CDF Holds Event During Wildfire Awareness Week

The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CDF) will kick off Wildfire Awareness Week with a demonstration of firefighting drills in the foothills outside of Sacramento on Monday May 10, starting at 10 a.m.

“Wildfire Awareness Week gives us a chance to call the public’s attention to the threat of wildfire. Our message is that we are getting ready for fire season, and so should you,” said CDF Chief of Fire Protection Jim Wright. “

“It’s a Clear Choice” is the theme of this year’s event. “The message is two-fold,” added Wright. “Now is the time to clear the flammable material around your structure to create a defensible space for our firefighters. And it is clear that defensible space increases the chance that your home will survive wildfire.”

This year’s event will be held at the Auburn Lake Trails (ALT)community in El Dorado County. This site was selected because it is a classic wildland urban interface area where houses and fire country
are intermingled. ALT was also reportedly selected because of its citizens’ extraordinary commitment to becoming a Fire Safe Community.

Visitors to the event will see several examples of the kind of fuels
modification that have improved this community’s odds of surviving a wildfire, including a shaded fuel break, defensible space and fire safe landscaping.

Directions are available by calling (916) 653-5123.