FIRES, FIRES, AND MORE FIRES! LET'S MAINTAIN THE "FIREWISE ALIVE" INITIATIVE IN THE VERDES! Over the last few years, multiple fires have been in the vicinity of our community, with flames and smoke visible in the skies. Many Verdes residents are away from their AZ homes during the summer and monsoon season when lightning strikes are a major contributor to fires, but they see the news and notices of fires and begin to send emails and make phone calls to see if their homes are safe. Rio and Tonto Verde are certified Firewise Communities through the National Fire Protection Association. We are required to maintain our borders annually by reducing fuels that could feed fires traveling into our communities. We coordinate the border maintenance on their properties with the Rio Verde Fire District, McDowell Mountain Regional Park, Tonto National Forest, and Cave Creek Ranger District. We also work with HOAs and individual homeowners to maintain properties and reduce the risk of fire. New Volunteers Volunteers from Rio and Tonto Verde undertake the Firewise western border clearing activities during winter (January through March, when snakes are primarily dormant). We cover approximately 4 miles across our western and southern border. For the last 4-5 years, the same team of about 12-15 community residents has undertaken this task to benefit the whole community. Many of these volunteers are involved in multiple activities and have served their community well. It would be great to have new volunteers join the effort. We work a few hours early in the morning several days each week. Diane Newcomb (dnewcomb2957@cox.net) is the coordinator who sends emails each day to direct the team where to go the following workday and captures the volunteers' names and hours worked for credit towards our certification. If someone is interested in taking on the volunteer coordinator role, please email Diane. 2024 could be used as a training year to hand off the job.
Annual Firewise Day Meeting The community has a certification requirement to hold a Firewise Education Event each year. Residents' attendance is needed to demonstrate community participation in support of our Firewise efforts. The RVFD, MMRP, Maricopa Emergency Management, Tonto National Forest, and others have been speakers in the past, keeping residents updated on processes and procedures. THE 2024 FIREWISE DAY WILL BE HELD ON SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 9TH, FROM 9 TO 11 AM IN THE RIO VERDE COMMUNITY ASSOCIATION MULTIPURPOSE ROOM. Reminder: Please submit your sweat equity worksheets and landscaping receipts to the Association’s Administrative Office so the data can be incorporated into the recertification application. Last year, the closest fire to the Verdes was the Diamond Fire off 128th and RV Drive, which burned ~2000 acres. Local Area Fires This year, several fires have been reported around our area, some named and worked by firefighters, hotshots, Emergency Management teams, helicopters, and air tankers, and some small fires along the roads that have been managed by local fire crews. On page 7 is a list of this year’s fires that are in areas familiar to most of us, some close and some farther away, but all around us! We must remain diligent to prevent wildfires from threatening our homes and lives. Please volunteer to help!
6 | COMMUNITY NEWS
Made with FlippingBook - Online catalogs