At a time of significant drought, attendance at La Plata County’s Fire Ready Expo on Saturday at the La Plata County Fairgrounds makes good sense.
From 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., the free, family-friendly event will offer wildfire preparedness information, demonstrations and opportunities for one-on-one questions and answers about topics, including home hardening and Firewise landscaping.
Specifically, at 11 a.m. there will be a fire season outlook presentation, at noon information about LPEA public safety power shutoffs and at 1 p.m. a discussion of wildfire resiliency building codes.
Residents can also receive a Rapid Evac Tag by presenting identification or mail confirming their address. The tags connect residents with their addresses so they may return when closed areas reopen.
As part of this week’s prevention events, residents along County Road 240 (Florida Road) between the Durango city limits and Helen’s Corner, the turn to Florida Reservoir, received an exercise fire alert on their phones and were directed – if they wished – to gather at the Edgemont Picnic Grounds. It was a practice that would make carrying out a real evacuation much easier when the time comes.
Walk through the displays Saturday at the fairgrounds. Picking up even a few ideas about fire prevention and emergency response could prove beneficial.
