Some Morgan and Summit county residents have already been displaced by the Rocky Canyon Fire, which is burning over 15,500 acres as of Monday afternoon.
Experts say Utahns should keep a bag ready with the essentials in case they, too, need to evacuate on short notice.
Lt. Clint Johnson is Park City’s emergency manager.
“You want to make sure that each individual in the household has their own bag, or at least, there’s enough contents for each person in the family or in that household,” he said. “When speaking of water, you want to make sure that everyone has at least a gallon per person. Food, you want to make sure that there’s enough dry food that will last three days.”
Changes of clothing are important, too. For families with growing children, Johnson recommends updating the emergency kit to ensure clothes still fit.
Batteries and chargers, a flashlight, a radio and first-aid kit are also good to have.
Johnson said prescriptions and important documents should be ready to go as well.
Households should have a communication plan in case an emergency happens when family members aren’t together.
Johnson recommends residents sign up for emergency alerts if they haven’t already.
To sign up for notifications in Summit County, click here. For Wasatch County alerts, click here.
“You don’t ever want to be trying to evacuate when the roads are full of smoke and congested and whatnot,” Johnson said. “Try and be early.”
Be Ready Utah advises keeping your vehicle’s gas tank at least half full, in case of evacuation.
It also recommends making a list and taking photos of anything valuable in your home for insurance purposes.
Utah officials use the “ready, set, go” system for emergency notifications.
Wasatch County’s emergency manager, Jeremy Hales, said “ready” means locals should ensure they’ve packed all their essentials.
“When you go to ‘set’ status, [it] means you better have your car loaded and be ready to evacuate your residence or your property within 15 minutes,” he said. “And then in ‘go’ status, you need to go immediately.”
For Be Ready Utah's full list of what to pack, click here.
