Neighbors, Nature, and the Need to Be Ready: A Walk with Chief Brannigan

Our Piedmont Recreation Department’s Walking on Wednesdays group had a cloudy, cool morning last Wednesday and a special walk. There was a good turnout of 32 walkers and five K-9 best friends at the Exedra.

Piedmont Fire Chief Brannigan was with us. He had been with us in March to tell us about Piedmont’s Local Hazard Mitigation Plan and last Wednesday he wanted to talk about what we should do to be prepared if an emergency evacuation is required. The fire department doesn’t have enough resources to do it alone and will need to rely on the community to evacuate in a wildfire and help keep Piedmont safe.

Chief Brannigan said there were two parts to this effort. First, there will be a citywide Wildfire Evacuation Drill on Saturday, June 14th at 9 AM. It will be a scenario in which Piedmont’s firefighters and police will be practicing a real-world evacuation scenario with residents in the Blair/Scenic neighborhood. This will be followed by a community debrief and conversation around 10 AM at the Piedmont Fire Station. Chief Brannigan said the second part of the effort is an at-home exercise for everyone outside of the Blair/Scenic area, which guides people in a verbal walk-through of an evacuation scenario. The Fire Department will send instructions for the at-home activity via AC Alert on the morning of June 14. The Fire Department has designed the at-home exercise to be simple, easy-to-complete, and high impact, with clear instructions and discussion prompts, things like: What route would you take if roads were closed? Who grabs the pets? Where will you go if you can’t come home? Taking the time to talk through these questions now would save critical minutes in a real evacuation emergency and help us feel confident that we know what to do if the worst happens. If you aren’t yet registered for AC Alert, the emergency notification system for Piedmont and Alameda County, you can sign up http://bit.ly/ACAlert.

After this introduction, Chief Brannigan joined us on our climb to Scenic Avenue. We went up Highland and Pala Avenues, and enjoyed roses in front yards and lovely cedar shake shingle homes along the way. We arrived at the 161-foot, somewhat hidden set of stairs that go up to Scenic, and we made our assent, one step at a time. At the top, on the narrow Scenic street, Chief Brannigan shared more fire information.

Wildfires can come from different directions, and you don’t know where a fire could be coming from. You should have two ways out of your residence and two modes of transportation. Autos may not do it. Abandoned cars have blocked roads in emergencies. Piedmont has about four to six high danger “Red Flag” days each year and extra fire personnel are on duty during them. The narrow Scenic Avenue street with cars parked all along it, in some places they weren’t supposed to be, made clear the almost impossibility of all residents evacuating by car at the same time. The street was also a good backdrop for a group photo.

We continued up Scenic to Alta Avenue and then back to Scenic. We regrouped at the EBMUD “Reservoir Number 2” at Scenic and Blair Avenue and talked about it. It occupies more than nine acres straddling the Oakland-Piedmont border with 8.3 acres in Piedmont. Its 22.8-million-gallon water storage tank provided water for Piedmont from 1905 to 2003. The facility was decommissioned and drained in 2003 as part of EBMUD’s facility modernization program, and Piedmont’s water now comes from other large tanks in the Oakland Hills.

We then started our decent and return to the city center via Mountain, Hagar, Pacific, and Dormidera Avenues.  On the way down, we realized that walker Diane Jimenez was with us because she had to evacuate her Southern California home as a result of the Eaton Fire. She shared her first-hand, personal experience. They knew there was fire in the area, but thought the fire department would give them a warning and tell them to evacuate if it was necessary. So, they stayed put until three in the morning when the warning and evacuation order were issued. Then, everyone made a rush to get out. Diane’s advice was if you see fire, get out. Don’t wait. Besides the important papers you need, take the things, like pictures, that you will need emotionally. Many of her friends’ homes burnt down and the loss of these items has been traumatizing. It was also suggested that people scan important photos.

We thanked Chief Brannigan for being with us and sharing this important information. The message was clear. Wildfire risk in Piedmont is real, but so is our ability to prepare. The Wildfire Evacuation Drill on Saturday, June 14th, will be a good start.