Wildfire Today

News and opinion about wildland fire

Wildfire Today

Author: Bill Gabbert

After working full time in wildland fire for 33 years, he continues to learn, and strives to be a Student of Fire.

Beginning the 9th year of Wildfire Today

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9th year Wildfire Today

Sunday the world marked the end of 2016, seen as a tough 12 months by some. But at Wildfire Today we are looking back with fond memories at the last 8 years as we begin our 9th. Our site was born January 6, 2008 with a rather modest post.

The success of the site would not have been possible without the loyal readers who come back on a regular basis, read the articles, leave insightful comments, and occasionally send us a message informing us of breaking news in the world of wildland fire.

So, a big Thank You to those who have visited or contributed in various ways over the last 8 years! We couldn’t have done it without you!

NPR on allowing fires to burn

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The lack of aggressive action during the early days of the Chimney Tops 2 Fire that burned more than 2,000 homes in Gatlinburg, Tennessee has ignited discussions about allowing some wildfires to spread under predetermined conditions.

National Public Radio explores how four national forests in California are modifying their fire strategy. (Less than 4 minutes.)

Huge amounts of precipitation expected in the Sierras

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A weather system meteorologists are calling an “atmospheric river” is bringing massive amounts of rain and snow to California.

precipitation forecast
Seven-day precipitation forecast for the period beginning early Wednesday morning.

As a high pressure system over the west coast moves out of the way, massive amounts of precipitation are being funneled into California and Oregon. As orographic lifting squeezes the moisture out of the air mass some areas in the Sierras could receive up to two feet (24 inches!) of precipitation before this event is over. If most of it falls as snow in the mountains, the peaks in the Sierras could see up to 10 feet of snow.

It has already started, as you can see in the graphic below showing the snow received as of Wednesday morning. And the storm has just begun.

snow reports Sierras

It remains to be seen how this will affect California’s five-year drought and the 2017 fire season. In 2016 the northern part of the state saw some relief from the drought, but there was not much change farther south.

Three fires near Cape Town, SA on Tuesday

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There were reports that strong winds contributed to the rapid spread of the wildfires.

On Tuesday Firefighters in South Africa were battling three fires in the Cape Town area near Rome Glen, Radloff and Sir Lowry’s Pass. In addition to the video below, you can check out Ian Kitney’s photos at his Kingdom Photography Facebook page.

Wildfire burns 100 homes in Chile

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The fire burned into the port city of Valparaiso.

On Monday a wildfire burned approximately 100 homes in Valparaiso, Chile. There are reports that 19 people were injured and hundreds were forced to evacuate. The fire was fought by firefighters on the ground assisted by air tankers and helicopters dropping water.

Pushed by strong winds it burned about 120 acres of vegetation 75 miles northwest of Santiago.

An air tanker pilot was killed December 28 while working on a fire in the Bío Bío region.