Wildfire evacuation timing

Coming back costs almost nothing. Getting trapped costs everything.

Cal Fire's "Ready, Set, Go!" program exists because wildfire moves faster than bureaucracy. Official evacuation orders require coordination between fire agencies, law enforcement, and emergency management. By the time the order is issued, the fire may have already jumped a containment line, roads may be congested with late evacuees, and smoke may have reduced visibility to near zero.

The calculus is asymmetric. If you leave early and the fire turns, you come back tomorrow. You lost a night's sleep and some gas. If you stay and the fire arrives, you may not have a road to leave on. Wildfire can move at 14 miles per hour in grass and faster downhill with wind. Ember spotting can ignite structures a mile ahead of the flame front.

Ready.gov reinforces the same principle: if conditions look bad to you, they probably are. You do not need an official order to leave. You need a road, a destination, and the judgment to go when the signs say go. Ash falling on your property, visible flames on the ridgeline, and steady wind in your direction are all sufficient reasons to leave now.

The Monday mistake that becomes a Thursday crisis

Fuel availability disappears fast before and after major storms. Gas stations lose power. Supply trucks stop running. Lines stretch for hours. The household that evacuates on a quarter tank may not find fuel on the route out.

Ready.gov recommends keeping vehicles fueled when a storm or fire threat is forecast. FEMA's winter-ready toolkit makes the same point: a full tank also prevents fuel lines from freezing. The cost of filling up early is zero, it is the same fuel you would buy later. The cost of waiting is a car that runs dry on an evacuation route with no station in sight.

Vehicle readiness for evacuation means more than fuel. Keys should be accessible (not buried in a drawer). The go-bag should be loadable in under five minutes. Car seats for children should already be installed. A paper map of the area should be in the glove box. The phone charger should live in the car, not in the house.

For households with more than one vehicle, decide in advance which vehicle you will take, who rides in it, and where the second vehicle goes. Splitting the household across two vehicles during a chaotic evacuation adds decision-making load at the worst possible moment.