COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KOAA) — The Colorado Springs Fire Department is launching its Ready Set Go program in a year that's looking like it will bring very heightened fire danger.
Conditions are setting up similar to the year of the Waldo Canyon Fire.
That's when flames came over the mountain and fell into neighborhoods below.
"It came in amazing speed and I mean I felt lucky to get out of there when I did," said CJ Moore, who lost her home in the fire.
Moore's father-in-law's home also burned.
In the rush to leave, her evacuation plan faltered.
She grabbed things that were not important and missed things she needed.
In less than two hours her home was completely destroyed.
"There was nothing. There were a line of books that had fallen and they looked intact so I went to touch them, and they were nothing but ash," Moore said.
It's an experience she shares to encourage others to get on board with the fire department's new Ready Set Go program.
"You've got to be prepared," said Moore.
"Those fires were real. They're still happening around the country and we have a good chance of them happening again here in our community and the best that our citizens can do is to be prepared," said Colorado Springs Fire Chief Randy Royal.
Ready Set Go comes out of a similar program in California where wildfires are also a major issue.
It breaks down into three words for three phases of fire preparation.
The first phase is the prep work and awareness before a fire starts.
"Ready is all the time. Just be ready," said Royal.
Set is when you see threatening smoke.
Think about loading the car and if there is someone in the house or animals that might struggle to get out of harm's way quickly.
"Probably not a bad time to go ahead and move them because they're going to take longer," said Royal.
Go happens best if the first two steps are already in place.
"You gotta go and seconds do matter," said Royal.
The fire department wants to get this program into the community as quickly as possible.
For more information on Ready Set Go, click here.
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