The International Association of Fire Chiefs launched a new wildland-fire preparedness initiative last month. “Ready, Set, Go!” teaches residents of the wildland-urban interface how to prepare their homes against the threat of a wildland fire, assemble emergency supplies and maintain awareness when threatened by a wildland fire, and how to evacuate early to keep their families safe and allow emergency responders the room they need to operate safely.

The program initially was developed and tested in Southern California using a model from Australia. For the past 18 months, a number of fire departments — including the Ventura County Fire Department and the Orange County Fire Authority — have run trial programs. Those efforts were used to refine the elements of the program.

Eight fire departments from across the country will run the program in their communities this year. Their findings will be used in the nationwide rollout next year. The eight fire departments are located in Arizona, Utah, Texas, Tennessee, Montana, Michigan, New Jersey and Pennsylvania. The departments range from small volunteer departments to large municipal or county departments, but all face similar challenges from development in or near natural areas that are susceptible to wildland fires. The 2010 fire season will be used to collect data from the departments to further define the program’s components.

Detailed program information can be found at www.iafc.org/ReadySetGo.