The Board of the Chappaquiddick Island Association (CIA) thanks the Edgartown Fire Department for their successful Chappy Fire Prevention Day that was recently held at our firehouse. Special appreciation goes out to Smokey the Bear! The timing of that event coincides with a Zoom webinar presentation on Nov. 18 created by the CIA entitled “Lessons Learned from Lahaina.” The wildfires that devastated that Hawaiian community in August of 2023 were fresh in the minds of Chappaquiddickers when responding to an Island-wide priorities survey. Wildfire emergency preparedness ranked third amongst the many concerns of the Chappy citizenry.

The webinar is open to all, including non-Chappy residents. The presentation will feature guest panelists from both the Hawaii and the Maui Emergency Management Agencies. It takes place from 5 to 6:15 p.m. on Nov. 18. Find the zoom connection in the news/events section of the CIA website.

I recall Chappaquiddickers, now long gone, describing the landscape of Chappy a century ago. Ralph Harding told me that when he first came to the island, standing atop Sampson’s Hill, you could easily count the trees. Most were next to houses or at fence intersections. The island landscape was open fields interspersed with swamps. Grazing kept the vegetation at bay so there was little fuel and therefore little opportunity for a brush fire to spread.

Now Chappy is overgrown with mature pine and oak forest with an understory of dense brush. Over the years, plenty of fire fuel has accumulated on the ground. Thirty years ago, the Chappy based contingent of the Edgartown fire department concluded that a house fire would likely become a wild fire and that a wildfire would very likely become multiple house fires. The firewise program was introduced and many home owners followed its recommendations. While prevention is crucial, the reality is that wildfire can still occur. Learning how to respond in such an event will give you the knowledge to help yourself and to aid the fire department and emergency personnel in performing their mission.