While the fires in Southern California rage on, some are slowly being contained.
If you are under an evacuation order and have your pets with you, here are 3 ways to best protect them when disaster hits.
1) Keep them close to you...
San Diego Humane Society spokeswoman Kelli Schry says the best thing you can do is to obviously take your pets with you when evacuation orders are given.
If that isn't possible because you received the order at work or while away from home, the Human Society uses a "humane law-enforcement team" that goes behind fire lines to grab any pets left at home.
The officers will bring them to their owners if possible, or deliver them to the nearest shelter.
2) Keep their information as updated as possible...
If your furry friend becomes separated from you, having up to date ID tags and microchips make being reunited that much easier.
Schry says without the ID, "we have to rely on a description of the animal, and if someone doesn't come forward or know to go to the Humane Society to look for their pet, then we have no way to contact them."
3) Prepare a disaster kit...
The Humane Society says pet owners should have a dedicated disaster kit filled with food, medical supplies and important documents.
For those of you able to go home, here are tips to safely clean up ash...
The main highlights? Wash EVERYTHING!
Clean toys, counters, your pets and make sure you wear gloves, long sleeve shirts and pants to avoid skin contact.
Also don't dump the ash into storm drains, put it into the regular trash by putting it in a normal trash bag to avoid it becoming airborne.
As for food, any kind of bottles of liquid that have been covered in ash should be tossed because the caps would still be contaminated.
Anything not in a waterproof or airtight container needs to be tossed and only food stored in unopened, glass jars or metal cans are considered safe to use.