Final Wildfire Exercises

Hillsboro Firefighters are completing their third week of wildfire drills to prepare for the upcoming season. This week's final drill built on the previous week's training by using the sandbox tactical decisions made in the prior week's drill and actually visiting the locations where they made choices to deploy resources.

Firefighters must perform structural triage when dealing with wildfires in the wildland/urban interface(WUI). WUI is where developed areas meet forests or fields. That means a team of firefighters must assess each home's defensability. They look for clear access to the home, a minimum of 30-feet of non-combustible vegetation or low, green grass between the home and any wildfire fuels, and the type of construction of the home.

The evaluators have a relatively simple formula to follow to decide whether to commit an engine company to defend that home or to not risk their lives because the home cannot be defended safely.

For more information on how to ensure your home is as safe as can be from wildfire, visit www.firewise.org.