The distribution of wildfire smoke across North America. By NOAA, Office of Satellite And Product Operations.
Smoke created in Alberta by wildfires over the last week, but especially on Wednesday when extreme fire weather caused major fire growth, is moving farther south into the United States. Much of the northern tier of states has significant quantities of smoke and it reaches as far south as Colorado and Kansas, with lighter concentrations in Oklahoma and Arkansas.
Montana is particularly affected according to AirNow, with Helena having “Unhealthy” air quality Friday morning. Lewiston and Great Falls are rated at “Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups”.
But it is much worse in the Canadian provinces of Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba. For example, the air quality in Calgary is maxed out on the nasty air scale, rated at “Very High Risk”.
Calgary Air Quality, May 31, 2019. Government of Canada.
Unfortunately, NOAA’s Office of Satellite And Product Operations that produced the smoke map is having problems with their website and it is not possible to confirm with 100 percent confidence how current the mapped smoke data is. But we’re thinking it represents the distribution of smoke as of Friday morning. Hopefully NOAA can get this glitch fixed.
Map of the Chuckegg Creek Fire in Northern Alberta at 3:50 a.m. MDT May 30, 2019. The shaded areas represent heat detected by a satellite during the previous seven days.
The Chuckegg Creek Fire in Northern Alberta near the town of High Level was very active over the last 48 hours while being pushed by strong winds. Exhibiting extreme fire behavior, it grew to the south about 11 miles, and while moving 12 miles to the east it crossed Highway 35 and jumped the Peace River both north and south of the ferry crossing on Highway 697.
Alberta Wildfire estimated it has burned 230,000 hectares, or 568,000 acres.
Below is an excerpt from an update by Alberta Wildfire about the Chuckegg Creek Fire, issued May 30, 2019:
The Chuckegg Creek Fire experienced extreme fire behaviour yesterday with significant growth to the south towards Paddle Prairie, across Highway 35 by Highway 697 and spotted across the Peace River. Continued hot and dry conditions along with variable, gusty winds have proved a challenge to firefighting efforts and safety. Municipal firefighters and heavy equipment responded, with structure protection established as possible to the south of the fire. The fire also experienced growth to the west and continued fire activity on the north part of the fire around Watt Mountain.
Firefighters, heavy equipment, and aircraft are assessing the situation given the recent fire growth and will focus on priority areas. Structural protection and municipal firefighters are working to protect values. The weather forecast today anticipates cooler temperatures and higher minimum relative humidity, though winds today are expected to remain gusty and are expected to come primarily from the north.
I believe that the fire started during the week of May 12. It reached the 100,000-acre threshold to become a “megafire” on May 20. Now that it has easily grown to 568,000 acres, I wonder if it will reach a million acres to become a “gigafire”. A bushfire that started October 11, 2018 in Western Australia 120km southeast of Broome burned 880,000 hectares, or 2,174,527 acres.
The weather for the next seven days at the fire’s location will be variable, with a chance of rain on Saturday, Monday, and Thursday of next week, so there will not be many days conducive to explosive fire growth.
The distribution of wildfire smoke across North America, May 30, 2019. By NOAA, Office of Satellite And Product Operations.Forecast for the distribution of wildfire smoke at 5 a.m. MDT May 31, 2019. By NOAA Earth System Research Laboratory.
Here is how the NOAA Office of Satellite And Product Operations described the smoke conditions at 10:36 a.m. MDT May 30, 2019:
“Northwestern to Western Canada/South Central Canada/Southeastern
Canada/Northern New England…
“Large complex wildfires are continuing to burn and be observed over Northern Alberta Province and through portions of Northwestern Canada. Several smaller fires are burning and being observed as well in South Central Canada. Heavy density smoke is being observed in the region of the large complex wildfires and has been transported with the low level flow South and Eastward down into South Central Canada, into North and South Dakota, and into the Northern Upper Midwest Region. Moderate density smoke is being observed throughout most of Alberta Province, Northwestern Canada, South Central Canada, the High Plains, the Midwest, Ontario, and into Upstate New York. Light density smoke has been observed throughout most of Northwestern Canada, South Central Canada, the Plains, Midwest, the Southern Great Lakes region, Northern New England and progressing into far Southeastern Canada. The smoke is expected to continue to progress South and East over the day.”
The two men died May 27 in the accident near Whitehorse International Airport
(From the National Park Service, May 29, 2019)
The National Park Service (NPS) is mourning the loss of two of its Alaska-based employees following an airplane crash in Whitehorse, Canada on Monday evening.
The two men, Jeff Babcock and Charles Eric Benson, were on a personal trip to ferry a privately-owned airplane from the Lower 48 to Anchorage, Alaska, when the plane went down shortly after take-off from Whitehorse International Airport.
According to Canadian officials and witnesses the airplane crashed at about 5:30 p.m. Monday shortly after takeoff into a forested area south of the airport. A column of smoke was seen rising from the area and emergency personnel from Whitehorse Fire Department, the Whitehorse RCMP and airport firefighters responded immediately to the scene.
Jeff Babcock served as the NPS Alaska Region Aviation Manager and Charles Eric Benson was the NPS Alaska Region Safety Manager. “Jeff and Eric were two of our very best and the National Park Service and Alaska Region have suffered a terrible loss,” said Bert Frost, NPS Alaska Regional Director. “Our thoughts and prayers are with the families of Jeff and Eric and we are heartbroken,” said Frost.
Both men were accomplished professionals, as well as skilled airmen. Prior to working for the National Park Service:
Jeff Babcock had a distinguished 23-year career as a Sergeant, Lieutenant, and Captain in the Alaska State Troopers where he served as a Commercial Pilot, Aircraft and Vessel Section Supervisor, Use of Force Instructor, Accident Reconstructionist, Undercover Investigator, Internal Investigator, Tactical Dive Master, Firearms Instructor, and Certified Flight Instructor. After retiring from the Alaska State Troopers, and before coming to work with the National Park Service, Jeff flew for 7 years as a pilot for K-2 Aviation. He enjoyed flying guests around Mt. Denali and sharing with them his favorite parts of Alaska.
Eric Benson served for 25 years in both the U.S. Air Force and in the U.S. Army in a variety of assignments. From 1993-1994 he attended and graduated from the Initial Entry Rotary Wing Qualification and the Aviation Officer Basic Courses at Fort Rucker Alabama. He then served as a UH-60 Army Aviator, Platoon Leader, Company Executive Officer, Brigade Aviation Element, and an Aviation Maintenance Company Commander. Eric’s active duty career culminated in December of 2007, with the 10th Mountain Division while serving as a Battalion Executive Officer for the General Support Aviation Battalion at Fort Drum, New York. He joined the National Park Service after retiring from the U.S. Army.
Jeff Babcock and Eric Benson were long-time residents of Alaska and are well-known throughout the state. Services for Jeff Babcock will be held on Saturday, June 1, 2019 at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, The Colony Chapel, 9475 East Silver Springs Circle, Palmer, Alaska at 11:00 a.m. Everyone is welcome to attend. Private services are pending for Eric Benson.
Jeff Babcock. NPS photo.Eric Benson. Photo courtesy of the Benson family.
Trying to compare the acres treated with prescribed fire in California and Florida is like comparing apples and penguins. In addition to California’s significant regulatory issues, the vegetation there is more explosive (in some areas), the terrain complicates ignition, and the road systems and access can sometimes be challenging. By comparison Florida is flat, access is usually much easier, and the fuels are not as difficult for an experienced prescribed fire crew to safely ignite.
But with the increased wildfire activity in recent decades and pressure from many sources to treat hazardous fuels and rake the forests, more attention is being focused on prescribed fire as one way to mitigate the effects of climate change. However the number of acres treated on federal lands is directly related to the funds appropriated for that purpose. And those dollars have been relatively flat for a number of years.
Climate Central put together some interesting graphics. (Click on the images twice to see larger versions and more tweets in the thread.)
Prescribed burns reduce wildfire risks — but the U.S. spends little on them. The Southeast is the leader in managing land this way while the West lags badly behind, fueling deadly infernos.@ClimateCentral research collaboration with @uidaho’s @pyrogeog: https://t.co/PKCEdKaUDOpic.twitter.com/stK2zR6jXQ
Cumulative precipitation over the 10-day period ending Mary 29. NWS data processed by Wildfire Today. Click to enlarge.
This map showing cumulative precipitation over the 10-day period ending May 29 helps explain some of the recent widespread flooding in the middle of the country. It looks like a few areas had more than 12 inches. Many locations had more than 6.
(I don’t know why data for those five western states does not show up.)
