Wildland Division Chief Kelly Sterna
By KIRSTEN LASKEY
Los Alamos Daily Post
kirsten@ladailypost.com
Less than average snowpack, drier than usual monsoon season and major anniversaries of two large fires are all ingredients in a recipe for disaster. And Los Alamos could be served with an active wildland season this year due to these conditions, the Rotary Club of Los Alamos learned during its meeting Tuesday.
Wildland Division Chief Kelly Sterna reported that fire restrictions will go into effect, probably May 24.
“We’re sitting at the 10-year anniversary of Las Conchas Fire, the 21-year anniversary of the Cerro Grande Fire, in addition to less than average monsoon season last summer and finalize that with below normal snow pack this winter … to say that we are caught in the crosshairs this wildland season might be a bit of an understatement,” Sterna said. “However, I think our department is very well prepared. We just finished a 114-acre mitigation grant that was provided to us through the Department of Homeland Security and FEMA.”
Through the grant, Sterna said the fire department focused primarily on interior canyons in Los Alamos to create a buffer between Los Alamos County-owned property and private property.
Sterna added that the fire department has an advantage over any potential fires because it recently replaced its wildland apparatuses.
Additionally, the fire department is promoting the Ready, Set, Go program. Basically, the program “is making sure you as an individual and as a family have everything ready, everything set and are able to go in an event we have another large-scale evacuation,” Sterna said.
Evacuations are nothing new in Los Alamos, Sterna pointed out that there have been three: the first one was in 1954 due to the Water Canyon Fire, followed by the Cerro Grande Fire in 2001 and then the Las Conchas Fire in 2011.
He added that while Los Alamos’ topography is a challenge, the evacuations have improved each time. He said the evacuation time in 2000 was eight hours and it was reduced to four hours in 2011.
Still, it pays for individuals and families to be prepared, too, Sterna said.
“The biggest thing we talk about is three zones of defensible space around our homes,” he said. “The biggest thing I really want to stress for our homeowners in Los Alamos County is the first zone, the zero-30 feet zone. We want to make sure your home has … non-combustibles zero to 5 feet around the home and make sure the ground covers we choose are either noncombustible or draught resistant. Probably the next two big points are when we store firewood or other combustibles, we want them at least 30 feet from our home as well. The big thing we see in Los Alamos County is cleaning pine needles out of gutters. Again, when I stress these points, I really want to emphasize these are really small things we can do as homeowners that make a big difference in an impending wildland fire or trying to increase your home’s resistance to wildland fire. What we are really doing is decreasing combustible material loading around a home (and) it’s saving that home.”
If Los Alamos does encounter another evacuation, Sterna urges families to not take multiple cars because it can add to the stress of making sure everyone is safe and accounted for. He added that it is important to have a plan on how to get out of town, create a checklist for things such as emergency supply kits, contact numbers and phone chargers. Sterna recommended having three kits – one for the home, one for the car and one for individuals that is portable. It should be filled with items such as water, nonperishable food, sanitation products, radios, keys, money, prescriptions, etc. He added that irreplaceable items can be placed in plastic bins.
If people see smoke, Sterna said a great resource to turn to for fire updates is New Mexico Fire Information at https://nmfireinfo.com/ and the Ready Set Go link http://www.emnrd.state.nm.us/SFD/FireMgt/documents/FINAL-new-mexico-RSG-guide-2017_002.pdf
