Wildfire Today

New AD pay plans released

BillMarch 21, 2008July 30, 2019Uncategorized

The Departments of Interior and Agriculture released their AD (Administratively Determined) pay plans for federal emergency workers. (Click on the links to see the individual plans; both are Word documents.)

The AD Firefighter Association has a summary of the changes since last year:

1. Incorporates the General Schedule increase for the U.S. at 2.99 percent.
2. Clarifies that rates are established at the original point of hire.
3. Clarifies that post incident administration and emergency stablization efforts should not exceed 90 calendar days.
4. Adds that to work under this plan requires a social security number. This applies to US citizens as well as nonresident aliens.
5. Adds Aircraft Dispatcher AD-H; Aircraft Coordinator AD-I; General Support Clerk AD-C; Fire Effects Monitor AD-H; Fire Use Manager T2 AD-J; Removes Lead Plane Coordinator.

Incident Business Mgt. Handbook

BillMarch 19, 2008June 21, 2012Uncategorized

A new version of PMS 902 — Interagency Incident Business Management Handbook
February 2008 (11.12 Mbytes; PDF format) is available.

Oklahoma State Trooper burned on grass fire

BillMarch 18, 2008November 2, 2020WildfireOklahoma

Trooper Josh Tinsler, 23, was severely burned Friday while checking to see if there was anyone at home in a house that was threatened by a grass fire near Hollis, OK. While handling evacuation on the fire, the second-year trooper’s car became stuck while turning around and the car was overrun by the fire. His injuries included second- and third-degree burns on his face, chest, back and arms, including most of the right side of his body.

Intermittent Blogging

BillMarch 17, 2008September 12, 2012UncategorizedPhoto by Bill G

Blogging will be intermittent this week while I’m on Roatan Island. Feel free to talk among yourselves.

Large fires in southeast NM

BillMarch 15, 2008November 2, 2020WildfireNew Mexico

The Las Cruces Sun-News has the story about some large fires in southeast NM.

Grass fire burns homes, forces evacuations in southeastern NM
The Associated Press
Article Launched: 03/15/2008 12:36:04 AM MDT

HOBBS, N.M.—Firefighters are bracing for another day of fierce wind as they battle a grass fire that has raced across thousands of acres in southeastern New Mexico, taking with it four homes and forcing residents to evacuate.

The blaze began Friday as two separate fires. The first fire was reported around 3 p.m., a second fire was spotted about an hour later and the flames soon merged. By nightfall, it was 2 miles wide and 20 miles long and had burned across the state line into Texas, said Dan Ware, a spokesman with the State Forestry Division.

“The grass and the brush is still extremely thick and so it keeps adding fuel to this fire,” Ware said.

Firefighters were concerned about the rural community of Knowles, just west of the New Mexico-Texas line. They told residents scattered throughout the area to leave and they issued a voluntary evacuation for residents living north of Hobbs between N.M. 18 and N.M. 132. Ware could not say how many homes were in the area.

An evacuation center was set up at Hobbs High School.

More than 100 firefighters were battling the 25,600-acre fire, but gusting winds made the effort difficult, Ware said.

Winds ranging from 30 to 45 mph fed the flames Friday afternoon. The National Weather Service had issued a wind warning for the area but that expired late Friday and the wind speed dropped to under 30 mph overnight.