Report Finds Fire Prone Areas “Unprepared”
Friday, October 26, 2007
Las Vegas, NV – Even as Nevada firefighters return home from the devastating blazes in California, at least one report says many fire-prone communities are unprepared. The "Safe at Home" study looked at the Love Creek community in the Sierra Nevada Mountains and found the district ill-equipped to handle a major fire.
Amy Mall, of the Natural Resources Defense Council, explains the data concluded that, even when families took steps to protect themselves, they usually came up short.
"Everybody needed a little bit more expert information and guidance on how to make their homes 'fire-wise.' However, we also found that it was really affordable to take the measures. The average cost for all the homes we looked at was about $2,500."
Mall says federal funding for firefighting has been cut by 60 percent in recent years, and only three percent of the remaining money goes to state and local fire departments. Mall worries the fire danger will only increase as more people move into high-risk areas.
"We really think the trend should be in the opposite direction, that state and local fire programs should be getting more funding, so they can get out into communities and help homeowners learn how to make their homes safe from wildfires."
The report includes proven techniques for protecting homes and communities and is available online at www. nrdc.org.
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