Today, MySafe:LA joined an important media event to help kick off Wildfire Awareness Week, standing alongside many of the agencies and partners we work with throughout the year, including CAL FIRE, Cal OES, the Los Angeles Fire Department, and the Los Angeles County Fire Department.

Over the past decade, a great deal has been said about wildfires. We have seen the headlines, the evacuations, the destruction, and the heartbreak. Yet even with increased public awareness, the threats facing our communities continue to grow.

Wildfires are moving faster. They are becoming more destructive. They are affecting more neighborhoods, more families, and more aspects of daily life. The impacts extend beyond the flames themselves. Wildfires affect the air we breathe, the climate we live in, the insurance decisions families face, and the places where communities choose to build and rebuild.

At the same time, many of the most serious risk factors remain close to home.

Too many homes are still vulnerable to flying embers and radiant heat. Too many families do not have an evacuation plan. Too many households do not have a go bag ready. Too many people have not planned for children, older adults, family members with mobility challenges, or pets.

And while more people than ever now have tools like Watch Duty on their mobile devices, many still do not know the evacuation zone they live in.

That is why Wildfire Awareness Week matters.

It is not only a week for agencies, responders, and community organizations to share information. It is a week for each of us to take action.

At MySafe:LA, we are asking everyone who lives in the wildland-urban interface, or WUI, to use this week to do one thing that reduces risk to your family, your home, and your property.

Do one thing.

• Create or update your evacuation plan.
• Pack a go bag.
• Find your evacuation zone.
• Clear leaves and debris from your roof, gutters, and around your home.
• Move combustible materials away from exterior walls.
• Talk with your family about where you will go and how you will communicate.
• Make a plan for pets, medications, mobility needs, and transportation.

One action today can make a difference when conditions change quickly.

Meanwhile, our team at MySafe:LA will continue doing the work that supports long-term community resilience. We will continue developing NFPA Firewise USA® sites. We will continue helping establish and strengthen Fire Safe Councils. We will expand the readiness of our repopulation team. We will continue offering free home assessments to provide homeowners with practical insight, education, and access to available incentives.

The challenge of megafires is real. But it is not impossible to meet.

Reducing wildfire risk will require agencies, nonprofits, local governments, neighborhoods, homeowners, renters, and families all working together. It will require preparation before the smoke is in the air. It will require shared responsibility, practical action, and sustained commitment.

Most of all, it will require us to think and act as one big resilient community.

This Wildfire Awareness Week, we encourage you to start with one step.

Do One Thing.