What to Have in Your Car in Case of Disaster

“Our cars and trucks take us everywhere we want to go. However, there’s a chance those same automobiles may someday take us somewhere we need to go: in the case of a natural disaster, self-evacuation is sometimes the most efficient route to safety. Your automobile needs to be prepared for the possibility of a natural disaster at all times.”

This article, written by an inspired masters student outlines the essentials that you should easily take with you in the case of an emergency. It is never too early to consider the important pieces of an evacuation; it might just save your life and/or make your life much easier if the time does come to evacuate.

Wildfire Basics for Professionals: Hazard Reduction for Arborists and Landscapers

This 2-pager is a great reference for Arborists and Landscapers to practice firewise landscaping.

Firewise landscaping is used globally, based on science and observations of past fires and is proven to be effective in reducing wildfire risk for residents.

As an Arborist or Landscaper, being able to reduce the ignition risk of clientsʻ homes can be a very valuable element to your product. Hawaii Wildfire Management Organization recommends being familiar with the firewise landscaping methods to help protect homes from fire, and offer this valuable tool to your resource!

2018-19 Rapid Assessment of Vegetation Management Results

In Hawaii, wildfire has devastating impacts on our communities and native ecosystems. With land use and climate changes, wildfire is a significant and growing hazard in many places across Hawaii. 

Research in wildfire science shows that vegetation is a key ingredient in the recipe for recurring wildfire. Vegetation management is essential for wildfire hazard mitigation strategies that:

• reduce wildfire hazard;

• create safer conditions for firefighters; and

• serve as key climate adaptation strategies for our communities, economies and environment.  

Fire follows fuel and the impacts do not abide by property boundaries. Therefore, reducing wildfire hazard is a landscape-level issue that we need to collaboratively tackle together to create safer and more wildfire resilient communities.

In 2015, HWMO’s Technical Advisory Committee, comprised of more than 35 fire and natural resource experts from across the state, discussed Hawaii’s lack of consolidated landscape-level information on vegetative fire fuels treatments. 

To start to fill the gap, HWMO conducted a Rapid Mapping Assessment and facilitated Collaborative Action Planning on Vegetation Management in 2018-19 to:

• Better understand all of the important hazard reduction already happening by diverse land managers;

• Identify and prioritize actions that address the island-wide fire issue to optimize expenditures and efforts and maximize protection at the landscape-scale;

• To kick-start collaboration, information sharing, and integrate fire-thinking into current activities to address the cross-boundary fire risk.

We thank State Division of Forestry and Wildlife, University of Hawaiʻi CTAHR Cooperative Extension, and Pacific Fire Exchange for their collaborative support on this project. Funding was provided by Hawaiʻi State Grant-in-Aid Program, 2016, and the U.S. Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Region, under the terms of Grant No. 16-11052012-146 and No. 17-DG-11052012-143. USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.

We also thank the many mapping participants, workshop attendees, and survey respondents who made this all possible!

The summary results of the Rapid Mapping Assessment and Collaborative Action Planning can be found below.

Hawaiʻi Statewide Summary

Hawaiʻi Island

Lānaʻi

Maui

Molokaʻi

Oʻahu

Kauaʻi