As residents of Lake County, we are all well aware of the threat of wildfire in our current drought conditions.

Several small fires have broken out this year and some evacuations have been necessary. As usual, the Department of Social Services will work with the Sheriff’s Office of Emergency Services, American Red Cross, Lake County Public Health, Lake County Office of Education, Lake County Animal Control and many other partners to ensure that sheltering is available for those residents who come under evacuation orders.

Sheltering operations will continue to be minimally impacted by COVID-19 restrictions.

COVID-19 screening points will be located outside of the evacuation shelters. Evacuees must pass through the screening point before they are able to register for the evacuation shelter and may be required to test for COVID-19 if they have symptoms of, or recent exposure to, the virus.

All shelter staff, volunteers, and residents will be required to wear a mask when inside of the shelter regardless of vaccination status.

Shelters will continue in the congregate care model with reduced capacity in order to control for the possibility of a COVID-19 outbreak. Some shelters may have space for outdoor sheltering in personally owned tents or RVs.

There is significant work being done by the American Red Cross and Lake County Animal Control to allow for certain shelters to potentially have designated household pet friendly areas.

Depending upon available resources and the situation, household pets may need to be housed at a different location and/or certain shelters may be designated as “pet friendly” while others are not.

It is highly recommended that Lake County residents consider what alternatives they have to the congregate sheltering option.

For example, if you have friends or family outside of the evacuated area, you may consider staying with them. Check with your home or rental insurance carrier, many will pay for the cost of a motel and meals during an evacuation.

Make sure your home is as fire proofed as possible, visit the Lake County Fire Safe Council website for more information: www.firesafelake.org/home-hardening/.

Know your zone so you can evacuate quickly, visit www.Lakesheriff.com and click on the “Know Your Area” link to access the Zonehaven map or visit https://community.zonehaven.com/ to search by address.

Follow the Lake County Sheriff’s Office and Office of Emergency services on social media for the latest updates and important information:
https://www.facebook.com/lakesheriff and https://www.facebook.com/LakeCountyOES/.

Prepare your “go bag” now! You will need enough supplies for at least three to five days. This is a critical step in preparing your family for emergencies. Based on your unique needs consider the following:

• food and water;
• medication;
• personal hygiene items — deodorant, a toothbrush, clean clothing, tissues;
• face coverings for every member of your family;
• infant formula, bottles, diapers, wipes;
• hand sanitizer;
• important documents;
• pet food;
• cash, credit or debit cards.

Every Lake County resident must do their part to prevent wildfires and prepare for evacuation.

However, if evacuation sheltering is needed, you can count on us to help.

Crystal Markytan, MA, is director of Lake County Department of Social Services, based in Lower Lake, California.