Every October as the weather starts to cool, the brown needles from the Ponderosa Pines start to fall along with the leaves of all the other trees. This creates quite a fire hazard for private property across the Bradshaw Mountains. We are now to the point that we are experiencing significant wildland fires year-round in Arizona. Only two weeks ago we had the 20 acre wildfire called the Lookout Fire just about 1 mile outside of our fire district. We can expect this fire danger to stay here until we get a significant amount of rain or snow accumulation.

In the meantime, it is very important for homeowners to maintain their defensible space around their properties.

There are a few major steps you can take this winter to make sure your property is as safe as possible:

• Make sure that your roofs and gutters are void of any pine needles or leaves.
• Rake at least 30 feet out from the buildings on your property. On steeper slopes we recommend raking as far out as 75 feet.
• Store firewood at least 30 feet away from the house.
• Make sure you have a clean chimney and good spark arrestor.
• Store fireplace ashes in a safe container. Cardboard boxes and plastic buckets are not safe containers.
• Traditionally, we have had a crew that can asssist you in getting this work done. The crew is now unavailable for pine needle raking.

There are several services available to you this year:

• We have a dumpster that is at the fire station that is free of charge for residents of our community. You can haul as many pine needles and leaves as you can fit.
• We also have Jeff Archer who is available to come out to your property after you have done the work and give you a firewise assesment to make sure that your property is as defendable as possible.
• Some of our employees are interested in making some extra money by raking on the weekends.

If you are interested in these services or have any questions please call the firehouse at 928-778-6519