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Wildfire Evacuation Planning

USFA publishes National Wildfire Evacuation Planning Guidance

Posted: June 24, 2026

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U.S. Fire Administration Publishes National Wildfire Evacuation Planning Guidance: A Must-Have Resource for Wildfire Planners PDF

The U.S. Fire Administration (USFA) is excited to announce the publication of the National Wildfire Evacuation Planning Guidance. This new document provides an adaptable framework to guide agencies at all jurisdictional levels — federal, state, local, tribal and territorial — in developing and implementing effective evacuation plans. It includes a Wildfire Evacuation Plan Template that can be used as a starting point for agencies to create, implement and refine evacuation plans that are both comprehensive and adaptable.

Why this guidance matters

Lessons learned from recent wildfires impacting wildland urban interface areas identified the need for an adaptable wildfire evacuation planning framework. This planning guidance aims to assist fire departments, law enforcement agencies, emergency management agencies and other organizations in planning, executing and communicating effective evacuation plans.

What’s inside?

TThe National Wildfire Evacuation Planning Guidance covers the lifecycle of wildfire evacuation planning, including:

  • Pre-evacuation preparation to plan for evacuations during notice and no notice wildfire events.
  • Provides guidance on decision-making tools and communication strategies, meant to be used during an evacuation event.
  • Post-evacuation recovery to ensure smooth repopulation and evaluation of evacuation operations.

This document can serve as a comprehensive starting point and reference throughout the planning process and production of a Wildfire Evacuation Plan that can integrate with Emergency Operation Plans, Community Wildfire Preparedness Plans, community risk reduction plans and other relevant planning efforts. It can also be used to supplement and inform continuous improvement of efforts for existing plans.

How it helps your agency

By integrating insights from research, post-incident after-action reviews, and existing plans and templates, this document provides organizations with actionable, evidence-based strategies to help communities with planning.

Get started today

For anyone involved with wildfire evacuation planning, the National Wildfire Evacuation Planning Guidance is a valuable resource for plans, operations and training. Wildfire planners are encouraged to add this document to their reference library.

The USFA remains dedicated to supporting the fire and emergency management community with high-quality resources. Stay tuned for more releases that will help you advance your organization and better serve your community.