Wildfire Today

Helicopter crashes while surveying wildfire in New Zealand

Bill GabbertNovember 30, 2011January 4, 2012Uncategorizedhelicopter

Two people are missing after a helicopter that was being used to survey a wildfire in the Northland of New Zealand (map) crashed Wednesday night, November 30. The two people onboard, believed to be a Department of Conservation staff member and long-time far North pilot, were on a reconnaissance flight over a fire. The helicopter was last heard from at approximately 11 p.m. and was found the next morning by the crew on a fishing trawler in seven to ten meters of water a few hundred meters off shore. It is unknown if the two people were still in the helicopter which is owned by Salt Air, of Kerikeri, and believed to be a light single engine Eurocopter Squirrel.

Maitai Bay — The area of the fire and the crash of the helicopter.

According to Stuff.co.nz, the fire had burned about 148 acres and is controlled on the southern side but was still spreading on the northern perimeter. Three homes are reportedly destroyed.

Some of the residents fled from the fire into the sea and were rescued by boat. This also happened about a week ago in Australia when residents who refused to evacuate took refuge in the ocean and were transported by jet ski out to a waiting rescue boat.

Our sincere condolences go out to the families and co-workers.

U.S. Forest Service firefighter sentenced to 2 years for starting fire

Bill GabbertNovember 30, 2011August 25, 2019Uncategorizedarson14 Comments

A firefighter for the U.S. Forest Service on Monday accepted a plea deal to serve two years in prison for starting a wildfire while he was on duty July 25, 2010 in southern California near Rancho Cucamonga (map). A trial was scheduled to begin Monday, but Daniel Mariano Madrigal, 26, and his attorney surprised San Bernardino County Deputy District Attorney Karen Khim with an offer to plead no contest and to serve two years. After some negotiation, the two sides agreed on the deal, which will probably result in Madrigal actually serving about 9 months, according to Christopher Lee, a spokesperson for the District Attorney’s office.

Prosecutors had alleged Madrigal “willfully, unlawfully and maliciously” set fire to forest land or caused it to burn.

Before the trial, Madrigal’s attorney, Salvador Silva, contended that the fire was an accident, according to an article in the Contra Costa Times:

The defendant was working that day and had driven his truck to an area east of the dam near a water tower to make a cell phone call. A cigarette he was smoking burned him, and he tossed it, according to the defense.

Madrigal looked for the cigarette in his truck, but he couldn’t find it. When he saw that a fire had started, the defense says Madrigal went back to the station. He and a captain drove a fire engine back to the fire and put it out.

Prosecutors say the fire burned about one-tenth of an acre, but Silva said the fire was much smaller.

Documentary about Fourmile Canyon fire

Bill GabbertNovember 30, 2011January 4, 2018UncategorizedColorado, Fourmile Canyon Fire

I wish I had known about it earlier, but last night Colorado Public Television aired a documentary about the Fourmile Canyon fire that burned 6,200 acres and destroyed 168 homes west of Boulder, Colorado on Labor Day in 2010. The documentary tells the story of seven residents who refused to evacuate but fought the fire on their own.

Here is the trailer for the program.

Did anyone see it Tuesday night?

More information about the program.

Articles on Wildfire Today about the Fourmile Canyon fire.

AAR released for Labor Day fires in Travis County, Texas

Bill GabbertNovember 30, 2011November 30, 2011Uncategorized

Travis County AAR — A STAR Flight helicopter assists with fire suppression on the Steiner Ranch fire in Travis County, Texas. Photo from the cover of the After Action Review.

The Travis County Office of Emergency Management has released an After Action Review for six wildfires that started on September 4, 2011 that destroyed 57 homes in Texas. They started on the same day that the Bastrop Complex Fire started which consumed 34,000 acres and destroyed 1,600 homes.

The entire ARR is HERE. Below is an excerpt from the Conclusions section of the report:

The 2011 Labor Day Weekend fires presented Travis County fire departments with a scenario that was unlike any that had been witnessed in the lives of many of the participants. With numerous fires burning in Travis County and throughout the State of Texas, fire departments were left with using what resources were available to them on a local basis. Many of the responses were directly related to the magnitude of the event and the lack of resources normally available. The AAR will provide Travis County an opportunity to look at the deficiencies noted in the report and take corrective actions. Some corrective actions are already in the planning stages such as Public Information Training for additional field PIOs and increased public awareness through the social media. Other opportunities will be looked at to determine what steps need to be taken in order to correct some of the issues noted in the AAR.

Coverage of NTSB public aircraft oversight forum

Bill GabbertNovember 30, 2011August 25, 2019Uncategorizedair tanker, helicopter

NTSB forum on public aircraft — Deborah Hersman, Chairperson

The National Transportation Safety Board’s forum on the oversight of public aircraft is underway in Washington, D.C. You can view a live stream of the event at the NTSB web site. I could not get the Windows Media Player version to work, but the Flash Player is working fine.

HERE is more information about the forum, and how it may affect the use of firefighting aircraft operated by government agencies.

We will view it occasionally today and tomorrow and will post updates below. If you are watching it, let us know what your impressions are.

The agenda lists the following individuals that are scheduled to represent land management agencies:

William Payne, California Dept. of Forestry and Fire Prevention
Tom Short, Los Angeles County Fire Department
Arthur Hinaman, U.S. Forest Service
Keith Raley, U.S. Department of Interior
Harlan Johnson, U.S. Department of Interior

Contractors scheduled to speak:

Mark Gibson, Timberland Logging
Dan Snyder, Neptune Aviation
Brian Beattie, Croman Corporation
Richard Fischer, National Security Technologies

Below is the agenda, and our comments about the ongoing forum.
Continue reading “Coverage of NTSB public aircraft oversight forum”

Everglades National Park to burn 31,000 acres

Bill GabbertNovember 29, 2011August 25, 2019UncategorizedEverglades, Florida, prescribed fire5 Comments

File photo. Everglades National Park, Coastal Prairie prescribed fire, May, 2011. NPS photo by Jennifer Brown

Today and tomorrow Everglades National Park in south Florida expects to burn 31,000 acres in one project. The prescribed fire will be part of their continuing program control exotic species and reduce fuel in the area south of U.S. 41, east of the Shark Valley park entrance.

Equipment to be used on the “River of Grass Northeast” project will include three engines, two helicopters, a single-engine air tanker, and one airboat.

At 2:00 p.m. ET we talked with the park’s information officer, Linda Friar, who said the prescribed fire started at 11:00 a.m. ET and so far was going well. We will post an update to this article later today or tomorrow as the burn progresses.

From the photo below, it appears that personnel flying over the Everglades National Park’s Coastal Prairie Prescribed Fire in May, 2011 were a little casual in their choice of attire. In most government-operated helicopters working on a fire, a helmet and fire resistant clothing would be required. More National Park Service photos from that prescribed fire are on the park’s flickr page. UPDATE: As you can see in the comments below this article, we heard from Rick Anderson, the Fire Management Officer for Everglades National Park, who said:

That photo is Huw Cordry of Wild Horizons LTD, you may know his work from the “Planet Earth” series filming a fire on our coastal prairies. This is not a NPS mission and the ship is private.. Thanks for your comments on aviation safety. Everglades Fire and Aviation flies around 500 missions a year with an excellent safety record. We seek safety in everything we do.

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