California on fire: how not to miss an evacuation message

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At least 17 people died, and hundreds went missing due to forest fires raging in Northern California. According to experts, the number of deaths can be much higher.

Local authorities are trying to organize the evacuation of residents from the regions in danger, but the rapid spread of fire due to strong wind and drought leads to the fact that many residents do not have time to evacuate, and some do not receive messages about the need to leave their homes, writes USA Today.

According to experts, even under ideal circumstances, not every resident of the evacuated territory will receive a message about evacuation, moreover, not everyone will be able to leave quickly. And in California there were far from ideal circumstances.

“When the fires broke out, most people were already asleep and this created a serious problem. Plus, winds of 50 to 60 miles per hour caused the fires to spread so quickly that by the time fire trucks arrived on the streets where the fire was raging, houses were already on fire,” said a spokesman for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal fire) Daniel Berlant.

There are several tools authorities can use to spread evacuation information. One of the most effective is the “reverse 911 system,” in which residents receive automated phone calls telling them to evacuate. In extreme circumstances, firefighters may also refuse to put out a fire and will instead visit nearby residents with a message that they need to leave the house as soon as possible.

But even when local officials take all these steps, it is impossible to guarantee that all residents of the region know about evacuation. In addition, some of those who reported the need to leave the house, prefer to stay. In many cases, according to experts, people wait too long and decide to leave when the road becomes too dangerous.

Napa County used the 911 callback system to inform residents that mobile lines were damaged due to fires. The district also sends evacuation alerts through a text messaging service called Nixle. The number of people who subscribed to alerts increased from October 28 000 8 to October almost 80 000 9.

Sonoma County also uses emergency messages. Nixle and SoCoAlertwhich, as of June 2017, consisted of all 10 557 users in the district, whose total population is half a million people.

Local authorities and Cal fire also went to social networks by posting a stream of scheduled and evacuation updates on Facebook and other platforms. Mendochin County Sheriff's Department Answers Questions in its Channel Twitter.

However, many residents of these regions said they did not receive official evacuation messages, they said they relied on their feelings and caution, as many saw smoke, fire, or even heard a crackling sound.

Cal fire recommends that residents download their mobile app Ready for wildfirewhich sends fire alerts in real time based on the user's location.

Residents were also advised to prepare an evacuation plan and an “anxious briefcase”.

Recall in northern California rage at least 14 large fireswhich have already led to the evacuation of thousands of people and the death of 17 people.

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