“The facts ma’am just the facts!”

And ever since we put out that the 2/19 fire run was the second single worst fire day in DOF modern history we have been asked numerous times today what was the worst and what were the numbers. So here are the official numbers you should refer to if asked

The single worst day as far as fires and numbers go was Feb 10, 2008 when we had  354 fires that burned 16,112 acres. On these fires there were 30 homes/other structures damaged and 248 were protected.

For us Protected = If it was not for the suppression actions of Forestry and Fire Departments these structures would have been a statistic in the other column.

The Feb 14^th  Valentine’s Day Fires we had 103 fires for 828 acres with 18 homes/structures Damages and 218 Protected

The Feb 19^th fires by number are as follows (This is the best facts we currently have)  143 fires burned 4,581 acres with 51 homes/structures and 718 protected.

A BIG fact is that if we include the Feb 14^th and Feb 19^th fires togther we can say that we have had more homes/people evacuated-impacted by wildfires during these 2 weeks than we have had in ANY single year previously. This goes  to further the challenge we have in Virgina with the increasing population and growth in the Wildland Urban Interface.  FIREWISE is more and needs to be more than a catchy phrase. We need to promote it and homeowners and community leaders need to know what they can do to help mitigate their impact from wildfires.   www.firewisevirginia.orq and www.firewise.org are 2 very good websites to go to for information.

Other good “facts” are  that we have han NO serious injuries or fatalities. There have been a few fireline injuries but everyone as far as we know were either treated on scend or in the emergency room and have returned home or to work.

The George Washington and Jefferson NF USFS and Shenandoah NP have orderd up the Southern Red Team to manage the 4 major fires they have currently in Virginia.

The total acres burning currently on those 4 fires are slightly over 5,000 acres.

Hopefully the cooler damper weather will hold down any fire activity for at least a while.

Safety First Time Every Time, First Fire Every Fire