1. Contact the Telluride Fire Protection District or San Miguel County Sheriff's Department for information on fire laws.
2. Make sure that fire vehicles can get to your home. Clearly mark all driveway entrances and display your address.
3. Report hazardous conditions that could cause a wildfire.
4. Teach children about fire safety and keep matches out of their reach.
5. Post fire emergency telephone numbers (911).
6. Plan several escape routes away from your home by car and by foot.
7. Talk to your neighbors about wildfire safety. Plan how the neighborhood could work together during and after a wildfire. Make a list of your neighbors' skills such as medical or technical. Consider how you could help neighbors who have special needs such as elderly or disabled persons. Make plans to take care of children who may be on their own if parents can't get home.

1. Regularly clean roof and gutters.
2. Inspect chimneys at least twice a year. Clean them at least once a year. Keep the dampers in good working order. Equip chimneys and stovepipes with a spark arrester that meets the requirements of National Fire Protection Association Code 211. (Contact your local Building Department, or Fire Department for exact specifications.)
3. Install a smoke detector on each level of your home, especially near bedrooms; test monthly and change the batteries at least once each year.
4. Teach each family member how to use the fire extinguisher (A-B-C type) and show them where it's kept.
5. Keep a ladder that will reach the roof.
6. Install protective shutters or heavy fire-resistant drapes.
7. Keep handy household items that can be used as fire tools: a rake, axe, handsaw or chainsaw, bucket and shovel.

1. Design and landscape your home with wildfire safety in mind.
2. Select materials and plants that can help contain fire rather than fuel it. Plant fire-resistant shrubs and trees. For example, hardwood trees are less flammable than pine, evergreen, eucalyptus or fir trees.
3. Use fire resistant or non-combustible materials on the roof and exterior structure of the dwelling. Or treat wood or combustible material used in roofs, siding, decking or trim with UL-approved fire-retardant chemicals.

1. Rake leaves, dead limbs and twigs. Clear all flammable vegetation.
2. Remove leaves and rubbish from under structures and dispose of them properly.
3. Thin a 15-foot space between tree crowns, and remove limbs within 15 feet of the ground.
4. Remove dead branches that extend over the roof.
5. Prune tree branches and shrubs within 15 feet of a stovepipe or chimney outlet.
6. Ask the power company to clear branches from powerlines.
7. Remove vegetation from the walls of the home.
8. Mow grass regularly. Clear a 10-foot area around propane tanks and barbecues. Place a screen over the grill, use non-flammable material with mesh no coarser than one-quarter inch.
9. Regularly dispose of newspapers and rubbish at an approved site. Follow local burning regulations.
10. Place stove, fireplace and grill ashes in a metal bucket, soak in water for two days, then bury the cold ashes in mineral soil.
11. Store gasoline, oily rags and other flammable materials in approved safety cans. Place cans in a safe location away from the base of buildings.
12. Stack firewood at least 100 feet away and uphill from your home. Clear combustible material within 20 feet. Use only UL-approved woodburning devices.

1. Identify and maintain an adequate outside water source such as a small pond, cistern, well, swimming pool or hydrant.
2. Have a garden hose that is long enough to reach any area of the home and other structures on the property.
3. Install freeze-proof exterior water outlets on at least two sides of the home and near other structures on the property. Install additional outlets at least 50 feet from the home.
4. Purchase a portable gasoline powered pump in case electrical power is cut off.

1. If you are warned that a wildfire is threatening your area, listen to your battery-operated radio for reports and evacuation information. Follow the instructions of local officials.
2. Back your car into the garage or park it in an open space facing the direction of escape. Shut doors and roll up windows. Leave the key in the ignition. Close garage windows and doors, but leave them unlocked. Disconnect automatic garage door openers.
3. Confine pets to one room. Make plans to care for your pets in case you must evacuate.
4. Arrange temporary housing at a friend or relative's home outside the threatened area.

1. Wear protective clothing-sturdy shoes, cotton or woolen clothing, long pants, a long-sleeved shirt, gloves and a handkerchief to protect your face.
2. Take your Disaster supply kit (see following emergency supplies section).
3. Lock your home.
4. Choose a route away from fire hazards. Watch for changes in the speed and direction of fire and smoke.

1. A three-day supply of water (one gallon per person per day) and food that won't spoil.
2. One change of clothing and footwear per person and one blanket or sleeping bag per person.
3. A first aid kit that includes your family's prescription medications.
4. Emergency tools including a battery-powered radio, flashlight and plenty of extra batteries.
5. An extra set of car keys and a credit card, cash or traveler's checks.
6. Sanitation supplies.
7. Special items for infant, elderly or disabled family members.
8. An extra pair of eyeglasses for each person.
9. Keep important family documents in a waterproof container. Assemble a smaller version of your kit to keep in the trunk of your car.

1. · Close windows, vents, doors, venetian blinds or non-combustible window coverings and heavy drapes. Remove lightweight curtains.
2. Shut off gas at the meter. Turn off pilot lights.
3. Open fireplace damper. Close fireplace screens.
4. Move flammable furniture into the center of the home away from windows and sliding-glass doors.
5. Turn on a light in each room to increase the visibility of your home in heavy smoke.
6. Seal attic and ground vents with pre-cut plywood or commercial seals.
7. Turn off propane tanks
8. Place combustible patio furniture inside.
9. Connect the garden hose to outside taps.
10. Set up the portable gasoline-powered pump.
11. Place lawn sprinklers on the roof and near aboveground fuel tanks. Wet the roof.
12. Wet or remove shrubs within 15 feet of the home.
13. Gather fire tools.

Protect Your Property From Wildfires