Wildfire Today

News and opinion about wildland fire

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Apache 8 documentary about all-women fire crew

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags 7 Comments on Apache 8 documentary about all-women fire crew
Apache 8 fire crew
Apache 8 crew on a fire. Image courtesy of Aurelia Tate.

Apache 8, a documentary about an all-women Native American wildland fire crew, is making the rounds of film festivals and public television stations. So far it is scheduled to be shown on television stations in New Hampshire, Arizona, New Mexico, and Nevada. (UPDATE: it will air in South Dakota on Sunday, May 8th at 3pm central/2pm mountain time on the main channel, SDPB 1.)

Information from a fact sheet about the film:

Apache 8 tells the story of an all-women wildland firefighter crew from the White Mountain Apache Tribe, who have been fighting fires in Arizona and throughout the U.S. for over 30 years. The film delves into the challenging lives of these Native firefighters.

Four extraordinary women from different generations of the Apache 8 crew share their personal narratives with humor and tenderness. They speak of hardship and loss, family and community, and pride in being a firefighter from Fort Apache. Apache 8 weaves together a compelling tale of these remarkable firefighters.

To find out when it will be airing on your local PBS station, go to the “station finder” and click “change.” After entering your zip code click “next” a couple of times. If it is not scheduled, there is an email link at the station finder which you can use to ask them to show it. If you discover any airing dates that are not already listed above, let us know in a comment.

Here is a trailer for the film:

More information:

Thanks Dick

Arabia Bay fire, contained in November, burns another 10,000 acres

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories Uncategorized

The Arabia Bay fire caused serious smoke problems when it burned for three weeks in southern Georgia last fall. Schools closed, respiratory patients in hospitals were relocated, and sporting events were moved or cancelled. Wildfire Today covered it extensively until it was 100 percent contained on November 29 after burning 2,710 acres.

It roared back to life last week but now the spread has been slowed by 1/4″ of rain. Here is an update from the Georgia Forestry Commission:

Clinch County –Arabia Bay fire has burned 12,484 acres and is now 45 percent contained. Arabia Bay fire was ruled an act of arson when it originally ignited in November of 2010. Dry, windy conditions caused this previously contained fire to spread beyond containment lines.

WALB has an excellent video report on the fire.

Update on Hawaii’s volcano-caused fire

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags

Volcano fire update
Screen capture from Big Island Video News

The fire in Hawaii Volcanoes National Park that Wildfire Today first told you about on March 15 has burned about 2,000 acres but it is 80 percent contained as of Sunday. Big Island Video News has an interesting video update on the fire, but unfortunately we are not able to embed it here.

Fight fire with an electric wand?

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories Uncategorized

 

A methane flame shooting out from a burner is deflected by a wire electrode. Moments later, the flame went out. Jabulani Barber and Ludovico Cademartiri / Harvard

How would you like to put out a fire using an electric wand? Some Harvard researchers have figured out how to do that, at least on a small scale. Unfortunately they said it probably will not work on forest fires.

This week Ludovico Cademartiri presented information about this development at a conference sponsored by the American Chemical Society, which issued this press release.

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ANAHEIM, March 27, 2011 — A curtain of flame halts firefighters trying to rescue a family inside a burning home. One with a special backpack steps to the front, points a wand at the flame, and shoots a beam of electricity that opens a path through the flame for the others to pass and lead the family to safety.

Scientists today described a discovery that could underpin a new genre of fire-fighting devices, including sprinkler systems that suppress fires not with water, but with zaps of electric current, without soaking and irreparably damaging the contents of a home, business, or other structure. Reporting at the 241st National Meeting & Exposition of the American Chemical Society (ACS), Ludovico Cademartiri, Ph.D., and his colleagues in the group of George M. Whitesides, Ph.D., at Harvard University, picked up on a 200-year-old observation that electricity can affect the shape of flames, making flames bend, twist, turn, flicker, and even snuffing them out. However, precious little research had been done over the years on the phenomenon.

“Controlling fires is an enormously difficult challenge,” said Cademartiri, who reported on the research. “Our research has shown that by applying large electric fields we can suppress flames very rapidly. We’re very excited about the results of this relatively unexplored area of research.”

Firefighters currently use water, foam, powder and other substances to extinguish flames. The new technology could allow them to put out fires remotely — without delivering material to the flame — and suppress fires from a distance. The technology could also save water and avoid the use of fire-fighting materials that could potentially harm the environment, the scientists suggest.

Continue reading “Fight fire with an electric wand?”

National Cohesive Wildland Fire Management Strategy

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories Uncategorized

Today the U. S. Forest Service issued a news release. Here is an excerpt:

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Departments of Agriculture and Interior improve wildland fire management

WASHINGTON, March 28, 2011 — Today the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Department of the Interior (DOI) released two documents to address the wildland fire management challenges across America:

Together, these documents provide the framework for a three-phase, strategic effort to restore and maintain resilient landscapes, create fire-adapted communities, and respond to wildfires. The effort has been overseen by the Wildland Fire Leadership Council (WFLC), an intergovernmental body of federal, state, tribal and municipal stakeholders.

The documents’ creation and implementation is considered phase one and will serve as the foundation for the entire effort.Regional strategies will be developed in the next phase, and a national trade-off analysis will be conducted in the final phase. This phased approach will enhance the ability to plan for, respond to, and recover from wildland fire incidents.

“Wildland fire management is complex and involves a wide range of federal, state, local, tribal and non-governmental stakeholders,” said Rhea Suh, DOI Assistant Secretary for Policy, Management and Budget. “A key to success for this effort is its inclusiveness. This cohesive strategy effort has applicability and relevance across all wildland fire management agencies and jurisdictions — from rural fire departments to state forestry agencies and federal land management agencies.”

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More information about the Cohesive Strategy

 

A fire truck that suppresses fires without water

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags 6 Comments on A fire truck that suppresses fires without water
Image: Industrial Design Served, Fire Knight

This may be another invention to add to the list of Lame-Ass Ideas, but we’ll withhold judgement until more details are revealed.

From what we can gather from the diagrams, it appears that this vehicle is designed to spray sand at a forest fire. Yes, sand. The diagram includes interesting items such as:  sand pump, sand tank, blasting arm, and a vacuum digger.

Fire Knight details
Image: Industrial Design Served, Fire Knight

Other than the sketches, we can find only this description:

AT4FV All Terrain Field-Forest Fire Fighting Vehicle

Fireknight is inspired with hope for future by aiming extinguishing a fire without water. With this important fire extinguisher, Fire Knight, Dr. Hakan Gursu and his team has been deemed worthy of.

It won 2nd place in the “Sustainable Living/Environment Preservation – Rural Sustainable Design category in IDA 09 Competition”, and honorable Mention from “Green Dot Awards 2008, Concept Category”, whatever those are.

It may not meet “light hand on the land” guidelines with the “vacuum digger” and the sand blasting system, if that’s what it is.

It’s great when designers think outside the box when it comes to firefighting equipment. Remember the “Fire Reconnaissance Vehicle”? Not all of the ideas are going to be winners, especially if firefighters are not consulted, but over the last 100 years there have not been a lot of major advances in tools that a wildland firefighter can use. We’re still controlling fires by swinging sharpened pieces of metal attached to the ends of sticks.

UPDATE March 28, 2011:

After careful consideration, we have assigned this concept to the Lame-Ass Idea category. There is no written description that we can find, but it appears that the “vacuum-digger” rotates, loosens, and then vacuums up “sand”, dirt and no doubt vegetative matter, and deposits it in the “sand tank”. Then it is shot out the “blasting arm” toward the fire along with a lot of air. The air would fan the fire while the sand, dirt, and vegetative matter would, at best, cover some of the fire, slowing, but not putting out the combustion. At worst, the “blasting” would blow the fire all over hell while adding fuel to the fire.
Thanks J