News and opinion about wildland fire
Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories Uncategorized2 Comments on USFS firefighters save life of person suffering cardiac event U.S. Forest Service Firefighters on the Saddle Ridge Fire in Southern California saved the life of a man who was experiencing a cardiac event.
This past Tues., @forestservice wildland firefighters while waiting for assignment at the #SaddleRidgeFire, saved a man’s life from a severe cardiac event. #Heroes @LACoFDPIO @LAFD @sequoiaforest pic.twitter.com/CZIZnim0OY
— Angeles_NF (@Angeles_NF) October 17, 2019
Good job, men!
Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories Uncategorized1 Comment on Workforce capacity in the U.S. Forest Service 
The National Association of Forest Service Retirees (NAFSR) conducted an analysis of the capacity of the Forest Service’s workforce. They looked at the existing characteristics of the agency and conducted lengthy interviews with 33 employees in all nine regions.
Topics covered in the interviews:
The recommendations of the NAFSR:
You can download the cover letter (.docx file) the group sent to Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue, as well as the 11-page report (.pdf file). The documents are intended to be shared with anyone who has an interest.
Thanks and a tip of the hat go out to Dick. Typos or errors, report them HERE.
The Elk Fire is 6 miles southeast of Red Feather Lakes
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)
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.
#ElkFire Update – This is a map of the current fire area. pic.twitter.com/zBZYzKihyg
— Larimer Sheriff (@LarimerSheriff) October 17, 2019
Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories Wildfire6 Comments on Cow Creek Fire burning east of Ridgway, Colorado The fire is 27 miles southeast of Montrose, Colorado
UPDATED at 2:11 p.m. MDT October 17, 2019
The Cow Creek Fire is 27 miles southeast of Montrose, Colorado. Here is an update from fire officials on Thursday:
A Type 3 Incident Management Organization has been established in response to the Cow Creek Fire. Crews assigned to this organization will work to suppress the fire using geographical features, roads and trails. An overnight reconnaissance flight established the official acreage at 85 with no containment.
South-southwest winds with gusts up to 25 miles per hour are forecasted for the fire area this afternoon. Due to dry fuel conditions in the fire area there is a high probably of rapid fire spread. Currently predictive models have the spread staying within forest boundaries away from structures and private lands. These forecasted winds will cause heavy smoke throughout the Western Slope.
The Cow Creek Fire is currently in heavy mixed conifer within the Uncompaghre Wilderness of the Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre and Gunnison (GMUG) National Forests. Fire crews are utilizing indirect confine and contain strategies in areas with the highest probability of success with public and firefighter safety in mind. An investigation team has been assigned to the incident and is currently working to determine the cause of the fire, which is currently unknown.
The forecast on Thursday is for south winds of 8 to 12 mph increasing to southwest at 10 to 15 with gusts up to 25 after noon. The chance of showers or snow begins to increase late in the afternoon, with isolated showers or thunderstorms through sunset, then increasing to scattered showers with isolated thunderstorms overnight. The amount of precipitation could be around 0.05 inch — not enough to put out the fire, but it could slow the spread.
The fire is burning at 10,000 feet with an 11,000 to 12,000-foot ridge to the east. Officially, the strategy they are employing is full suppression.
From a Forest Service update October 16, “Additional resources have been ordered and will be employed where tactics and strategies have high probabilities for success, while minimizing unnecessary exposure to the public and firefighters.”
If they can keep it east of the large north-south drainage west of the fire, and if the weather cooperates, they may be able hang on while “minimizing unnecessary exposure” until a fire season-ending weather event.
Smoke from the #CowCreekFire is tracking north to north East this morning. Follow @GMUG_NF for updates. Picture taken from #MontroseCO. #wildfire #GMUGFireinfo pic.twitter.com/NmVw679ICu
— William Woody (@wwoodyCO) October 17, 2019
UPDATED at 6:50 p.m. MDT October 16, 2019
Authorities are saying the Cow Creek Fire 27 miles southeast of Montrose, Colorado has burned 100 acres.
Strong winds gusting around 35 mph are in the forecast for Thursday night, as well as Saturday and Sunday. If it is not contained by then, it could grow substantially by the first of next week. The strategy is full suppression, rather than manage and herd it around.
2:13 p.m. MDT October 16, 2019
Judging from photos taken by nearby residents, a fire reported 9 miles east of Ridgway, Colorado appears to be spreading quickly since it was reported at about 8 a.m. Wednesday. The Cow Creek Fire is in the Uncompahgre National Forest near the Red Creek-Chimney Rock area 27 miles southeast of Montrose. (see map below)
Continue reading “Cow Creek Fire burning east of Ridgway, Colorado”
Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories Uncategorized27 Comments on Nominee to oversee NWS wants to privatize weather forecasting Barry Myers is the former CEO of Accuweather
The person that has been nominated to run the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, which includes the National Weather Service, thinks the NWS should reduce or eliminate the weather analysis and forecasting products it makes available to taxpayers. Barry Meyers resigned from his CEO position at Accuweather, a company founded by his brother Joel, in order to improve his chances of being confirmed by the Senate and Congress to run NOAA. The executives at Mr. Meyers’ family business would like to continue receiving weather data at no charge that NOAA and the NWS collect from weather stations and a constellation of satellites. They would then sell it back to taxpayers and private companies with little or no competition from the NWS.
Mr. Meyers was first nominated to head NOAA in October, 2017. He was approved by the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee but his appointment has not been voted on by the full Senate. If finally confirmed he would be only the second head of NOAA that served without having a science degree.
Of the three elements that affect wildland fire behavior — weather, fuels, and topography — weather is the one that changes by the minute, hour, and day and is the most difficult to analyze and predict. Firefighters can see the vegetation and topography in front of them, but they can’t stand on a hill and predict with accuracy humidity, wind speed and direction for the next 72 hours.
It remains to be seen how privatizing weather forecasting would affect wildland fire management. Which company, if any, would issue Red Flag Warnings for the United States? The Weather Channel, Accuweather, or WeatherUnderground? Would Incident Meteorologists that are deployed to a fire with an Incident Management Team be employees of one of those companies?
The video below from “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver” explores the concept of a businessman with conflicts of interest taking over NOAA and the NWS. Mr. Oliver briefly expresses his opinion about a politician, but the video is predominately about the concept of a former CEO of a weather company running NOAA. Warning: it contains crude language.
This is not the first time that privatization of weather forecasting, Accuweather, and one of the Myers brothers have been mentioned in the same conversation. Check out an article by Kelly Anderson in Wildland Firefighter in 1998.
Above: Cargo carried by a Lac La Biche engine crew in Alberta, Canada. Photo via @AlbertaWildfire.
One of the Lac La Biche engine crews in Alberta answered the question, “What is in my fire truck?”.
This could be a challenge to other wildland fire crews. Send us YOUR photo.
We will add more entries in what is being called the Tetris Challenge here:
