Executive Constantine highlights expanded regional evacuation campaign & increased county aerial wildfire response capabilities
Summary: As the concern for wildfire grows, King County has partnered with Western Washington counties to expand the Ready, Set, Go! evacuation campaign, and increased its response capabilities with two new helicopter water buckets ready to be deployed.
Today King County Executive Dow Constantine highlighted the expansion of the regional Ready, Set, Go! evacuation campaign to three additional counties, and two new Sheriff’s Office helicopter water buckets that boost King County’s ability to fight wildfires.
The Ready, Set, Go! evacuation campaign launched last summer in partnership with King, Pierce, Snohomish and Thurston counties. This year, Kitsap, Skagit and Whatcom counties have joined the effort. The program educates the public on how to respond to the three levels of evacuations and prepares them for actions they should take at each level.
“Reducing wildfire risk requires a collective effort. I’m grateful for our partnership with communities, fire districts, foresters and others to build broader public awareness. Together, we are taking action to reduce risks to our communities,” said Executive Constantine.
Ready, Set, Go! aims to prepare residents for all hazards, including wildfires.
“The consistent messaging of the Ready, Set, Go! evacuation campaign throughout the Puget Sound region will make things more clear to all of our communities when dangerous conditions exist. We are working at the county level and with our partners to mitigate and respond to wildfires, and we want to encourage people to prepare ahead of time to keep themselves, their families and their friends safe and out of harm’s way,” said Brendan McCluskey, director of King County Emergency Management.
“Forests cover 800,000 acres of King County, with over 485,000 of those acres in District 3, so our residents have a daily reminder of the beauty and danger of proximity to our forests, and that we must be prepared,” said Councilmember Sarah Perry. “This campaign’s shared seven-county vision for wildfire reduction is inspiring, as is the King County Wildfire Risk Reduction Strategy team’s work in partnering with Eastside Fire & Rescue and the many firefighter and first responder teams to ensure that our communities are prepared for fire emergency.”
Climate change is increasing the potential for wildfires in King County. More than 350,000 residents, about 15% of King County’s population, live in areas where people and infrastructure are at greater risk when wildfires occur.
King County has received a $340,000 grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to conduct public outreach and develop a county-wide community wildfire protection plan. The county also recently hired a forester who is working with residents and small forest landowners on wildfire risk reduction.
In 2022, King County released its first Wildfire Risk Reduction Strategy with actions that strengthen the region’s wildfire resilience, response and recovery. The updates announced today are a few of the ways King County is implementing that strategy.
Helicopter Wildfire Water Buckets
The King County Sheriff’s Office has two new helicopter firefighting buckets that each hold more than 200 gallons of water. They fill quickly when dipped in water and also empty quickly while flying over an active fire. The Sheriff’s Office, with support from the King County Council, funded the buckets, which are ready to be deployed.
It can take the Washington State Department of Natural Resources, DNR, about 24 hours to get aerial assets in place. As a law enforcement agency, the goal of the Sheriff’s Office is to provide an initial response until DNR arrives.
“Ensuring the safety of our community members and collaborating with neighboring first responder agencies are essential responsibilities for the King County Sheriff’s Office,” said Sheriff Patti Cole-Tindall. “The procurement of two Bambi water buckets significantly enhances our Air Support Unit’s ability to respond to a broader range of public safety emergencies, highlighting our commitment to serving the region.”
“Wildfire risk is a complex issue, and local efforts are critical to adapt to the realities of changing conditions in the Pacific Northwest. Fire Adapted Communities are a key component to redefining and re-framing the challenge of communities threatened by wildfire,” said Cat Robinson, Eastside Fire & Rescue emergency coordinator — wildfire mitigation. “Eastside Fire & Rescue offers home and community wildfire mitigation resources to improve resiliency. Strong collaboration in public and private partnerships within King County and the Puget Sound region involves building networks and empowering communities to strengthen their preparedness. Reducing the likelihood that a home will ignite interrupts the disaster sequence by enabling effective structure protection which, when done on a broad scale, enables effective community protection.”
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