Hello Fireflies! All ticketed participants should have received the "Final Info & Directions" email yesterday. As the event draws near, there is one final aspect of Firefly we want to stress to you: our Safety Cores. Read below to learn about the Rangers, Firefly First Aid, Sanctuary, and Fire Safety cores as well as the Security at Gate. *FIREFLY RANGERS* If you have any questions or need any assistance during the event, reach out to the Firefly Rangers. The Rangers are a group of volunteers that focus on the safety of the participants of Firefly and encourage self reliance, individual accountability, and shared responsibility among Fireflies. Rangers are a visible community resource, identified by their khaki-colored clothing (often a khaki shirt with the words “Firefly Ranger” written on it.) Rangers walk around Firefly in pairs. All Rangers carry radios and can quickly connect and arrange for other community resources including First Aid, Sanctuary, or Fire Safety. Feel free to flag down a Ranger if you need anything! You can also stop by Ranger Headquarters at any time of day or night to get assistance or say hi! Ranger Headquarters is located at the intersection of Mercurial and Verdant, adjacent to the open stage. Should you need emergency assistance in the woods (anything you might call 911 for), the fastest way to get that NOT by calling 911 yourself but by getting ahold of a Ranger. Rangers can quickly facilitate getting emergency assistance to the event, meeting them at Gate, and bringing them to where you are in the woods. Rangers also serve the Firefly community as non-confrontational mediators. Rangers can work with participants to address disputes, resolve or prevent potential safety concerns, and assist in responding to medical, emotional, and personal safety emergencies. If you have any questions, feel free to email rangers@fireflyartscollective.org or stop by Ranger Headquarters during the event. ----------- *FFFFA PSA* Hi folks! Here's a friendly reminder from Firefly's First Aid volunteer services! Remember to look out for ticks, knives, sticks, rocks, fire, art, lasers, trees, hippies, 4-wheeled polari vehicles, DPW, darkwads, the dark, the sun, undercooked food, overcooked food, cancer, chemtrails, rain, water, lack of water, air, lack of air, fun, lack of fun, too much fun, alcohol, mud, hills, and slippery slopes. Oh, and look out for your friends, too - as good friends do. Let us not forget how terribly hazardous to your health these things could be! If, perchance, you find yourself in a predicament, having failed to look out for (and having become caught in the grip of) one (or multiple!) of the aforementioned health hazards, you will likely wish that you had planned ahead and brought adequate first aid supplies to manage your entirely predictable injury and/or illness. Our advice to you: Be prepared, and bring your own first aid supplies. Please bring your prescribed medications as well. About Us: Firefly First Aid is not a medical service. We are not doctors to diagnose you; we are not nurses to administer treatments to you. We are volunteers who are willing to provide you with first aid assistance if you find that you've forgotten to remember to remind yourself to pack your now-forgotten bacitracin. However, if SHIT GETS REAL, come find us without delay. (The fastest way to do so is through a Ranger.) We actually know what the fuck to do in an emergency and might be able to keep you alive while simultaneously coordinating the call to 911 and moving you to a pick up spot for the paramedics. Think you or a friend needs to go to the hospital? Come find us by running recklessly down the muddy hill at night with tears obscuring your vision in the vague direction of the main Ranger Station at the intersection of Mercurial and Verdant. If we First Aid volunteers aren't sitting in wait for you to gravely injure yourself and add some excitement to our day, the Rangers will know how to find us. Firefly First Aid! And remember folks, The 4th F is for... ... Friendly! ----------- SANCTUARY *“Rangers help, First Aid treats, Sanctuary soothes.”* *What is Sanctuary?* Sanctuary offers our Fireflies peer counseling in the event of a non-medically related event or emergency. Sanctuary is a safe, comfortable, and private space for participants that need a caring listener or low-stimulus environment. Sanctuary is about Grounding and Growing. Participants that use Sanctuary are like lost wild dandelion seeds in the wind. It's our job to bring those flying seeds back down to planet Earth, ground them, and then allow them to grow again. *Why Sanctuary?* Each participant attends Firefly for fun. We wouldn't do it if it wasn't fun, whatever that may mean to each of us. The participants that come to Sanctuary are usually no longer having fun. They are no longer experiencing joy. We help these participants to be grounded again. We engage with participants when they need someone to talk to, need assistance with emotional trauma, interpersonal issues, anxiety, triggering of past events, or just overwhelmed and overstimulated by the Firefly experience. Sanctuary volunteers help our participants walk through their difficult time. *Where is Sanctuary?* Sanctuary is located at the top of the field to the right of the main entrance to the woods on Mercurial Path. ----------- *FIRE SAFETY* DRY CONDITIONS - It was dry on-site the last couple weekends and the forecast doesn't have any significant rain between now and the event. The current fire warning level is moderate: http://fpr.vermont.gov/forest/fires/monitoring. It's really dry! Bring more water, be aware when lighting fires of the conditions. GENERATORS - If you've got a generator, please make sure to keep it at least 10' from your pile of gas cans and anything else combustible (like tents). EXISTING FIRE PITS - No new fire pits are allowed. All the standard rules apply to the existing pits: clear the area, make sure you have a FULL water bucket and a bucket of dirt or a shovel around, and keep the fire attended at all times, no exceptions, period. If your fire is found unattended IT WILL BE PUT OUT. ABOVE-GROUND FIRE PITS - All of the above for existing fire pits, plus you need to make sure it does not leave a burn scar. FLAME EFFECTS - All flame effects must be inspected and tagged by Fire Safety before you can operate. Please make sure to send in your safety plans which include operation plans, diagram that shows how the effect works and its layout to fast@lists.fireflyartscollective.org. These inspections will look primarily at placement, construction, and safety equipment. We are going to be checking NFPA 160 compliance. Flame effects must be attended at all times by a sober and competent operator. BURNABLE ART - If you've got art that will be burned, and we haven't already been in touch, please email fast@lists.fireflyartscollective.org and let us know what you're working on. All artists are expected to manage their own perimeters, including recruiting volunteers. As always, TIKI TORCHES, PYROTECHNICS, and FIREWORKS are not allowed. FIRE SPINNING safety meetings for Conclave will occur at Friday 3pm at Lions and Saturday 2pm at Diode. Locations where fire spinning is allowed are in circles at Diode, Lamp, and Lions. You can find Fire Safety volunteers by flagging one of us down as we walk around the event (we'll be in red shirts), or by radio through the Rangers - either Dirt Rangers on shift, or by going to Ranger HQ. Please email fast@lists.fireflyartscollective.org if you have any questions. ----------- *GATE SECURITY* As in previous years, Firefly has contracted outside security staff to be stationed at Gate. They will assist Gate volunteers by verifying IDs and ensuring everyone who gets in has a ticket. These staffers provide security for other Vermont festivals and concerts, and are familiar with Firefly—this will be their third year assisting us. They make a point of treating all participants with respect. They are here to support us and are trained to defuse any potential situations that Firefly volunteers may not be comfortable handling. They will only leave Gate and enter the event if specifically requested by event organizers and will be accompanied by event organizers at that time. They are friendly, like to help out, and enjoy staffing our event. Feel free to say hi as you come in and greet them as you would any other volunteer. ----------- Have a happy, healthy, safe, joyful Firefly, and we'll see you in the woods! -----------