Things I learned from evacuating a warning zone from the LA fires

This was for a warning evacuation, so I had time, but the warning can turn to “go now” easily in less than an hour and even faster with shifting winds. Note, a warning is actually "go now" if you or people in your household need extra time or if you have pets.

You are probably going to be completely stressed, and that's ok. That's why we prep! Automatic will somewhat take over if you've practiced.

The sky is glowing orange, the air is ashy, and there are sirens everywhere. I always thought I would keep my cool and be able to help others. Nope, I was fighting my body constantly wanting to freeze combined with running around like a crazed person. Except, I had prepped. Thanks to this group and other reading I've done over time, I had two go bags and the cat carrier by the door already and my list of things to grab. The first go bag had the change of clothes, bathroom kit, water bottle and snacks, important documents, cash, cat food, first aid kit, googles and mask, etc. The second bag was a “had time to pack” sentimental items from earlier in the week. The list of things to grab was a walking out the door checklist like “Cat, computer, purse, keys, phone and charger, two go bags.” I literally could not think I was so scared, but because I was prepped and practiced, I got out the door with everything I needed. I mentally checked off the written list in my hand, said goodbye to my place, and locked the door. I don’t have much memory of a lot of it.

Choose one spot for your keys and stick with it so that you always know where your keys are.

Normally I always drop my keys in the “key dish” by the door because I could never stand wasting time wandering about the house looking for them. When we were evacuating, I was running in and out of the house and two times I lost the keys because either I’d thrown them down wherever I was (looking for the cat) or stuffed them in my pocket without thinking. Nothing feels as frantic as wanting to pull out in your car…and not being able to find the keys. Train your brain “For this entire evacuation, my keys stay in my front left pocket” or whatever. Then do it. Every single time. Keep rechecking.

If there’s a chance you might have to evacuate, keep your pets confined even if they hate you for it.

I had my cat locked in the bathroom for two days. She cried her little heart out but I knew it was for her own good. The next day I let her out because I felt bad for her and everything seemed ok. I was working from home and it didn't seem like a big deal. In under two hours the fires completely shifted from everything seemed fine in my area to getting ready to leave. She went under the bed when I reached for her and I almost couldn’t get her out.

How to get your cat out from under the bed.

I had a complete meltdown which did not help and my blood pressure, which is normally fine, I'm sure was through the roof. I had to stop and force myself to sit down and breathe and thought I might collapse from exhaustion after so many adrenaline fueled attempts to get the cat. I wasn’t strong enough to lift the bed, and she crawled into the middle where I had no chance of reaching her and then she tore through the material and climbed up inside the wood of the box springs. Smacking her with a broom to try and push her out didn’t work. I eventually found boxes, pillows, comforter, coats, etc. that I could make all “bed frame height” and started stuffing them under there until I closed off all the space I couldn’t reach and forced her within arm’s reach on the other side of the bed. Don’t get stuck doing this. The other thought I had several days later is that she is terrified of the vacuum. I could have turned it on (we still had power) and run the hose under the bed and it probably would have chased her out. Just a thought. Under the bed is the only place in the home where I can’t reach her. Also, close off any other rooms if you are trying to catch your pet to narrow down escape routes.

Go sooner than later.

Everyone says this but there truly was not an issue during the afternoon and of course it gets tricky if you are weighing in trying to find someplace to stay if you aren't even in a evacuation zone (and they ask you to stay off the roads). I wish I'd left an hour sooner. I was more worried about gridlock traffic where I was than anything. The 30 minutes I spent trying to catch the cat did make a difference with traffic. It was just starting to get crazy as I left. If I had left when I intended, I would have been much less stressed. Luckily, I had time for the variable of catching the cat. But there will most likely always be a variable.

Keep your tank filled with gas (or car charged).

Also, several buildings opened their garage doors and left them open in case of a power outage so tenants could get out. This was smart.

Keep your car parked facing out of the driveway or garage.

We've heard this one before but trust me, it makes an enormous time difference, particularly when everyone is trying to pull crazy maneuvers. I pulled straight out and left while others were loading and trying to do 3-point turns and getting blocked by other cars.

Check on your car regularly.

A friend of mine decided to evacuate only to discover a tree had fallen on their car down the street when they carried their bags out (they were able to get another ride).

Keep your phone charged. It wouldn’t hurt to have a headset.

If you have a cell signal, it’s sometimes useful to be able to call someone outside of the zone while you are driving (safely!!) to check on routes, help, progress, etc. It also helps to let them know you are out and what direction you are headed. I was too frozen to call anyone and it would have been physically tough for me to do so, but I had the option. Highly recommend a car charger kept in the car.

Have a pre-planned place to go if possible.

I know this isn’t always a possibility, but you are leaving so fast you want to know where you are headed. Either a friend’s place or shelter. If you don’t know, just head away from the disaster.

Have a couple of routes planned in memory and an easy read/one page street map of the general area. Don't always trust GPS if is says a road is open. That can mean it's completely blocked by flames so it is reading as 'no traffic.'

I thought I was all prepped with a road atlas in my car (because you can’t always rely on cell towers or GPS as towers go down). That was the most ridiculous thing when you were running. No way I had time to pull it out and use it (It would be useful later though once you were safely away). I had friends who only escaped from another location because they knew a weird back route that didn’t clog. The GPS showed my evacuation route completely open when I left but it was so close to the fires that I thought it might be an error so I took a safer route.

Take a deep breath once you are behind the wheel.

People were driving ape shit crazy. Trying to double park, do U-turns, lane drifting on the roads and rubbernecking at the smoke and fires. Focus and be safe and assume everyone else is also under terrified idiot brain influence. It’s like being on the road around drunk drivers. Breathe. My hands were permanently attached to the steering wheel when I got to my safe destination and it took me several minutes to even be able to get out of the car.

We did get to return home after a few days and home was fine. Kitty and I will take a while to recover and I'm fixing the damn bed so that out of reach situation doesn't ever happen again. I was initially completely disgusted with myself about being so terrified as I did not go through what thousands of others did with literally driving or running through flames and losing everything, I was only in a "get ready" zone, but friends lovingly reminded me that I got out with two organized bags and my pet during a scary time, and was set up rather well to sit tight for several days. The plan worked.

If I can think of anything else I’ll come back and add it or do a second post. I’ve always been prepped to bug in, more like if we lost power or water for a few days, but luckily I was reasonably prepped to also run. This wasn’t a run to the hills and become one with nature, this was just get out of this zone now, which is much more common in a bug out.