Wildfire Today

News and opinion about wildland fire

Wildfire Today

Month: April 2008

Ellreese Daniel's trial begins May 5

Author BillPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags ,

Posted on Wildlandfire.com was this letter from the Forest Supervisor of the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest about the upcoming trial:

Okanogan-Wenatchee Employees:

The trial of our employee Ellreese Daniels is scheduled to begin May 5. He was indicted by a grand jury on four counts of involuntary manslaughter and seven counts of making false statements based on actions in his role as crew boss during the Thirtymile tragedy in 2001. I struggle with the reality of criminal charges against one of our own employees. I was not here in 2001, but today I feel the anxiety and fears of the firefighting community. I am also deeply saddened at the loss families experienced. Yet, in the midst of this swirl of strong emotion, we must go on.

I intend to support Ellreese by ensuring I do not interfere with a fair and speedy trial. All we can do for the families, employees and the American public is cooperate with the defense and prosecution by providing knowledgeable witnesses to testify honestly and truthfully. Then, let the justice system work based on the facts of the case. In the end, the judge and jury will decide the outcome of the trial.

This case will likely generate national media interest. If you want to speak with the media, then it is critical that you emphasize to them that you are speaking for yourself, as an individual, on you own time, not for the Forest Service or in any official capacity. It is your choice as an individual, representing your personal views to speak to a reporter. I offer this thought though. Ask yourself, “How will my comments influence the ability of the court to provide a fair and speedy trial”? If you are asked to comment as a Forest Service employee, please refer that request to Glen Sachet (503-808-2790) in the Regional Office.

Some of you will testify as witnesses for the defense or prosecution, or you will know someone who is testifying. The emotions of the tragedy may return. Don’t hesitate to talk with your line or staff officer, union representative, or contact the Employee Assistance Program for help.

I plan on attending as much of the trial as possible. When I’m not there, my representative will be. I will wear my uniform proudly in support of all employees and the Agency. I have identified a few employees that will serve a variety of roles in an official capacity at the trial, including keeping you informed of the proceedings. Others interested in attending can do so on their own time, not in an official capacity, with the use of leave pre-approved by their supervisor.

Maureen Hanson, Bobbie Scopa and I will be holding meetings at HQ and the Districts next week to discuss the upcoming trial and answer employee questions.

Finally, this has been and will continue to be a very emotional time. Please be sensitive and understanding of the feelings of others around you, and take extra care of yourselves.

Sincerely,

Becki

Fire in Connecticut

Author BillPosted on Categories WildfireTags 1 Comment on Fire in Connecticut

You don’t often hear about wildland fires in Connecticut, and you would not have heard about this one-acre fire near Wilton, except the report I saw included a photo of a fire boat. OK, most people would not call this a boat…. it’s an amphibious ATV outfitted with a pump and hose.


These amphibious ATVs can be useful for suppressing fires in cattails. Cattails grow in water, and when they are cured out, burn like brush. It’s next to impossible to stop a cattail fire when it’s moving above the water… unless you can get out ahead of it with a boat or ATV like this and drive back and forth knocking down the cattails so they are mostly underwater. Cattails don’t spot very often, so a fairly narrow line can stop the fire.

The tricky part is being out in front of a fast-moving fire in a boat, pushing through cattails and hoping the motor does not stall or you get stuck.

Fire Near Albuquerque

Author BillPosted on Categories WildfireTags

KOB.com has some information about a new fire southeast of Albuquerque, and east of Belen. It is the Trigo fire, and is reported to be about 100 acres; normally not national news, but it’s slow this week and the fire is well documented with a live camera, video footage, and still photos.

The above image is from a “live” camera at the Albuquerque airport. It normally is pointed to the west, but I think they turned it to the east to capture images from this fire. This should be a live feed from the camera’s site, showing the latest image when you refresh this page.


Check out the video footage and the other photos at the KOB.com site.

From KOB.com:

“A wildfire that began Tuesday morning on the western slope of the Manzano Mountains east of Belen had jumped from about 10 acres at noon to roughly 100 acres by 2:00.

Arlene Perea of the Mountainair Ranger District says the biggest problem facing firefighters is the strong wind, which is whipping the flames and has grounded air tankers that were dropping fire retardant on the fire.

Perea says that four hotshot crews are en route to the so-called trigo Fire and two more have been ordered. An inmate work crew and two fire engines also are being marshaled.

Dan Ware of the state forestry division says the Trigo Fire is burning near Capilla Peak. He says that no structures are currently threatened but there are communications towers in the area.

Ware says that the fire is burning in rugged terrain about eight or nine miles north of where the Ojo Peak Fire consumed nearly 7,000 acres last November.”

San Bernardino NF: Lone Pine Rx Fire

Author BillPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags

Earlier we covered the fact that the San Bernardino National Forest in California is blogging about their Lone Pine prescribed fire project. Usually the blog posts are written by the District Ranger and the Deputy District Ranger.

They had some unexpected developments recently, but during a lull in the action, they posted some very cool photos taken in 2006 of a helitorch in action. These photos are served up by their blog. Click on them to view them larger.

Injured firefighters tell others about the lessons learned

Author BillPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags , ,

An excerpt from the Bismark Tribune, North Dakota

“Apr 13, 2008
By JAMES MacPHERSON
Associated Press Writer

As if the scarred flesh over a third of his body weren’t enough, Mark Keller got a tattoo to mark the day he and two other volunteer firefighters were burned while battling a grass fire in central North Dakota.

“It’s just a reminder to myself that I made it out alive,” said Keller, who is marking the third anniversary of the blaze that also injured firefighters Geremy Olson and James Meyer near Wilton, north of Bismarck.

The National Interagency Fire Center in Boise, Idaho, spokeswoman Jennifer Smith says 111 firefighters have died battling wildfires between 2003 and 2006, the most recent numbers available. The group does not keep injury statistics.

Those who survived the blazes, like Keller, Olson and Meyer, use their scars to teach others.

Keller’s tattoo above his right ankle depicts a fire department logo capped with flames, along with his name and those of his burned buddies. The tattoo, like his surgeries, is unfinished.

“I’ll add smoke to it later,” said Keller, 36, who also is a Burleigh County deputy.

The 2005 grass fire that injured Keller blackened a 6-mile-long swath near Wilton. It was traced to a pile of trees that had been smoldering undetected for nearly a month.

Meyer had been hired to burn the tree piles on his neighbor’s farm. He said he torched the dozen or so massive tree piles when the ground was covered with snow in March. When the ground dried out a month later, embers from the still-burning woodpile ignited grass, and the fire spread, he said.

The firefighters were hurt after the wind-driven fire engulfed them and the heat from the blaze sucked oxygen out of the air, killing the engine in the fire truck in which they were riding.

“I tried starting it three or four times and it wouldn’t kick over,” Keller recalled. “From there, it just got hotter and hotter and hotter. My brain told me to flee.”

Fire officials estimated that heat from the blaze topped 2,000 degrees – near the melting point of steel.

Keller was on fire when other firefighters rescued him, dousing him with water. He was the only one of the three who was not wearing full bunker gear – and he was the most seriously injured, suffering second- and third-degree burns to about 30 percent of his body.”

Additional details

Facing very large medical bills, Mark Keller sued the owner of the land where the fire started from the brush piles. After investigations, consultations with a wildland fire expert in a neighboring state, and negotiations, the lawsuit was settled out of court on January 18, 2007.

Snowpack in western United States

Author BillPosted on Categories Uncategorized

The snowpack in most of the western United States is average to much above average. The exceptions are southern Arizona and New Mexico. In the map below, the green, blue and purple colors are 90% to more than 180% of normal, while the orange and red colors are 69% to less than 25% of normal. (Click on the map to see an enlarged version.)

This is quite different from last year when most of the west was below normal.

But, as in an earlier post, I still believe the severity of the fire season is mostly determined by the weather in the fire season, and less so by the amount of precipitation during the winter.

Here is what the director of the Colorado State Forest Service said about the snowpack and the fire season. From the Durango Herald.

March 27, 2008
By Joe Hanel | Herald Denver Bureau

DENVER – Even though the snow is still deep in the mountains, above-average temperatures could set the stage for a bad fire season, Colorado’s top forester said Wednesday.

Temperatures in Southwest Colorado are predicted to be significantly above average, and drought is likely, especially in the southeast, said Jeff Jahnke, director of the Colorado State Forest Service, during a meeting of the Legislature’s two agriculture committees.

“All those things mean the potential for a significant fire season is there,” Jahnke said.

Rep. Kathleen Curry interrupted him.

“The potential is there even though we have a record snowpack?” asked Curry, D-Gunnison.

Yes, Jahnke said.

“Once the snow’s gone, it takes only a couple weeks of very dry, very hot weather to create the potential” for wildfires, Jahnke said.

However, Jahnke says he never makes predictions for how the fire season actually will play out. He was only saying the potential for big fires exists.

The deep snow means the fire season probably will start later than usual. And as long as the fall monsoon arrives on time, the fire season will be compressed, Jahnke said.

The Front Range has seen three fires in the last week that totaled 600 acres, he said.

Trees are still drier than normal after the drought years earlier this decade, Jahnke said.