When the time comes to evacuate your Home or Business (Published in SBRPA newsletter April, 2025) (Full Article Here)

Over the last 20 years we have been on evacuation warning or mandatory evacuation four times: The Gap Fire 2008, Tea Fire 2008, Jesusita fire 2009, and Thomas Fire 2017.  Every time we were very fortunate, we came home to OUR home.

Every time we have learned a valuable lesson that has changed our level of preparedness and expanded our overview, not only for ourselves but for our tenants, our employees, and our customers.  The first time we evacuated we arrived at the hotel with lots of stuff.  We realized that “in the moment”, with no written plan, most of what we grabbed was easily replaced and many of our irreplaceable items were left behind.  An example: we arrived to the hotel with: 20 pairs of flip-flops, 4 beaded gowns, 2 cases of wine, a computer.  We did not have: the enamel vases from my grandfather, passports, and left behind the spare keys to everything.  The following is a list that we have printed and taped to the wall just inside the closet door (pick your place), this is our fourth action item in our plan for getting out of the house:

1. What road do we think we can evacuate on, what is the safest path?
2. Is our travel limited to foot, bike or car/s?
3. Start at top of list get each item into the transportation, move to next item. Think about the placement of each item, will the next item crush a fragile item that was loaded earlier?
4. The timer will end, you may have completed the list you may not have. By getting each item into “the car” when the Sheriff says, “GO NOW”, or the fire is a few doors away, you can drive off.  You may have completed the first 1 item; you may have loaded the entire list.  If you moved everything to the entryway of the house none of it will be in the car.  Each situation is different and may require adjustments along the way.  (This is our list, yours will be different)

Get Each Item in The Car

1- Car Keys, wallet, purse, cell phones in pockets

2- Kids (we don’t have any)

3- Pet/s (in carrier, in car, don’t want them missing at last moment)

4- Family heirloom

5- Meds, Documents, Spare Keys “The Bag” (Prepacked: cash, credit cards, passport, in one fireproof bag)

6- Gohonzon (Religious Item)

7- Travel/TSA bag (prepacked)

8- C-PAP Machine

9- Pistol/Shotgun/Ammo

10- Cat Food/Litter Box (Kuda has unfortunately passed)

11- Collection of “fill in the blank”

12- Jewelry Box

13- Top Drawers Nightstands

14- Cabinet Medication

15- Contacts & glasses

16- Emergency Food

17- Emergency Water

18- Battery Caddy

19- Go Backpacks

20- Walkie talkies & Charger

21- Extension Ladder (collapsing type)

22- Burner & Propane

23- Collection of “fill in the blank”

24- Art Work (would have to fight with insurance to replace)

25- Tools

26- Alcohol & Wine

27- Collection of “fill in the blank”

28- Hair Dryer & Makeup

29- Hair Trimmer and Color

30- Vitamins, bathroom shelves

31- boo-boo supplies

32- Sourdough Starter

33- Anything that will fit that would be HARD or impossible to replace