COUNTY NEWS RELEASE
Los Alamos County remains in the “ready” phase of “ready, set, go,” meaning there is no immediate emergency from the Cerro Pelado fire. However, according to Emergency Manager Beverley Simpson, residents should proactively consider where they could go, shelter animals and park vehicles if the County’s status were to change and residents needed to evacuate.
Simpson and her staff have reached out to various agencies and organizations to prepare a list of resources available to community members. The list is shared on the County webpage lacnm.com/CerroPelado under Resources, and includes information on shelter locations, evacuating animals, vehicle parking and RV parking and storage that are available now unless otherwise stated.
Citizens will be notified if the county’s status changes from “ready” to “set” or to “go” through the media, social media and the emergency alert system CodeRED. By texting LOSALAMOS to 99411 or visiting lacnm.com/CodeRED, residents can sign up and receive notifications directly to their phones or email accounts. A video is available to walk individuals through the CodeRED step-by-stepinstructions.
The Laboratory, NNSA, Los Alamos County, and the U.S. Forest Service have established management action points at which to make decisions about whether to move to the “set” and “go” phases of “ready, set, go,” which are based on the fire’s progression.
The decision to go to “set” will be made if the main body of the fire moves northeast and surpasses Dome Road (Road 289), taking into consideration the fire management incident team’s assessment of the fire (e.g., wind speed, fire behavior). Moving to a “set” phase means that individuals should create a plan to evacuate, pack a “go bag,” and a communication plan with area information and contact information and pay close attention to details on the fire. More information about packing a “go bag” and other information about evacuations is available on this Federal Emergency Management Agency website.
The “go” phase of “ready, set, go,” signals that it is time to evacuate. Decisions about evacuating will occur if the fire continues to move closer to the community and enters Alamo Canyon (note this is not the same thing as Alamo Trail), taking into consideration the incident team’s assessment of the fire (e.g., wind speed, fire behavior).
Based on the Cerro Pelado fire’s current behavior, it is likely that IF an evacuation were to be ordered, it would be for the townsite and would happen with plenty of time for an orderly departure without the need for evacuation zones.
For the latest information on the Cerro Pelado fire, rely on official sources, such as: