June 10, 2015
The Orr's and Bailey Islands Fire Department is hosting a community meeting on Monday to educate residents about wildfire dangers and how to protect homes and property during the high-risk summer months.
The Orr's and Bailey Islands Fire Department is hosting a community meeting on Monday to educate residents about wildfire dangers and how to protect homes and property during the high-risk summer months.
The
meeting will be held from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. on Monday, June 15, at
the old Orr's Island Schoolhouse, located next to the Orr's Island
fire station, 1600 Harpswell Islands Road, Route 24. People of all
ages are welcome to attend. Refreshments will be served.
According
to the National Fire Protection Association's (NFPA) Firewise
Communities Program, the summer of 2015 is likely to present
extremely dry and windy conditions, increasing the risk of wildfire
activity. Preparation by property owners can help prevent fires from
starting or spreading.
The meeting will offer advice on how to protect land and buildings from the potential of spreading fires.
Some of the advice includes:
The meeting will offer advice on how to protect land and buildings from the potential of spreading fires.
Some of the advice includes:
- Clear leaves and other debris from gutters, eaves, porches and decks
- Keep lawns hydrated and maintained. Dry grass and shrubs are fuel for wildfire. If it is brown, cut it down to reduce fire intensity.
- Remove dead vegetation within 30 to 100 feet of a structure.
- Remove fuel within 3 to 5 feet of a home's foundation and outbuildings.
- Wildfires can spread to tree tops. If there are large trees, prune them so the lowest branches are 6 to 10 feet high.
- Don't let debris and lawn cuttings linger. Dispose of these items quickly to reduce fuel for fire.
- When planting, choose slow-growing, carefully placed shrubs and trees so the area can be more easily maintained.
To
help keep fires from starting on open land, tips include:
- Obey outdoor burning bans. Don't burn trash or debris when conditions are dry or windy. Unsafe burning of leaves, brush, household trash and other debris is a main cause of wildfires.
- If camping or hunting, check local restrictions on campfires. Use an approved gas stove as an alternative for heating and cooking. If charcoal grills are permitted, use them only over fireproof surfaces such as asphalt or bare mineral soil.
- Dispose of smoking materials properly. Don't throw them out a window.
- Avoid parking and idling in dry grass. Catalytic converters can get hot enough to ignite the grass.
- Keep water available when using welding equipment or cutting torches around grass and brush. A five-gallon bucket of water with a tote sack in it could prove valuable if sparks or hot pieces of metal catch nearby grass on fire.
- Avoid setting hot chainsaws or other gas-powered equipment in dry grass, which could ignite after coming into contact with hot mufflers.
More
tips and information is available from the Firewise Communities
Program at www.firewise.org.
OBIFD is an all-volunteer department which provides fire and medical rescue services for Orr's and Bailey Islands and portions of Great Island south of Stevens Corner Road on Route 24, including Long Point, and Mountain Road east of the Ewing Narrows bridge.
More information about the department is available at www.obifd.org.
Harpswell's other fire and rescue departments are the Cundy's Harbor Volunteer Fire Department, which serves all of Great Island from the Brunswick line to Stevens Corner Road on Route 24, and the Harpswell Neck Fire and Rescue, which serves all areas off of Route 123, including
OBIFD is an all-volunteer department which provides fire and medical rescue services for Orr's and Bailey Islands and portions of Great Island south of Stevens Corner Road on Route 24, including Long Point, and Mountain Road east of the Ewing Narrows bridge.
More information about the department is available at www.obifd.org.
Harpswell's other fire and rescue departments are the Cundy's Harbor Volunteer Fire Department, which serves all of Great Island from the Brunswick line to Stevens Corner Road on Route 24, and the Harpswell Neck Fire and Rescue, which serves all areas off of Route 123, including
Mountain
Road west of the Ewing Narrows bridge.
More information about the three departments, including how to join as a volunteer, is available at www.harpswellfireandrescue.org.
More information about the three departments, including how to join as a volunteer, is available at www.harpswellfireandrescue.org.