Proclamation designates Fire Prevention Week

FORT HUACHUCA, Ariz. – A proclamation signed by Col. Jarrod Moreland, garrison commander, Oct. 2, 2020, at Rodney Hall officially declared Oct. 4-10, 2020, as Fire Prevention Week.

“I really want to impress upon everyone that we are here in southern Arizona and fire safety is our number one issue with wild fires and everything related,” said Moreland. “We have to make sure that this week, and every week, we focus on fire safety and prevention.”

Moreland signed the proclamation with Sparky the Fire Dog and other members of the Fort Huachuca Fire & Emergency Services division as witnesses.

The proclamation signing designates Fire Prevention Week and urges all service members, families, civilians and contractors to focus on this year’s theme.

“The Fire Prevention Week’s theme this year is ‘Serve Up Fire Safety in the Kitchen,’” said Keith Read, assistant chief of fire prevention. “We are trying to educate the residents and children of Fort Huachuca on what they can do to make sure they are safe in the kitchen.”

Read said the main concern is to not leave stoves and fryers unattended when cooking in the kitchen, and to make sure young children are three feet away from the hot areas.

Fort Huachuca is the only Army installation and one of only two DOD installations nationally recognized as a Firewise Community. The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) created Firewise in the late 1990s. The concept of the home ignition zone was developed by retired USDA Forest Service fire scientist Jack Cohen in the late 1990s, following breakthrough experimental research into how homes ignite due to the effects of radiant heat.

Currently, there are more than 1,500 Firewise Communities in the nation. According to the NFPA, Firewise USA is a voluntary program that provides a framework to help neighbors get organized, find direction and take action to increase the ignition resistance of their homes and community.

The main objective is to utilize the Firewise program to educate Fort Huachuca residents on how to adapt to living with wildfire risks and align our priorities with the community service providers to prepare and protect homes.

For more information about fire safety, call the Fire Prevention Office at 520.533.1887 or visit NFPA.org

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Fort Huachuca is home to the U.S. Army Intelligence Center of Excellence, the U.S. Army Network Enterprise Technology Command (NETCOM)/9th Army Signal Command and more than 48 supported tenants representing a diverse, multiservice population. Our unique environment encompasses 964 square miles of restricted airspace and 2,500 square miles of protected electronic ranges, key components to the national defense mission.

Located in Cochise County, in southeast Arizona, about 15 miles north of the border with Mexico, Fort Huachuca is an Army installation with a rich frontier history. Established in 1877, the Fort was declared a national landmark in 1976.

We are the Army’s Home. Learn more at https://home.army.mil/huachuca/