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Winter is a good time to get a free Firewise Assessment Tuesday Jan 24, 2017 at 7:56 PM Jan 24, 2017 at 7:56 PM By Alison Lerch Ashland Fire & Rescue Winter is an optimal time for fire prevention in Ashland. During this time of year, we have an opportunity to use equipment without fire restrictions to reduce wildfire risk in Ashland. Not sure what you should do to reduce your risk? Get a free Firewise Assessment. An assessment will provide helpful tips to make your home safer from wildfire. Call 541-552-2231 to schedule your assessment. Since 2011, Ashland has participated in the Firewise Communities, USA program through the National Fire Protection Association. Ashland’s Firewise Communities program is a true leader in the state of Oregon, hosting the most communities for a given area! In 2016, all 23 Firewise Communities successfully renewed their status and two new communities were certified — Chautauqua Trace HOA and Meadowhawk HOA — for a total of 25 communities. During this time of year, each of our Firewise Communities meet to make a plan of action for their annual neighborhood clean-up day. Speaking of an annual clean-up day — SAVE THE DATE for Ashland’s annual Firewise Clean-Up Day scheduled for May 6. For the sixth year, Recology Ashland will sponsor this community event with FREE yard debris dumping on this day. We encourage all homeowners and tenants to use this free day to clear flammable leaves, needles and dead plants. By clearing debris and flammable vegetation from your home and roof, you can prepare for fire season. Ashland Fire & Rescue (AF&R) works with regional partners to promote wildfire risk reduction on your property. The Rogue Valley Fire Prevention Cooperative is one of the oldest of its type, and includes members of all fire organizations within Jackson and Josephine Counties. This spring we are partnering on a regional Firewise burn-to-learn exercise on May 12-13 at Jackson County Fire District 3 in White City. This event will focus on educating middle school students on May 12 and will be open to the public on May 13. More information on this event will be posted at rvfpc.blogspot.com. One of our newest outreach opportunities includes the Fire Adapted Communities Learning Network (FACLN), which includes program coordinators from throughout the nation like Santa Fe, Austin and Flagstaff. FACLN provides the platform to share ideas on creating more resilient communities before, during and after a wildfire. In December we had the pleasure of hosting FACLN for a workshop. Our takeaway from the workshop was many cities across the country are dealing with similar issues as Ashland, like wildfire smoke, evacuation planning and business emergency preparedness. Locally, AF&R and the Ashland Chamber of Commerce created a Wildfire Task Force and are meeting regularly to address Ashland’s business resilience and to create messaging for visitors during fire season. For information about fire-resistant plants, construction and additional information about the Annual Firewise Clean-Up Day, please visit ashlandfirewise.org. Reach Alison Lerch, the Fire Adapted Communities Coordinator for Ashland Fire & Rescue, at 541-552-2231. The Alarm Box, a column with local public safety information written by Ashland Fire & Rescue personnel, appears triweekly in the Tidings. Email topic suggestions to [email protected].