For those of you who have not heard it (wow, who else have not...) a fire broke out and it's spreading like, well, wildfire, in seconds and this happened in the Los Angeles area of Sylmar above the east San Francisco Valley. It started around the wee hours of the at around 10PM Friday, November 15, 2008 and it spread like crazy the following hours burning at 1500 acres and moved towards West and SouthEast towards Pacoima Dam. Fortunately, there were no reported injuries of the Sylmar fire but LA county spokesperson John Frazier have strongly warned people especially those who would travel at night that it would be dangerous because "all of your hazards, the wires are not visible like they are in the daytime".
At around 2AM the following morning, 50 people were already in an evacuation area, specifically the gymnasium of Sylmar High School and outside the gym, harsh hot winds were blowing furiously. The San Fernando High School was also made as an evacuation center during that time.
This kind of situation can really go out of hand especially when people are not that aware, totally unprepared and have little knowledge about things like the types of fire and what types of solution like fire extinguishers they need to have in their own homes to possibly put out the fire. Maybe, if only all the people of a given surrounding area has their own protection, it might not have happened like this. The local government should also make sure that the community are given enough information for situations like these and should coordinate with the local fire department in disseminating useful and valued information regarding blazes and fire.
People sure could use some useful tips on how to save themselves and their belongings from fire but as always, their lives are always the best priority. Here are some tips that need to be heeded: whether you're outdoors camping or inside the house, don't linger anywhere while cooking, Keep things that can burn, such as dishtowels, paper or plastic bags, and curtains at least three feet away from the range top. Before cooking, roll up sleeves and use oven mitts. Loose-fitting clothes can touch a hot burner and catch on fire.
To prevent fire like what has happened in Sylmar, make sure you obey local laws regarding open fires, including campfires; keep all flammable objects away from fire;have firefighting tools nearby and handy; carefully dispose of hot charcoal; drown all fires and carefully extinguish smoking materials. And don't forget to make a fire-safe zone around your house or the camping ground. Prune away the lower limbs of evergreens that are within the fire safe zone. Evergreens catch fire easily during dry periods and burn quickly;remove any limbs which overhang the roof or chimney;regularly remove leaves and needles from gutters; don't store firewood in the fire safe zone.
You can gather more forest fire prevention tips on the Internet especially as of this time when everything is dry.
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