Pueblo, Colo….The Pike and San Isabel National Forests and Cimarron and Comanche National Grasslands has a National Fire Prevention and Education Team in Pueblo since southeast Colorado is still having drought conditions with only low precipitation and infrequent storms, thus continuing the high fire danger.

The team’s efforts are directed in assisting fire managers to remind the public about the hazards of wildland fires and how to prevent them.

Fire officials throughout southern Colorado are urging homeowners to take the necessary precautions for making their homes safer from wildfire. The occurrence of wildland fires in southern Colorado is above average for this time of year, and fire officials are concerned that higher temperatures, lower relative humidity’s, and dry vegetation could lead to devastating fires this year. Drought conditions worsened over the past six to eight weeks across southern Colorado and southern Kansas with “Moderate to Severe” drought ratings.

“People can reduce their potential losses from wildfire to their property by taking extra steps to protect themselves”, said Rich Olsen, team leader for the southern Colorado Fire Prevention Team. “By creating what we call “defensible or survivable “space around their homes, homeowners not only minimize the risk to their own family and property, but they also reduce risks to their neighborhoods and make it safer for firefighters”.

Here are some tips to create more defensible space around your home and property:

• Keep roofs and gutters free form leaves, pine needles, and other flammable debris.
• Keep combustibles such as firewood, picnic tables, boats, etc. away from structures
• Remove large thick shrubbery and weeds around structures for a minimum of 30 feet
• Landscape with fire resistant plants
• Plants such as juniper and pinion pine are extremely combustible
• Maintain a landscape that is free of dead and dying plants
• Break continuity of vegetation to reduce fire spread. Space groups of shrubs and individual trees 15 feet apart. Space further apart if on slopes
• Prune tree limbs within a minimum of 15 feet from the ground
• Use fire resistant roofing and siding.

For more information on home fire safety, visit the Firewise website at www.firewise.org, or contact your local fire department, the U. S. Forest Service or Bureau of Land Management Office.