HISTORY In the aftermath of the Skeleton Fire that destroyed 19 homes and 17,000 acres in Bend in the summer of 1996, Gordon Hamilton, the VP of public relations for Safeco Insurance called Bend’s Fire “A new piece of equipment might save one more home,” Marshall said. “But to really save homes, individuals have to take responsibility for their property before a fire”. His ultimate aim: “To change the values and behavior of citizens for generations to come”. Marshall’s innovative thinking paid off and FireFree was born. Through a partnership with Safeco Insurance and dozens of local businesses, FireFree was launched in Bend in 1997 to promote 10 steps that homeowners can take to reduce their risk of wildfire. The number one FireFree tip, and the main focus to the behavior change campaign, is to create “defensible space”, a minimum 30-foot buffer zone around a house that can be created in one weekend, and easily maintained. To encourage citizens in Bend to create defensible space around their homes, FireFree partnered with Deschutes County Department of Solid Waste and Deschutes Recycling to allow Free Recycling Days at Knott Landfill for yard waste. The community responded in 1998 and during the first Free Recycling Weekend, the landfill collected 9,102 cubic yards of woody debris. In 2005, residents delivered a whopping 33,550 cubic yards of debris to local landfills and collection sites!
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Cloverdale: La Pine: Madras: Sunriver: Redmond:
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