Wildfire Today

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Wildfire Today

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Houses with thatched roofs saved in South Africa wildfire

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags ,

Thatched roofs a problem for firefighters in South Africa fire.

thatched roof fire
A thatched room on a home in Cape St. Francis begins to burn as a wildfire approaches. Screen capture from SABC video.

Firefighters and residents applying water to houses with thatched roofs were able to prevent them from being destroyed when a large vegetation fire spread into an upscale community in South Africa. The roofs that did ignite from airborne burning embers were extinguished before major damage was done.

Officials from the National Sea Rescue Institute said on Monday that the fire at Cape St Francis (map) was most likely started by a flare that landed in brush and eventually burned thousands of hectares.

A video showed helicopters dipping water out of swimming pools, even though the ocean was a few hundred yards away.

Thatched roofs, made from dry vegetation such as straw, water reed, sedge, rushes, or heather have been used for centuries, but in recents years have become the choice of affluent people who desire a rustic look for their home or prefer a more ecologically friendly roof material.

Description for the video above which was uploaded to YouTube on January 25, 2016:
“25 Jan 2015. Early morning hours. A raging brush fire somehow goes past the Hide-out most probably due to the efforts of Mush, James, Romeo and Lawrence spraying water on the thatch roof for hours before the fire arrived. Big thanks to the CSF, SF and PE fire departments as well.”

The next video from SABC News includes on scene reports of the active fire and has a couple of shots of small fires on the roofs of homes.

Good weather for the Pack Test in Arizona

Author BillPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags , ,

While a blizzard was hitting the eastern U.S. on Friday, firefighters in Arizona were taking the Pack Test.

Pack Test Arizona
Members of the Tribal Nations Response Team take the pack test in Sacaton, AZ January 22, 2016. Photo by Tom Story.

There was no snow slowing down the members of the Tribal Nations Response Team who took the pack test in Sacaton, Arizona on Friday. The team, which supplies personnel for Type 2 IA, Type 2, and camp crews, draws many of its members from the Gila River, Fort McDowell and Salt River-Pima-Maricopa Indian Communities in the Phoenix area, as well as the Pascua Yaqui Tribe south of Tucson.

All the participants easily completed the test and after their safety refresher or S-130/S-190 class will be ready to go.

pack test Arizona
Members of the Tribal Nations Response Team take the pack test in Sacaton, AZ January 22, 2016. Photo by Tom Story.

 

Making fire shelter training more interesting

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags , 1 Comment on Making fire shelter training more interesting

If a wildland firefighter has to take refuge in their shelter that is supposed to help protect them from the heat of a fire if they are entrapped, most likely the extreme fire behavior that requires this last resort action is caused partially by strong winds. So it makes sense to practice deploying the devices in conditions similar to what they would find if they actually had to use them.

The firefighters and staff at Big Cypress National Preserve in Florida understand this and fired up an air boat during the annual training.

Firefighters in Tasmania battling numerous fires

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags ,

More than 50 fires are burning uncontrolled across Tasmaina in Australia.

Map of fires in Tasmania
Map of fires in Tasmania.

Firefighters in Tasmania have had their hands full in recent days dealing with a rash of fires burning across the island state south of the Australian mainland. More than 42,000 hectares (103,000 acres) have burned in the past 10 days.

At least partially due to moderating weather, all of the fires are now at the “Advice” warning level or lower, meaning people in the area should keep up to date with developments, but there is no immediate need to start taking action or to evacuate.

Approximately 100 firefighters from New South Wales and Victoria on the Australian mainland will travel to Tasmania Saturday to assist with the fires. Equipment, including two firefighting helicopters from New South Wales, is already on its way. NSW is also sending an 18-person Incident Management Team.

One of the larger fires has burned almost 18,000 hectares (44,000 acres) 28 kilometers (17 miles) south of Smithton in the general vicinity of Sumac Road, Dempster Plains, and Temma. Parts of the fire have not spread recently but the western, northern and southern edges remain active. There has been a run from the northeast corner through the Luncheon Hill area. The fire is east of the Western Explorer Road and has crossed Tarkine Wilderness Drive. Crews are working in the northwest area of the fire to protect forests assets.

fires in Tasmania

Report released for rollover of BLM truck in Arizona

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags , , 1 Comment on Report released for rollover of BLM truck in Arizona

A BLM truck rolled over in northwest Arizona while assigned to the High Meadow Fire. 

BLM truck rollover Arizona

The Bureau of Land Management has released a report about the rollover of a utility vehicle, a Ford F-350 Crew Cab flatbed truck, that occurred August 13, 2015 in northwest Arizona about 26 miles southeast of St. George, Utah. The driver, an Administratively Determined (AD) employee, not a regular BLM employee, was hauling supplies back from the High Meadow Fire and sustained a minor injury.

The findings in the report included the following:

  • The vehicle’s data recorder indicated the truck was going 51 mph five seconds before the crash.
  • The speed limit was not posted on the road. After a week of investigation, it was found that the “legal speed on the road was 35 mph”.
  • The investigators found that multiple accidents had occurred within 20 yards of the rollover.
  • Due to the mechanism of the accident it was feared that the driver could have a serious injury and should be transported to a hospital. However it would have taken 2.5 hours for an ambulance to get to the scene. After two assessments by individuals with medical training, the employee was taken to a hospital in a government vehicle.
  • The document that authorizes a BLM employee to operate a government vehicle, BLM Form 1112-11, was missing in the person’s personnel folder.
  • The AD employee and most of the district staff personnel could not determine who the supervisor of record was for him or other AD employees during the fire incident. The report indicated that the person was “conducting logistical support” for the High Meadow Fire.
  • A Wilderness First Responder and EMTs were valuable in assessing the patient and getting him the appropriate care for an accident in a remote area.
  • The investigators recommended that all engine crews and fire modules have an EMT in place to help assess situations and get initial care started for accidents that occur in remote areas.

—Our commentary about the frequency of fire engine rollovers.
—Articles tagged Rollover.

Washington’s Commissioner of Public Lands asks for increased wildfire funding

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags
Chelan Fires
First Creek Fire, Okanogan-Wenatchee NF, Washington, 2015; burn operation in Morning Sun Estates. Photo by Kari Greer.

Washington state’s Commissioner of Public lands has written an opinion piece making his case for increased funding for managing wildfires in the state.

In the excerpt below Peter Goldmark had just referred to the fires near Lake Chelan:

…It was a grim preview of the toll wildfire would eventually take across our state in 2015: burning more than a million acres; destroying 307 homes; robbing tribal communities of timber revenue and hunting grounds; and killing three Washington firefighters who were protecting homes on a hillside of Ponderosa pines near the Twisp River. It would cost state taxpayers $164 million.

The destruction of 2015 surpassed that of 2014, when the Carlton complex fire scorched 256,000 acres, the worst wildfire ever in our state. That season cost Washington taxpayers $99 million.

After two horrific wildfire seasons in a row, we need to prepare for the danger wildfire presents to our people, communities, forests and grasslands. Some legislators in both parties and Gov. Jay Inslee have declared willingness to increase funding. Yet, as the January rains fall in Olympia, the urgency fades for other lawmakers.

That’s dangerous. The lessons from 2014 and 2015 must shape how we prepare for future fire seasons.

I’m asking the Legislature now for $24 million to prepare our state for this fire season and beyond. This is roughly twice what Gov. Inslee proposed in his budget.

We need more firefighters. We need them positioned in the most fire-prone areas of the state. We need to provide grants to local fire districts to boost their capabilities. We need to train volunteers, National Guard troops, and local firefighters alongside professional Department of Natural Resource firefighters. We need experienced fire commanders to lead them, using modern radio equipment. We need to thin and maintain our forests, and help homeowners and communities clear vegetation to protect themselves from fire…

****

Commissioner of Public Lands Peter Goldmark heads the Washington state Department of Natural Resources.