News and opinion about wildland fire
Red Flag Warnings for enhanced wildfire danger have been issued by the National Weather Service for areas in New Mexico, Colorado, Kansas, and Nebraska.
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The map above was current as of 1:00 p.m. MT on Monday. Red Flag Warnings can change throughout the day as the National Weather Service offices around the country update and revise their forecasts. For the most current data, visit this NWS site.
Portions of New Mexico, Texas, and Colorado are under Red Flag Warnings today.
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The map above was current as of 2:20 p.m. MT on Sunday. Red Flag Warnings can change throughout the day as the National Weather Service offices around the country update and revise their forecasts. For the most current data, visit this NWS site.
Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories Uncategorized12 Comments on Extracting an injured firefighter – in 2 hours and 15 minutes 
The Wildfire Lessons Learned Center has released a video documenting the extraction of an injured firefighter from the 2011 Las Conchas Fire in northern New Mexico. Kenny Lovell of the Craig Interagency Hotshots is interviewed in the video and tells his story of being seriously injured, treated, and transported after being hit by a rolling rock. He suffered a broken pelvis, a broken fibula, and a large hematoma.
The title of the video, ROCK! Firefighter Extraction Success Story, describes the incident as a success. It was, in the sense that the Hotshot crew had access to equipment which was transported to the accident scene to treat and package the victim, there were several EMTs on the crew, the Hotshots had drilled for similar incidents, a helicopter with short haul capability was available, and 5 months later Mr. Lovell returned to work on the Hotshot crew. All that is great and the Hotshots and the helitack crew deserve praise for accomplishing what they did with the resources that were available..
Having said that, it is still troubling that 2 hours and 15 minutes elapsed before Mr. Lovell departed the accident scene in a helicopter, and 30 minutes later he arrived at a hospital. On the Deer Park fire in 2010 a firefighter with a broken femur was on the ground for 4 hours and 23 minutes before he was transported in a helicopter. And firefighter Andrew Palmer, who bled to death from a broken femur suffered on a fire in 2008, spent 2 hours and 51 minutes at the accident scene before he was extracted via hoist on a Coast Guard helicopter.
Agencies who place firefighters in remote areas should realize they have the ethical responsibility to supply the training, equipment, and aviation resources to at least begin transporting by air a seriously injured firefighter within an hour. I am surprised that OSHA has not cited the federal agencies for this. Of course getting injured firefighters to an appropriate hospital within the Golden Hour would be ideal, but depending on the distance involved that could be difficult. A helicopter with short haul capability can be helpful, but it is not the quickest or most efficient method for extracting an injured person. It involves several steps, especially, like in this case, when the helicopter responds to the scene without being fully configured for short haul.
Several agencies have helicopters with hoists which can quickly extract and then transport injured personnel from remote locations, including CAL FIRE, Los Angeles County Fire Department, and the Coast Guard. If the other federal and state agencies decided to take that step, it would not have to be a trial program with one helicopter like the U.S. Forest Service night flying helicopter effort this year, because other agencies have been using hoists (and night vision goggles) for decades,
“The organization is ethically and morally obligated to put an EMS program in place that is supported by the organization, and given the standardized training and equipment to make the program succeed.”
The above is from the 2010 facilitated learning analysis for the Deer Park Fire extraction, quoting a Senior Firefighter/Paramedic on the Sawtooth Helitack Crew.
Thanks go out to Brit
Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories Uncategorized3 Comments on Red flag warnings for portions of New Mexico, Texas, and Florida 
The National Weather Service has issued a Red Flag Warning for dry and windy conditions between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. MT today in the Guadalupe and Davis mountains, Van Horn, Highway 54 corridor, Reeves County, Upper Trans Pecos, Stockton Plateau, and Terrell County. The NWS forecast predicts the winds will be 20 to 30 mph with the relative humidity between 5 and 10 percent.
There is also a Red Flag Warning for an area in the Florida panhandle between Pensacola and Tallahassee until 6 p.m. CST today for a relative humidity below 35 percent and an Energy Release Component at or above 20.
In case there is a fire:
The U.S. Forest Service does not have any large air tankers on exclusive use contracts at the present time. They issued a solicitation for “next generation” air tankers 15 months ago, but no contracts have been awarded. The contracts for the existing Korean War vintage air tankers, and Neptune’s new-ish BAe-146s, expired in 2012. Usually air tankers come on duty in Alamorgordo, New Mexico in mid-February and in Boise in late February.
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The map above was current as of 12:10 p.m. MT on Monday. Red Flag Warnings can change throughout the day as the dozens of National Weather Service offices around the country update and revise their forecasts. For the most current data, visit this NWS site.
A bill has been introduced in the New Mexico state legislature that would attempt to transfer ownership of the National Forests and Bureau of Land Management lands in New Mexico to the state. Representative Yvette Herrell, R-Alamogordo, and Senator Richard C. Martinez, D-Espanola believe this would increase timber harvesting and decrease the number of wildfires.
Here is an excerpt from an article at HispanicBusiness.com:
“In my home of Otero County, we would greatly benefit from this act as it has the potential to allow for a renewal of the timber industry,” Herrell said. “A healthy timber industry, managed responsibly by New Mexicans, would not only help our economy by creating a large number of jobs, but it would also help to protect our watersheds and keep our forests as livable habitat for all wildlife. Additionally, by responsibly thinning our overgrown forests, we can help decrease the devastation of wildfires. As it is currently, the federal government has logging restrictions that keep our forests overgrown, creating a hazardous environment. When a fire starts, the overgrowth serves as kindling, creating a massive forest fire that threatens the safety of our homes and communities.”
Herrell said it is time to put an end to the wildland fire danger.
The legislation is similar to the Transfer of Public Lands Act enacted last year in Utah. But an analysis by the Utah Office of Legislative Research and General Counsel cautioned lawmakers and the governor that the act would interfere with Congress’ power to dispose of public lands. The review noted that any attempt by Utah to enforce the requirement would have a high probability of being declared unconstitutional.
Staff in the New Mexico Attorney General’s Office normally reviews proposed legislation.
“This bill does not show up on our public records site yet,” Phil Sisneros, director of communications for the AG’s office said Thursday. “That means either it is still being reviewed or it has not come to us for analysis.”
Seven firefighters were injured in the rollover of a Bureau of Land Management crew carrier in New Mexico on Tuesday, November 13. The injured personnel were part of a 20-person crew returning from an assignment in support of recovery from Hurricane Sandy when the truck overturned approximately five miles south of Taos, New Mexico. The firefighters were being transported from the Albuquerque, New Mexico airport to their home units.
According to a 24-hour report from the BLM:
Nine people were on board the vehicle: Seven BLM employees and two U.S. Forest Service employees.
One BLM employee and one U.S. Forest Service employee received serious but not life-threatening injuries, and remain hospitalized. The BLM employee was airlifted by helicopter to the hospital in Santa Fe, New Mexico. The U.S. Forest Service employee was transported to the hospital in Taos, New Mexico.
The seven other employees (six BLM, one U.S. Forest Service) were taken to the hospital for observation/or received treatment of minor injuries and were released.
An Interagency Fire Serious Accident Investigation Team and a Critical Incident Stress Management Team have been ordered.
We will hope for a speedy recovery for the injured firefighters.
Other crew carrier accidents in recent years:
