and campfires in established and controlled campgrounds. For more details, see www.clallam.net/Permits/burningrestrictions.html.
Homeowners also can help firefighters by creating a defensible space around their home and outbuildings. Defensible spaces give firefighters that extra margin to be successful in protecting homes from an approaching wildfire. More fire safety information on defensible space is available from www.clallam.net/Permits/defensiblespace.html.
Fire safety tips can be located at www.clallamfire2.org and downloaded as PDF files.
Clallam County Fire District 2 provides fire suppression and emergency medical service to 9,500 people over 85 square miles outside the city of Port Angeles, serving the communities of Deer Park, Gales Addition, Black Diamond, Dry Creek and Lake Sutherland. Forty volunteer and four full-time firefighter/EMTs respond to an average of 1,000 emergency calls per year.
