Map showing location of the Calvert Fire March 1, 2021
The spread of an escaped prescribed fire 11 miles south of Big Pine, California was stopped Monday on the east side of Hwy. 395 by firefighters from the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.
The plan by the CAL FIRE San Bernardino Unit was to ignite the project at 8 a.m. Monday but a change in wind direction surprised the crews and caused the blaze to escape the project boundary and was declared an escape at 11 a.m.
The new fire named Calvert was mapped at 262 acres by the Fire Integrated Real-Time Intelligence System (FIRIS) operated in a fixed wing aircraft by Orange County Fire Authority. FIRIS has proven to be an incredibly valuable resource for providing real time video intelligence, fire spread projections, and situational awareness during wildfire suppression.
We need about a dozen more FIRIS units.
OCFA FIRIS Intel 24 on the Calvert Fire, BDU, 13 miles south of Big Pines Ca. Cal-Fire Air Attack 120 from Hemet and 4 Cal-Fire S-2 Airtankers from Hemet and Ramona providing aggressive perimeter control. pic.twitter.com/zaHSJ0xaxx
Photo of the Calvert Fire, by AA120, March 1, 2021.
Still another escaped prescribed fire in Southern California:
There is a report that another prescribed fire escaped in California, this time it was Tuesday near Clear Creek Station in the Angeles National Forest. The escape was named Clear Fire.
Map showing heat detected on the Five Mile Swamp Fire by a satellite at 2:48 a.m. CDT May 7, 2020.
(UPDATED at 9:50 a.m. CDT May 7, 2020)
Satellite data collected overnight shows heat from the Five Mile Swamp Fire well south of Interstate 10 on both sides of Garcon Point Road approaching Blackwater Bay.
(Originally published at 9 p.m. CDT May 6, 2020)
Map showing heat detected on the Five Mile Swamp Fire by a satellite at 3:24 p.m. CDT May 6, 2020.
Strong winds and low relative humidity caused a wildfire in the panhandle of Florida to grow about eight times its size Wednesday. The Five Mile Swamp Fire started from an escaped prescribed fire Monday afternoon and by Wednesday afternoon had blackened approximately 2,000 acres (up from 250 acres Wednesday morning) forcing the closure of Interstate 10 south of Milton, Florida.
The fire is burning on both sides of Interstate 10 about five miles south of Milton. The Florida Forest Service (FFS) reports several structures south of I-10 have been damaged or destroyed.
On Wednesday resources working the fire included 18 tractor/plow units, 3 helicopters, and firefighters from multiple departments throughout Santa Rosa County.
Residents of Ski Lane north of I-10, and those south of I-10 and east of Avalon Boulevard have been ordered to evacuate.
About 1,100 residences are threatened by the Five Mile Swamp Fire.
The prescribed fire from which the wildfire escaped was on private land east of the former Moors golf course, east of Avalon Blvd., and north of I-10. Described as a “#GoodFire” by the Florida Forest Service in a May 4 tweet, it was expected to burn only 250 acres.
?WILDFIRE UPDATE?@FLForestService crews are in day 3 of suppression efforts on the #5MileSwampFire. Additional firefighting personnel & resources are en route to assist.
I-10 is closed from Exit 22 Avalon Blvd to Exit 31 at Hwy 87.
The spread of the South Main Fire was stopped by 286 firefighters and 4 aircraft
The arrow on the 3-D map shows the approximate location of the South Main Fire on the Cleveland National Forest March 6, 2020.
A prescribed fire on the Cleveland National Forest in southern California escaped the intended project area on March 6 and burned an additional 20 acres. It occurred near the South Main Divide between Lakeland Village and a residential community west of the road.
The spread of the South Main Fire was stopped by 286 firefighters, 3 helicopters, and at least one S-2T air tanker.
A CAL FIRE UH1 helicopter drops water on the South Main Fire on the Cleveland National Forest March 6, 2020. USFS photo.Smoke from the South Main Fire as seen March 6 from an HPWREN camera on Santiago Peak.
The Nature Conservancy planned and executed the Elkhorn Creek Unit #4 prescribed fire that took place on the Ben Delatour Scout Ranch, private property located in Larimer County, Colorado 25 miles northwest of Fort Collins. It was part of a forest restoration effort aimed to reduce the impact of high severity wildfire on Elkhorn Creek, an important tributary of the Poudre River.
On day two of the project a spot fire occurred an hour after cloud cover moved out of the area. It was suppressed, but later two more ignited.
Below are excerpts from the report:
Located in dry, dead grass on a steep slope aligned with strong westerly winds, these two spots quickly grew together and began spreading rapidly away from the unit towards the Glacier View community to the east. Leadership personnel, quickly determining that on-site resources would not be able to contain the fire, immediately ordered ground and aerial resources and then declared the wildfire at 3:59 PM. In total, the fire burned 682 acres, with 118 acres outside of the planned boundaries of the project and 82 acres off the Scout Ranch property. One outbuilding was destroyed by the fire.
[…]
Recommendations for All Prescribed Fire Practitioners
1. A strong understanding of fire weather is critical to mitigating risk and responding to changing conditions. Review fire weather concepts presented in the National Wildfire Coordinating Group (NWCG) Intermediate Wildland Fire Weather Behavior (S-290) course and fire weather data acquisition and analysis concepts presented in the NWCG Intermediate National Fire Danger Rating System (S-491) course before each fire season utilizing an Incident Meteorologist (IMET), a Long Term Fire Analyst (LTAN), Fire Behavior Analyst (FBAN), or other knowledgeable individual, and incorporate these concepts into development of prescribed fire plans.
Review and remain diligent regarding the differences between 20-ft sustained 10 minute average winds, gusts, eye level, and midflame wind speeds.
Ensure on-site wind measurements are consistent with the type of wind parameters used in the prescribed fire plan, or ensure that accurate conversion techniques are accurately and consistently applied.
2. Apply “lessons re-learned” from the factors and best practices identified as being common between this prescribed fire and previous prescribed fires that were later declared wildfires.
Recommendations for The Nature Conservancy
3. Evaluate and refine the collaborative burning approach, including considerations for additional cooperative or partnership agreements to increase the experience level below that of overhead or trainee positions on high consequence prescribed fires.
4. Consider the full adoption of the DFPC Colorado Prescribed Fire Planning and Implementation Policy Guide as well as the Prescribed Fire Complexity Rating System Guide (NWCG PMS-424-1).
Adoption of these guides would increase consistency and support cooperation between The Nature Conservancy and DFPC and other Colorado partners.
Recommendations for the Division of Fire Prevention and Control
5. Evaluate all DFPC statutory and policy frameworks and craft solutions to align with all three co-equal goals of the National Cohesive Wildland Fire Management Strategy.
Changes to DFPC’s organizational focus and statutory authority may be necessary to reduce wildfire risk to communities and create resilient landscapes. In the face of an increasingly complex wildland fire environment, the ability to implement proactive measures must be part of a holistic strategy to reduce risk.
Above: An air tanker drops on the Bar Fire in Santa Barbara County, November 12, 2019. Photo: Santa Barbara County Fire Department.
A prescribed fire that was expected to be a three-day project escaped on day one Tuesday, burning an additional 10 to 20 acres in Santa Barbara County in Southern California. The BarM Ranch Vegetation Management Burn was planned to occur November 12 through 14 on the Bar M Ranch east of Vandenberg Air Force Base 4 miles southeast of Los Alamos along Highway 101.
Multiple fire engines and aircraft were brought in to stop the spread after it jumped control lines at about 3:45 p.m.
The burn was conducted on private land with the long range goal of reducing old growth vegetation and improving rangeland, while minimizing the impacts of smoke on population centers as it was being carried out.
The Bar Fire, caused by an escaped prescribed fire, burned an additional 10- to 20 acres. Photo: Santa Barbara County Fire Department.
The Elk Fire is 6 miles southeast of Red Feather Lakes
The Elk Fire. CBS Copter 4, October 16, 2019.
12:42 p.m. MDT October 17, 2019
A prescribed fire at a scout ranch escaped control in Colorado on Wednesday forcing residents out of their homes. The Elkhorn Creek Forest Health Initiative and Nature Conservancy Colorado were conducting the “Elkhorn 4 Prescribed Burn” at the Ben Delatour Scout Ranch near Red Feather Lakes south of W. County Road 74e and road 68c.
Thursday morning the Larimer County Sheriff’s office reported that the fire, which was named Elk, had not grown much overnight. The total size of the incident was 622 acres which included 472 acres within the project boundary.
At noon on Thursday mandatory evacuation orders were still in place for Glacier View Gates 7 through 13. One shed has been damaged and 50 homes are threatened.
The Elk Fire is in north-central Colorado 6 miles southeast of Red Feather Lakes and 20 miles northwest of Fort Collins. (see map below)
Map showing heat detected on the Elk Fire by a satellite at 3:30 a.m. Oct. 17, 2019.
In addition to firefighters on the ground the fire was attacked by aircraft including at least one large air tanker (RJ85 Tanker 163) and a single engine air tanker.
