Wildfire news, February 25, 2009

Chad Suppa memorial services, updated information

More information is available about the memorial services for Chad Suppa. We updated our earlier post HERE, so that it now includes information about a second service that has been scheduled, memorial funds, and an on-line guest book.

Marine accused of setting fire on Camp Pendleton

Camp Pendleton fire
File photo of an October 8, 2008 fire on Camp Pendleton

A marine from Camp Pendleton in southern California has been charged with setting a 4,000-acre fire, one of two fires on the base on October 13, 2008. Base officials said Lance Cpl. Nason G. Lamb started the fire during a training exercise. The cause of the second fire is still under investigation.

There were a number of fires on the base during October. The photo above shows one on October 8 that burned 1,000 acres.

Department of InteriorPresident Obama announced on Monday that he intends to nominate Tom Strickland to be the Department of Interior’s new Assistant Secretary for Fish, Wildlife, and Parks, a position that would oversee the National Park Service and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Strickland is presently Secretary of Interior Ken Salazar’s chief of staff and would continue to fill that role as well as the Assistant Secretary job. Before taking his present position Strickland was chief legal officer for United Health Group, was a managing partner for a law firm in Colorado, was the policy director for Colorado governor Richard Lamm, and served as the U.S. Attorney for Colorado from 1999 to 2001.

Strickland also ran and lost two elections in his bid to be a Democratic Senator from Colorado.

Strickland and Salazar were both board members and founders of Great Outdoors Colorado, a group created in 1992 that used state lottery funds to help manage Colorado’s public parks.

Can wildfires help sequester carbon?

It is known that wildfires can add to the problem of carbon dioxide buildup in the atmosphere, but there may be an upside, according to a study by Siddhjartha Mitra of East Carolina University. Over the long term wildfires may cause carbon to be sequestered in the form of carbon-rich soot and charcoal.

If global warming results in larger wildfires, this effect could be accelerated. However, the impact could be small, and would be measured in centuries.

Esperanza fire trial

On Tuesday the defense rested in the murder trial of Raymond Oyler for starting the 2006 fire that resulted in the deaths of five firefighters from the U.S. Forest Service in southern California. On Wednesday the jury has the day off while the attorneys prepare the exhibits that will be available to the jury during their deliberations. The two sides will present their final arguments on Thursday after which judge W. Charles Morgan will give his instructions to the jury.

Many people still listed as missing after Australia’s fires

The death toll stands at 210 following the Feb. 7 Black Saturday fires, but in Victoria, Deputy Commissioner Kieran Walshe said police are still matching the 17,000 people who registered as being safe with the thousands of inquiries about missing people.

Walshe said, “As a result, we are yet to definitively determine how many people are still missing.”

Thanks Dick

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2 thoughts on “Wildfire news, February 25, 2009”

  1. Bill,It would have been better for folks to be allowed to view the entire judicial process, but certain Regional and Local line officers thought otherwise.Instead, folks were thrown a bone to keep them silent.

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  2. The Esperanza Fire closing arguments are scheduled to begin tomorrow (Thursday)AM. Members of the San Bernardino NF have been invited to fill the remaining 15-20 slots available in the audience through the remainder of the trial.For those slots not filled in the audience, they will either be made available on a first come basis, or via lottery at the Court.

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