Morning Wildfire Headlines

The following headlines are just a sampling of stories that are running accross the country this morning. You will note that ALL the fire news is not comming from the west.

In Nevada, a newspaper photographer covering a brush fire this week was roughed up, handcuffed and cited for obstruction, his editor said.

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/us/2012/06/20/law-enforcement-restricts-media-wildfire-coverage/#ixzz1yJmjNNji

More wind and heat could hamper Colorado wildfire fight

The High Park Fire had consumed 59,500 acres of woodland by Tuesday, but it was about 50% contained.

Idaho wildfire destroys six homes southeast of Boise

A small but destructive wildfire driven by strong winds has destroyed six houses and five outbuildings in Idaho, while two much larger blazes threatened dozens of dwellings in Wyoming and Colorado, authorities said on Tuesday.

Wildfire hits and misses San Juan County residents

BLOOMFIELD - The path of the wildfire east of Bloomfield is a checkerboard of destruction and close calls.

Five family homes were destroyed in the County Road 4901 Fire, which was what first responders named the 352--acre wildfire that started east of Bloomfield on Monday afternoon.

UPDATE: Croatan National Forest wildfire grows to 21,000 acres

CROATAN NATIONAL FOREST, N.C. – The wildfire at Croatan National Forest has more than doubled in size from yesterday.

Officials say its now 21 thousand acres.

The U.S. Forestry has 100 people trying to control the wildfire.

Brush fire threatened Charlotte County homes

Shifting winds challenged firefighters

Charlotte County and Florida Division of Forestry firefighters spent nearly three hours Monday night battling a brush fire that threatened several homes.

New Mexico wildfire threatens Smokey Bear's home

The "Little Bear" fire is burning in the Smokey the Bear Ranger District, White Mountain Wilderness and Lincoln National Forest in southern New Mexico near Ruidoso. The forest is where the scared bear cub was rescued in 1950.

Massive NM Fire Threatens Endangered Fish
The wildfire that has ravaged southwestern New Mexico is the largest in the state's recorded history, and it's endangering an already threatened species of trout. Biologists say the ash, sediment and charred debris will wash into streams with summer rains and that's a deadly recipe for the Gila trout found in the Gila National Forest.

FIRE & SMOKE plenty of both!

Last week every one of our regions saw some wildfire activity, thankfully these fires have been quickly suppressed by the efforts of the local fire departments and the Virginia Department of Forestry. By Virginia code the Department of Forestry is the responsible agency for the suppression and management of all wildfires on non-federal lands HOWEVER the VDOF can NOT do this alone and it is because of the collaboration and efforts of the volunteer and paid fire departments all accros the Commonwealth that we all can be proud of our records.

Yesterday Nationally there were 149 new large (over 100 acres) fires 37 of them being in the South.

The following will provide an update on the Lateral West Fire in the Great Dismal Swamp and the wildfires in TX, which continues to deal with the drought and wildfires.

There is fire, actual flames, on this fire and plenty of them. But the big story is the smoke right now. The flames may be having a direct impact on the firefighters, the vegetation and the wildlife within the 110,000 acre swamp but the smoke is impacting hundreds of thousands of people.

And there is PLENTY of SMOKE! There are reports of smoke impacting the public up to 150 miles away.

The following was taken from a story online from the Daily Press

By Cory Nealon, cnealon@dailypress.com | 247-4760

10:53 p.m. EDT, August 12, 2011

 Here's a more detailed look at the fire, its effects, and why it's burning faster than a similar blaze in 2008:

The fire's size

At roughly 5,585 acres, the fire Friday covered an area slightly larger than the city of Williamsburg.

While it's the refuge's largest ever, it's much smaller than wildfires further south and west. For example, more than 300,000 acres are burning at Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge in Georgia. Also, nearly 17,000 fires have scorched more than 3.4 million acres in Texas this summer. MORE ON THE TX FIRES LATER

Quick-burning

It took about one month for the 2008 Dismal Swamp wildfire to burn 4,884 acres, said Catherine Hibbard, a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service spokeswoman. The current fire, which covers much of same area, burned 5,000 acres in a week.

In addition to hot and dry conditions, the current fire is fueled by large amounts of dead and downed trees — remnants of Hurricane Isabel in 2003 and the 2008 fire. There are also plenty of grass, brush and peat — decomposing vegetation that can accumulate up to three feet thick, Hibbard said.

"You have the perfect conditions," she said.

Effect on humans

Smoke from wildfires contains particulate matter, which are tiny airborne particles that make it difficult for people with respiratory ailments to breathe.

Communities in Suffolk, Isle of Wight County and further west along Route 460 may be placed under a Code Purple conditions Saturday, state Department of Environmental Quality meteorologists said. Under such a scenario, the air is considered very unhealthy and people are advised to avoid outdoor activity.

Winds are expected to shift Monday with smoke blanketing much of Hampton Roads again, the DEQ said.

 For more please refer to the full story at the link below.... 

Great Dismal Swamp fire sets records

The blaze scorched 5,585 acres, an area slightly larger than Williamsburg, Va.

http://www.dailypress.com/news/newport-news/dp-nws-great-dismal-fire-20110812,0,1705183.story?page=2

And now for an updat on the TX fires ....

Texas Fires 2011 Fact Sheet

(All figures are from 15 Nov. 2010 to 12 August 2011, unless noted.)
Days on incident: 269
Personnel currently on incident: 1,079
States that have sent firefighters or other personnel:
48 plus District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and U.S. Virgin Islands
Total fires in Texas since Nov. 15, 2010: 18,068
Total acres burned in Texas since Nov. 15, 2010: 3,430,734
(exceeds previous record of 2,105,361 acres set in 2005-2006)
Fires in Texas in 2011: 16,062
Fires nationally in 2011: 47,502
Proportion of total national fires in 2011 that have occurred in Texas: 33.8 percent
Acres burned in Texas in 2011: 3,367,880
Acres burned nationally in 2011: 6,332,554
Proportion of total national acres that have burned in Texas: 53 percent
Ten-year U.S. national average acres burned: 4,771,423 acres/year
Four of the 10 largest wildfires in Texas history occurred in April 2011.
Total Aviation Hours: 11,220
Total aviation drops: 32,601
Gallons of fire retardant dropped: 4,208,846
Gallons of water dropped: 16,316,547
Did you know that if you added up all the water and retardant dropped it would fill about 35 Olympic sized swimming pools!
Most flight hours recorded in a single day: 238.39 (20 June 2011)
Most gallons of water and retardant dropped in a single day: 792,393 (20 June 2011)
(Note: All air operation figures are from 21 Dec. 2010, when record-keeping began.)
Texas counties where Texas Forest Service has fought wildfires: 192 of 254
Homes and structures saved: 34,666
Homes saved: 23,438
Homes and structures lost: 2,481
Homes lost: 625
Texas counties with burn bans: 249 of 254
(Exceeds previous record of 221 set in 2006)

The Swamp Fire smokes on and Smokey's special week comes to an end

The news from the Lateral West / Dismal Swamp Fire is that its getting bigger, by today sometime it will eclipse the 5,000 acre 2008 South One Wildfire which was the swamps biggest and most costly ($11,000,000.00+) fire in history. Early estimates are that it will get really big, big for VA/NC standards 10,000 ac + Its pushing south now with a lot of swamp in front of it.
Check out this pix from this morning.

1950 Smokey

1951 Smokey.

 The 1st frendly Smokey costume, the one that provided a pattern for all future costume development. (Sorry Wissconson!)

A few images from the very first (?) Smokey comic.

Smokey has a hard time grasping all this new technology.

This is a new sticker I am working on with my Virginia friends. Hope you'll like it.

Well I sure enjoyed this special week and a brief look back and I hope you did as well.

PLEASE help me by doing your part to NOT let a Wildfire Start. The firefighters have their hands full with the ones mother nature is causing.

THANKS for a great 67 years and I'm looking forward to many more!



Its getting drier in VA, Virginia's engine crew in the news, firefighters injured in OK

It’s getting significantly dry in portions of Virginia. The drought index that is used by the Virginia Department of Forestry, called the Keetch-Byram Drought Index (KBDI) is over the 10 year average for this time of year in all areas. In ½ of our areas the index is over 500 and at this level we, the VDOF, stop all prescribed burning operations and recommend to others that they do the same.

WAVERLY-    KBDI: 446

TAPPAHANNOCK -    KBDI: 336

CHARLOTTESVILLE –    KBDI: 552

FARMVILLE-   KBDI: 388

SALEM-     KBDI: 581

ABINGDON -     KBDI: 545

The KBDI, specifically developed to equate the effects of drought with potential fire activities, is the most widely used system by fire managers in the southeastern United States. This mathematical system for relating current and recent weather conditions to potential or expected fire behavior results in a drought index number ranging from 0 to 800. This number accurately describes the amount of moisture that is missing; a rating of 0 defines a point of no moisture deficiency and 800 defines the maximum drought possible.

These KBDI numbers correlate with potential fire behavior:

0 - 200 Soil and fuel have a high moisture content. Most fuels will not readily ignite or burn. However, with sufficient sunlight and wind, cured grasses and some light surface fuels will burn in spots and patches.

200 - 400 Fuels more readily burn, and fire can move across an area with no “gaps.” Heavier fuels do not readily ignite and burn. Smoldering and the resulting smoke to carry into and possibly through the night.

400 - 600 Fire intensity significantly increases. Fire readily burns in all directions exposing mineral soils in some locations. Larger fuels may burn or smolder for several days creating possible smoke and control problems.

600 - 800 Fire burns to mineral soil. Stumps will burn to the end of underground roots and spotting will be a major problem. Fires will burn through the night and heavier fuels will actively burn and contribute to fire intensity.

 The engine crew on Virginia's 4th rotation to NC was featured on a news story last night.
Check it out! You can click on the video below or go to the following link

http://www.wwaytv3.com/video/2011/08/rain-helps-pender-co-fire-lingers-into-third-month

Oklahoma City wildfire sends three firefighters to hospital

Eighty acres burned in an intense firefight that lasted about five hours. Two Oklahoma City firefighters were taken to hospitals for heat exhaustion, and a third suffered second-degree burns on his hands.

Smokey gets a year older next week. What could be a better gift than to do your part and not leta wildfire start. ONLY YOU CAN. Its been a long and HOT and busy wildfire summer he sure could use a break.

THANKS

 

BAER not BEAR

While fires continue to burn in the South and SE, other parts of the country are begining to experience an increase in activity. UT,WY,SD and ID as well as western Canada all have active wildfires. Other areas of the country may soon be dealing with wildfires also. I just read a report where Maine is preparing for the possibility of wildfires as the danger levels increase.

Weekly statistics 7/19/11
Number of new large fires	2	States currently reporting large fires:
Number of active large fires Fires managed for multiple objectives (26)	19	Arizona (1) California (1) Georgia (3) Idaho (1) New Mexico (4) North Carolina (2) Oklahoma (2) Texas (4) Wyoming (1)
Acres from active fires	572,476
Fires contained since 7/18/11	2
Year-to-date large fires contained	89
Year-to-date statistics
2011 (1/1/11 - 7/18/11)	Fires: 41,930	Acres: 5,866,869

 

I thought I would provide some info on an aspect of wildfires that many dont think about unless you happen to live in an area which this is fairly common. And that is the additional damage caused by wildfires long after the fire and smoke is gone.

 

 

Flooding and mud slides are a real problem in some parts of the country (thankfully not so much here in VA)

Although the picture below is a rather extream example, this is an amazing aspect of wildfire damage and recovery. My first experience was when I was on an assignment in Colorado when we held a public meeting after the first real rain in an area that was recently burned. One lady got up and spoke about how thankful she and her family was that the firefighters saved their home from the wildfire BUT they lost everything as the flodding washed away their home. Rain is definately the two edged sword at times.

There are specially trained teams that work with identifying potential areas of concern and make recovery recomendations, they are  the Burned Area Emergency Response (BAER) Teams.

 The BAER program addresses these situations with the goal of protecting life, property, water quality, and deteriorated ecosystems from further damage after the fire is out.

While many wildfires cause little damage to the land and pose few threats to fish, wildlife and people downstream, some fires create situations that require special efforts to prevent further catastrophic damage after the fire. Loss of vegetation exposes soil to erosion; runoff may increase and cause flash flooding; sediments may move downstream and damage houses or fill reservoirs; and put endangered species and community water supplies may be at risk.

Why is flooding after a fire such a big threat? For one thing, flames consume leaf litter and decomposing matter on the ground that normally soak up water. Additionally, after a fire, the soil itself has the potential to become hydrophobic, or water repellant. Plants and trees have numerous protective chemicals with which they coat their leaves to prevent water loss. Many of these substances are similar to wax. Vaporized by the heat from fires, these substances disperse into the air and then congeal over the soil surface when the fire begins to cool. Like the wax on your car, these substances coat the soil, causing water to bead up and run off quickly. In general, the greater the fire intensity and the longer the fire’s residence time, the more hydrophobic the soil becomes.

Who said its the start of "fireseason"?

I have been busy lately and did not get a chance to be “blogging” thanks for all of you who kept checking in. I hope you find this posting interesting.

Saw this headline story in the news ….

The National Weather Service says residents will soon forget the cool, wet spring they've been complaining about, because they are forecasting a warm, dry summer for the entire state. This weekend is also bringing the beginning of the wildfire season.

Well I hate to pop this reporters bubble but this weekend much of the south and SE coast is in the thick of an extended fireseason. But one thing the story does do is let us know there will be plenty of work for firefighters and resources for several more months to come. This seemingly never ending fireseason is really taxing people and things made of “iron”.

Thought you would be interested in a few headlines from my location right now.

WAYCROSS, Ga. -- Firefighters battling a wildfire in south Georgia discovered 339 sticks of dynamite, and a U.S. Army bomb squad was called to detonate the explosives.

FOLKSTON, GA -- A Brunswick mower manufacturer is volunteering its equipment and manpower to help protect Ware County buildings as the 267,900-acre Honey Prairie Fire continues spreading through the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge.

The rain that did come a few days ago was welcomed however after a day of hot dry windy GA weather fire activity picked up.

Anyone for a swim?

These cool QR codes were from a story by one of our great reporters who has been doing a great job covering the massive wildfires. Terry Dickson with the 

I hope you all have a GREAT and SAFE 4th

Virginia rotates crews and sends additional resources out of state

Its been 2 weeks since Virginia had sent engines and crew to FL. Plans were to rotate in fresh firefighters, however the fire our folks were assigned to in FL received some really good rains the last two evenings and so they were demobed. BUT!! there were several new fires in NC and our 5 engines and 11 fresh crew will be assigned to one of those NC fires. In addition several single resources are going to other states.

State of emergency in N.C. over wildfires

Three wildfires burning across 68,000 acres prompted Gov. Bev Perdue to declare a state of emergency in 29 eastern counties Saturday

The Pender County fire, which started with a lightning strike a week ago, continued to threaten Holly Ridge to the east and remained only about 15 percent contained.

"There are some homes that are still endangered," N.C. Forestry Service spokesman Brian Haines said. "But the threat is not imminent."

Read more: http://www.thesunnews.com/2011/06/26/2242531/state-of-emergency-in-nc.html#ixzz1QNHeeHau

This is the fire/area that a Prevention and Education Team focusing on firewise community outreach and prevention will be working for the next 2 weeks.

As smoke lingers, Georgia forestry officials are planning prevention steps

National program educates about safety and prevention
A Wildfire Prevention and Education Team is headding to SE GA under an agreement that states can share resources. The South East and Mid Atlantic compact is sending fols from OH, VA and GA to Folkston to assist with community outreach and wildfire prevention.

Georgia Forestry Commission spokesman Eric Mosley puts it bluntly.

"Right now, Georgia can't afford any more wildfires," he said.

It has already cost more than $20 million to fight one of the fires, the nearly 300,000-acre Honey Prairie Fire in the Okefenokee Swamp. Georgia will be saddled with much of the cost of fighting a couple of others, the Race Pond Fire along U.S. 1 at the juncture of Brantley, Ware and Charlton counties and the Sweat Farm Again Fire, about 10 miles west of Waycross. Those two alone burned more than 40,000 acres and sent people fleeing from their homes on several occasions.

Those started by lightning or by accident, but some others in the area were started from prohibited trash burning. Regardless of how they start, the stress and cost of fires can be reduced, Mosley said.

Oklahoma Wildfire Forces 1,500 To Evacuate

At least 13 Comanche County homes have already been destroyed and firefighters are battling to prevent further damage.

"Crews worked diligently overnight to fully contain the fire which caused the evacuation of more than 500 homes and destroyed 13," a representative of the Comanche County Emergency Management System said Saturday in a news release.

The wildfire began on Fort Sill's West range in the impact area Thursday afternoon. The fire spread over 4,000 acres on the Fort. It eventually jumped over Highway 49 and headed to Medicine Park late Thursday evening causing numerous evacuations and destroying several homes

Florida, Georgia fires still raging

FOLKSTON, Ga. -- Sparked and spread by dry thunderstorms that are doing more harm than good, wildfires burning in southeast Georgia had communities watching nervously as flames spread overnight to destroy mobile homes in Camden County, a house and barn in Ware County and threaten about 50 homes in neighboring Charlton County.

"It's close enough to make everybody pretty nervous," said John Meyer, emergency management director for Charlton County. "We're doing a lot of praying, that's for sure."

A Tragic Loss in Florida and Wildfires in several states, let’s look at FL and NC

 Firefighters everywhere morn the loss of 2 Floridia Division of Forestry Employees.

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Two Florida forest rangers were killed when a small, smoldering wildfire flared up and trapped them, state officials said Tuesday. Two comrades trying to rescue them also were injured.

It's the first time since 2000 that a forestry division employee has died fighting a wildfire. The rangers were plowing with bulldozers Monday to contain a 12-acre blaze on the Georgia line that's among 400 wildfires currently burning. The Blue Ribbon Fire about 85 miles northeast of Tallahassee had previously been declared contained, but it flared back up.

"The weather can change in Florida very quickly and that's what we experienced," said state forestry director Jim Karels.

Forestry officials and the local sheriff's office are investigating exactly how the fire killed 31-year-old Josh Burch of Lake City and 52-year-old Brett Fulton of White Springs, authorities said.

The Division of Forestry's last fatality in the line of duty came in 2000 when a helicopter pilot crashed after dumping water on a blaze near Fort Myers. The last time a ranger or firefighter died battling a wildfire on the ground was 1985.

Two other rangers, Robert Marvin and Stephen Carpenter, suffered smoke- and heat-related injuries in a rescue attempt Monday. They were treated and released.

Karels called their rescue effort "very heroic" but said they had to turn back because of tremendous heat and smoke. The Blue Ribbon Fire, which had been burning since June 16, was later contained.

Both of the deceased rangers were married. Fulton had two grown children and Burch had two sons, ages 4 and 5, said Agriculture Department spokesman Sterling Ivey. Burch had been with the department's Division of Forestry for ten years and Fulton for 12 years.

"They don't do it for the money," Karels said. "They love the job. They do it to serve the citizens."

Rain forecast for Wednesday could aid firefighters around the state, though Karels cautions that accompanying lightning could create sparks before trees and underbrush become damp enough to resist burning.

He said Florida is running a rainfall deficit this year, and temperatures of up to 104 degrees have made some areas very dry. Already, 2011 is the state's 11th-worst year on record for wildfires — with more than 3,600 blazes burning over 190,000 acres. Florida firefighters have been facing an average of more than 31 new wildfires every day.

Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam met with the families of the rangers who died.

"We can rebuild the structures and restore the land, but the lives of these two heroes can never be replaced," Putnam said in a statement.

Although we cannot be there physically we can honor those who gave their life in the line of duty with a moment of silence.

A Sea Of Wildfires In 2011.

A sustained ("exceptional") drought across the south, coupled with low humidity levels and gusty winds (and a few random cloud to ground lightning strikes) has ignited an unusual number of wildfires for so early in the season. NOAA has the latest: "Wildfires have plagued much of the Southern U.S. in 2011. The data shown here plots the locations of all wildfires detected by sensors aboard the NOAA AVHRR and GOES Imager, and NASA MODIS satellite sensors over the entire year-to-date. Each red point is one fire - and there are thousands of them plotted here. The data shows over 346,000 fires - though that is an overestimate since different satellites may double-count the same fire "target," but some may not see any at all. NCDC has tallied the number of U.S. wildfires at 33,109, but this number relies on human observations on the ground, which is probably an underestimate. The Okefenokee Swamp fire near the Florida-Georgia border, along with the Wallows fire in eastern Arizona are clearly visible as large red areas. The Okefenokee has been burning for months, and the Wallows is now the largest in Arizona history. Persistent droughts and high winds throughout much of the Southwest have created conditions ideal for wildfires during much of the winter and spring of 2011. Many of the fires in Texas, Oklahoma, and Nebraska are also drought-induced. The large fire signatures south of Lake Okeechobee in Florida are agricultural in nature."

 

The Drought/Heatwave of '11. Here are some amazing statistics about the expanding heat wave gripping much of the south.

Last "below average" day in the temperature department:

·         Memphis: May 27
·         Houston: May 18
·         San Antonio: May 16
·         Atlanta: May 19
·         Savannah: May 19
·         Mobile: May 19

The 95 or above club:

• Houston, Texas: Through Thursday, 21 of the last 23 days have been 95 degrees or higher.
• Dallas, Texas: Through Thursday, 17 of the last 21 days have been 95 degrees or higher.
• Shreveport, La.: Thursday was the 16th day in a row with 95+ degree heat.

A month worth of 90s already:

• Atlanta, Ga.: Typically averages 9 to 10 days during June with 90-degree temps. June 2011 tally: 15
• Charlotte, N.C.: Typically averages 8 to 9 days during June with 90-degree temps. June 2011 tally: 11
• Birmingham: Typically averages 11 days during June with 90-degree temps. June 2011 tally: 16

Largest "Exceptional Drought" Area On Record. Summer heat usually peaks in August - it's unusual, almost unprecedented, to have such a huge amount of the USA experiencing severe/exceptional drought conditions in mid June. More details from The Weather Channel: "If it feels like your lawn is ready to shrivel up and blow away, you may not be wrong. According to the new drought monitor, 9% of the continental U.S. is in exceptional drought which is the worst drought level possible. This is the largest area of excpetional drought on record!

Drought Statistics

--281,000+ square miles in drought
--An area equal to the 13 Northeast states and Washington D.C.
--7.54% of U.S. (including Alaska, Hawaii, and Puerto Rico) in "exceptional drought"

"This is part of a remarkable meteorological 'haves and have-nots' story," says The Weather Channel Expert Stu Ostro. "(You have) record flooding and exceptional drought, and those two opposites occurring in close proximity to each other." For the past few months, Texas and the Southwest was the main drought region."

Wednesday June 23, 2011

Southern Area Preparedness Level: 5

While there are wildfires burning in several states and the epicenter for activity seems to change as the weather changes, one day it’s AZ then West TX then FL, back to west TX and then to East TX  and now NC. The fires in NC might not be getting the big news coverage that others are but they are significant in their own right. The Forestry Department in NC is doing an outstanding job as their resources are being stretched to the limit. The “new” fire in NC (Juniper Road) went from a few thousand this morning to over 18,000 acres in one very long day.

Located about 10 miles from the coast due west of Sneeds Ferry.

Who said if it's green it WON'T burn ?

Smoke from the NC fire are impacting folks in VA. The VDOF has taken several calls from concerned citizens and govt officials.

The Juniper Road Fire in Pender County, which has burned more than 18,200 acres, prompted some voluntary evacuations of homes west of U.S. Highway 17 between the Onslow County line and Sloop Point Loop Road. A shelter was opened at Topsail Elementary School at 17385 U.S. Highway 17 in Hampstead. 

Name: Juniper Road Fire
Location: Pender County.
Size: 4,800 acres
Containment: 0%
Number of Personnel Assigned: 36
Responding Agencies:NCDF; National Weather Service; Pender County Sheriff Department; The Nature Conservancy
Summary: Transition will be taking place tonight and tomorrow with a NC Type II Incident Management Team. Pre-suppression lines and contingency points are being established.