By Rodd Cayton
A group determined to ensure Placitas residents are properly capable of handling crises has received a boost in its mission. Placitas Resilience & Emergency Preparedness Alliance (PREP) has announced a $20,000 education and outreach grant from the New Mexico Association of Counties.
PREP President Allen Saville said the organization, formed in March of last year, will use the money to expand its reach into the community, with more outreach to homeowner associations and other neighborhood entities, and produce an emergency resources notebook. “Getting this (grant) is a wonderful thing for our very young organization, enabling us to move ahead more effectively with our efforts,” he said in a news release. “There is a lot of emergency preparedness work to be done in the Placitas area.”
PREP is among nine recipients of 2026-2027 Wildfire Risk Reduction Grant Program money. The association, in partnership with the Bureau of Land Management, offered the grants through a wildland-urban interface community fire assistance program, intended to help communities in the state reduce the risk and impact of catastrophic wildfires.
PREP mainly hosts periodic community briefings, each on a topic appropriate for the time of year. The next presentation, on sheltering in place, is set for 7 p.m. July 14 at Las Placitas Presbyterian Church, 7 Paseo De San Antonio Road. A Zoom link will be posted on the PREP website.
Future segments are tentatively planned to cover fire extinguisher training, defensible space, what to include in a “go bag” and other topics. PREP, an all-volunteer non-profit organization is actively looking for more members. Anyone interested in volunteering may send an email inquiry to info@PREPalliance.org.