Those who attended a Fire Resource Fair walked away not only with resources about preparing for wildfires, but free French fries.
Poway McDonald’s owner-operator Francisco Sanchez hosted the Fries with a Firefighter event held the evening of Aug. 29 in the parking lot.
McDonald’s restaurants throughout the region often host community events, Sanchez said. A similar program is Coffee with a Cop in which law enforcement officials have informal gatherings with the community over a cup of coffee, he said.
“It’s important to partner with first responders and organizations to address concerns,” he said. “We’re happy to be a part of that. Everyone loves firefighters, too. French fries and firefighters — you can’t go wrong with that.”
The idea for the Fire Resource Fair came together when Cal Fire was looking for a venue. Last year the event was held at a McDonald’s in Vista. Sanchez said with the heavy rainy season producing dry brush, he thought now would be a good time to host his own event in Poway.
“We’ve been lucky the past couple of years (without big fires locally),” said Sanchez, who was joined at the event by his family. “But I live in Fallbrook and I dealt with the Lilac fire a couple of years back. I know they can sneak up on you pretty quickly.”
The Poway Fire Department and Poway Neighborhood Emergency Corps handed out fire prevention and preparation materials at the event. Attendees also got free French fries, small coffee and small drinks, courtesy of Sanchez.
Cal Fire Capt. Mike Cornette was distributing a Wildfire Action Plan brochure along with coloring books and educational literature.
Terri Sorensen, president of the Poway Neighborhood Emergency Corps, gave tips on behalf of her “neighbors helping neighbors” organization that alerts people during wildfires.
She also handed out bright green 3-Minute Emergency Bags with a card for listing emergency contacts along with an emergency blanket. She also provided a list of suggested contents for the bag such as sturdy shoes and a whistle.
Sorensen also had “Personal Readiness Surveys” with questions to get people thinking about what they have done or still need to do to prepare for an emergency. Questions included: Do you have a family communication plan in place? Have all members of the family reviewed and practiced the plan? Do you have an emergency kit in your car?
Sorensen reminded attendees to be informed and to have a plan.
“It’s peace of mind that if you have to evacuate quickly then you are prepared to go and to avoid panic,” she said. “We live in wildfire country where it’s a 24/7 season.”