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California power company has a team of six fire coordinators

Bill GabbertAugust 5, 2019August 1, 2019UncategorizedCalifornia, SDG&E

Randy Lyle is the Fire Program Manager for San Diego Gas and Electric

Randy Lyle, Fire Program Manager for SDG&E. Photo: SDG&E.

If a fire flares up anywhere in San Diego or Southern Orange counties, Randy Lyle, the fire program manager for San Diego Gas and Electric, and his team of fire coordinators, will know in real time where it’s breaking out and whether it is burning in proximity to any of the company’s infrastructure.

Lyle was the second fire coordinator hired by SDG&E company to enhance the coordination and partnership with local public safety agencies to better protect communities from wildfires. The fire coordination program was launched in 2004 with one person. Today Randy oversees a team of five fire coordinators – all of whom are veteran firefighters like him.

His team has expertise in a variety of specialties, such as electrical safety, natural gas safety, energy storage safety and fire safety training, fuel treatment, fire planning for projects, and forensic fire investigation.

When Randy joined SDG&E in 2007, he brought with him 32 years of experience in all aspects of wildland fire control, including engine, hand crew, and aerial firefighting, along with expertise in applying fire hazard data and tools to better understand fire risk and fire behavior.

As a CAL FIRE Division Chief, Randy served as the unified incident commander for the Cedar Fire in 2003. That historic fire – ranked as one of the top 5 most destructive wildfires in California history – burned more than 273,000 acres, killed 14 people, including one firefighter, and destroyed more than 2,800 structures.

Recently, we had a conversation with Randy, a San Diego native who loves horses and surfing, about his experience and background and what his team does.

What does it mean to be an SDG&E Fire Coordinator?

Fire coordinators serve as a critical link between fire agencies and SDG&E. They provide situational awareness at times of actual fires to help support emergency response. For example, if a public agency has a request for SDG&E to de-energize a power line near a fire to protect first responders, a fire coordinator will work with our grid operations staff to help coordinate that request.

Fire coordinators also train internal personnel on fire safety and external personnel (first responders) on electrical safety. We are translators of intel into actionable information.

Are fire coordinator positions unique to SDG&E?
Other utilities have similar positions, but their actual duties vary quite a bit from utility to utility.

How did you make the decision to get into this field and when did it all start for you?
I had firemen in my family. I started my fire career with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE), six weeks after graduating high school. Growing up here, I remember watching large fires like the Laguna Fire in 1970 as it made news day after day and I was fascinated by its enormity.

What is your most memorable experience as a firefighter?
I was the CAL FIRE Unified Incident Commander on the 2003 Cedar Fire for the first three days, then transitioned to a Branch Director for the west wind push when I had two Strike Teams trapped by fire in Harrison Park near Julian. I lost radio contact with them and for about two hours, thought that 40 firefighters had perished. Turned out OK in the end. Radios were rendered inoperable, presumably by heavy, dense smoke and heated air.

What is your busiest season?
Peak season is from about September 1 until we get rains in fall or early winter. Typically, any summer day can be an ‘average bad fire day’. There are a few weeks after strong green-up where there will not be any fires because wildland fuels are not cured well enough to dry.

(From SDG&E)

Intense fire along Interstate 5

Bill GabbertAugust 4, 2019August 5, 2019UncategorizedCalifornia, Jeff Zimmerman1 Comment

Jeff Zimmerman fire southern California — Wildfire along Interstate 5 in Southern California August 3, 2019, 10 miles north of Castaic. Photo by Jeff Zimmerman.

Jeff Zimmerman got this shot of engine crews from Los Angeles County FD arriving at an intensely burning wildfire along Interstate 5 yesterday, August 3. It was on the east side of Interstate 5 in Southern California 10 miles north of Castaic.

Here is what Jeff said about the fire:

With hot dry weather and lower humidity we saw more energy release than previous wildfires last month. 100 acres along Interstate 5 north of Templin Highway burned with good fuel consumption. Increased fire behavior and increased energy release components are predicted through early next week.

Thanks Jeff!

Ramona Air Attack Base hosts a C-130 air tanker

Bill GabbertAugust 4, 2019November 16, 2019UncategorizedC-130, California, Ramona2 Comments

The runway is too short for some large air tankers

(This article was first published at Fire Aviation)

It is unusual to see an air tanker larger than an S-2 at the Ramona Air Attack Base in Southern California, but a C-130Q under contract with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE) was seen at the base yesterday, August 3. Kevin Pack, who took the photo below, said it had been dropping on a fire, possibly the Sage Fire, in San Diego County.

The relatively short runway restricts which types of aircraft can use the facilities at Ramona. When the U.S. Navy built the airport in 1945 to be used as an emergency landing field it was only 4,000 feet long and remained that length well after it was conveyed to the County of San Diego in 1956.

Air Tanker 134 C-130 Ramona — Air Tanker 134, a C-130Q, parked at Ramona Air Attack Base August 3 2019. Photo by K. E. Pack Photography.

CAL FIRE established an Air Attack Base there in 1957 and the U.S. Forest Service followed three years later.

The runway was lengthened in 2002 to 5,001 feet but it is difficult for some large air tankers and impossible for very large air tankers to work at the base. CAL FIRE has allowed BAe-146 air tankers under their CAL FIRE contracts to use the runway, but currently the Forest Service prohibits their large air tankers from using the airport.

CAL FIRE bases two S-2 air tankers and an Air Tactical Group Supervisor at the airport, and the Forest Service bases a helicopter there.

The S-2s can carry up to 1,200 gallons of retardant. In 2016 another Coulson C-130, T-131, completed 520 sorties averaging 3,404 gallons per load. A BAe-146 has a capacity of 3,000 gallons.

The C-130Q at Ramona on Saturday was Coulson’s Tanker 134, the fourth C-130 the company has converted. Its first drop on a fire was around November 1, 2018 while on a contract in Australia. It had just finished being reconfigured as an air tanker after being rescued from storage in Tucson and had not yet been painted.

t-134 c-130Q — Air tanker 134 on the sortie when it was making its first live drop on a fire in Australia, around November 1 , 2018.

CAL FIRE is using Tanker 134 to train their pilots who are transitioning from the S-2 air tankers to the seven HC-130Hs the agency has acquired after the U.S. Forest Service lost interest in the aircraft which were previously operated by the U.S. Coast Guard.

Williams Flats Fire burns thousands of acres along Columbia River

Bill GabbertAugust 3, 2019August 3, 2019UncategorizedWashington, Williams Flats Fire2 Comments

The fire is 15 miles east of Coulee Dam, Washington

3-d map Williams Flats Fire Washington — 3-D map showing the APPROXIMATE perimeter of the Williams Flats Fire looking east, based on heat detected by a satellite at 2:56 p.m. PDT August 3, 2019. The map should not be used for planning or evacuation decisions.

(UPDATED at 5:50 p.m. PDT August 3, 2019)

In an update at 2 p.m. Saturday fire officials reported that the Williams Flats Fire 15 miles east of Grand Coulee, Washington had grown to 8,200 acres. (see map above)

On Saturday firefighters constructed containment lines to protect the valley floor and worked on anchoring the southern perimeter of the fire, which is spreading east toward Redford Canyon. That area was logged five years ago leaving behind slash fueling the fire. Steep slopes, limited roads, and primitive road conditions are hampering control efforts.

Tribal Natural Resources Officers are patrolling Lake Roosevelt Recreation Area to keep boaters safe as three Fire Boss water-scooping single engine air tankers obtained water from the Columbia River.

Other resources on the fire include:

3, large air tankers
1,Type 1 helicopter
4, 20-person hand crews
2, 12-person hand crews
3, dozers
12, Type 6 fire engines, and
5, water tenders
For a total of 132 personnel

(Originally published at 10:02 a.m. PDT August 3, 2019)

The Williams Flats Fire in Northeast Washington burned well over 5,000 acres during the first 25 hours after being reported at 3:23 a.m. Friday August 2, 2019.

Saturday morning fire officials said it was 5,640 acres, but satellite data from 4:18 a.m. PDT on Saturday indicates it may have burned an additional 1,000 acres. (see map above below)

Map Williams Flats Fire — Map of the Williams Flats Fire showing heat detected by a satellite as late as 4:18 a.m. PDT August 3, 2019.

Exhibiting extreme fire behavior during Red Flag Warning Conditions, the blaze spread east along the Columbia River 8 miles southeast of Keller and 15 miles east of Grand Coulee, threatening structures. Evacuations are occurring, according to the Northwest Area Coordination Center.

At 6 p.m. Saturday a Type 2 Incident Management Team led by Incident Commander D. Johnson will assume command.

The fire is within the Hellgate Game Preserve on the Colville Indian Reservation.

The fire initially consumed primarily grass, but moved into heavier vegetation. It is fueled by fallen dead trees, grass, sage, and bitter brush, exacerbated by limited access along the Columbia River. Initial suppression efforts included building hand lines, dozer lines, and working from existing roads. Helicopters and fixed winged aircraft cooled hotspots on Friday to allow ground forces time to engage. On-the-ground firefighters are dealing with extremely steep rocky slopes and rattlesnakes.

Weather

On Friday the fire was pushed by 5 to 12 mph winds out of the southwest and west gusting at 15 to 25 mph, but after midnight the direction reversed to come out of the east, according to the Wellpinit weather station south of the fire. Friday’s temperature reached 90 degrees with a relative humidity of 21 percent.

The forecast for Saturday calls for 84 degrees, RH of 14 percent, with 2 to 5 mph winds out of the north shifting to the east in the afternoon. These conditions should reduce the resistance to control of the fire, compared to what firefighters were faced with on Friday.

Heavy equipment operators train for firefighting in Mississippi

Bill GabbertAugust 3, 2019August 2, 2019Uncategorizeddozer, Mississippi

Mississippi Equipment Operator Training firefighting — Photo: Mississippi Forestry Commission

Earlier this year Mississippi Forestry Commission technicians took part in a heavy equipment academy to learn safe practices and proper techniques when they suppress wildfires.

National Park Service releases video about the Howe Ridge Fire

Bill GabbertAugust 2, 2019August 2, 2019UncategorizedGlacier NP, Howe Ridge Fire, Montana2 Comments

The fire burned 14,000 acres and more than a dozen structures in Glacier National Park in August, 2018

Howe Ridge Fire in Glacier National Park — Howe Ridge Fire, August 12, 2018. NPS photo.

The National Park Service has released a video discussing the first 36 hours of the Howe Ridge Fire that burned over 14,000 acres in Glacier National Park in Northern Montana in August, 2018. The fire destroyed approximately 13 private homes and publicly-owned historic structures.

Below is text released by the NPS along with the video on August 1, 2019. The photos are NPS photos of the fire on flickr but no photographer credits or dates were provided.

Lakewood, CO – Today, the National Park Service (NPS) released a video documenting the first 36 hours of the Howe Ridge Fire, which took place at Glacier National Park. The fire destroyed private homes and publicly-owned historic structures on August 12, 2018.

The video documents steps firefighters took to attack the wildland fire initially, and the combination of factors that made initial attack unsuccessful. The video also documents evacuation and structural firefighting efforts.

The goal of the video is to share these efforts and raise awareness about this incident to other public land management agencies, people who visit and recreate on public lands, and residents who live in wildland fire prone areas.

Summary of Events
August 11, 2018, was a Red Flag day when a weather system moved through the region bringing little moisture and widespread lightning, 19 fires ignited across the Northern Rockies Fire Zone. Three of these fires ignited in Glacier National Park, requiring interagency fire managers to prioritize by considering values at risk. The Howe Ridge Fire was detected at 7:18 pm – all three park fires were deemed high priority fires. Firefighters caught the other two fires on initial attack due to a combination of factors, including access and weather conditions.

In the last 10 years, there were three other reported fires on Howe Ridge. Because the area is relatively close to developed infrastructure, all three fires were managed with full suppression tactics. One was suppressed at .1 acres, another at 2.3 acres, and the third was never found after the initial report. We presume that fire went out without firefighter intervention. In all cases, these previous fires were relatively straightforward to control.

Howe Ridge Fire Glacier National Park 2018 — Two CL-415 scooping air tankers work the Howe Ridge Fire, Glacier National Park, August, 2018. NPS photo.

Continue reading “National Park Service releases video about the Howe Ridge Fire”

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