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Tag: prescribed fire

Prescribed fire training in Nebraska

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags , ,
Nebraska Rx fire academy
Nebraska prescribed fire academy, screen grab from Emily Kreutz video

The Nebraska Public Broadcasting System is reviewing their best stories of 2012, and among that group is their coverage of a prescribed fire academy sponsored by The Nature Conservancy near Gothenburn, Nebraska. The Nebraska PBS site has an interesting article as well as a video describing the training which occurred in March.

Here is an excerpt from the article:

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…More and more, field operations for controlled burns are dictated by knowledge gleaned from scientific research. It’s long been known fire behavior is influenced by weather, the amount and type of available fuel and the lay of the land.

Since so much knowledge has been passed from one generation to the next, there’s an unusual tension between new science and the traditional, often effective, methods of harnessing the benefits of fire.

“I think that prescribed burning is more of an art than a science, but you do have to understand fire behavior and use that,” said Doug Wisenhunt of the USDA’s Natural Resource Conservation Service. He admitted to mixed feelings about crews in the field relying too much on computer models and mathematical formulas.

“You can calculate some of that, but in general, it’s just kind of knowing how the fire is going to react when you are burning at that time.”

Escaped prescribed fire burns 800 acres in North Carolina

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags , , 3 Comments on Escaped prescribed fire burns 800 acres in North Carolina

Firefighters in North Carolina’s Pilot Mountain State Park hope to have an escaped prescribed fire 90 percent contained by the end of the day on Monday. On Thursday the burn boss and New River State Park Superintendent Joseph Shimel supervised the ignition of the fire intending to burn 180 acres, but in the afternoon a dead tree near the fireline torched, sending burning embers into steep terrain outside the project’s perimeter, eventually blackening about 800 acres over the weekend.

According to the Winston-Salem Journal, Charlie Peek, public information officer for the N.C. Division of Parks and Recreation said the escaped fire:

…pretty much illustrated why we need prescribed burns, because any time fire hits this area — leaf litter, debris and brush — it’s much more difficult to control, and things can get out of hand much more quickly.

Previously the largest prescribed fire in the Park had been 35 acres. Small burns had been conducted in 2004 and 2009.

Photos of the fire

A spokesperson talks about the fire in a video.

Prescribed fire smoke adds “texture” to views of the Grand Canyon

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags , 4 Comments on Prescribed fire smoke adds “texture” to views of the Grand Canyon
Smoke form Thompson prescribed fire, Grand Canyon
The caption for this photo on InciWeb reads: “Smoke from prescribed fires adds a special texture to the sunrise view from Mather Point.”

The Grand Canyon National Park employee who updated the InciWeb report for the Thompson prescribed fire put an interesting spin on the smoke visible from Mather Point,  describing it as as adding a “special texture” to the view. The park is conducting two prescribed fires in the North Rim area, the Thompson and Range projects totaling 2,600 acres.

Range Rx Fire, NPS photo
Range prescribed fire in Grand Canyon National Park. NPS photo
Cape Royal at sunset., NPS photo by Jessica Pope
Cape Royal in the Grand Canyon at sunset. NPS photo by Jessica Pope

Wildfire news, October 9, 2012

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags , , ,

Another claim against the USFS for escaped prescribed fire in Montana

Another land owner has filed a claim against the U.S. Forest Service for the 2010 Davis prescribed fire that escaped on the Helena National Forest and burned approximately 450 acres of private land belonging to multiple owners. In June Wildfire Today told you about three land owners who are suing the government seeking unspecified damages and a jury trial.

The latest claim is from Andy Skinner, who is asking for $137,770 for damage to his property. He is also asking for $50,000 for the time it has taken for him to research the damage and file the claim.

The Davis prescribed fire northwest of Helena, Montana escaped on August 26, 2010 and burned over 2,000 acres of private and U.S. Forest Service land.

Wildfire Today covered the Davis Fire extensively in 2010, and summarized some of the coverage on November 22, 2010 after the U.S. Forest Service released their report on the incident. We highlighted some of the issues that led to the escaped prescribed fire.

Minnie fire may burn for weeks

The Minnie fire in northwest Minnesota near Fourtown, between Upper Red Lake and Lake of the Woods, has moved into areas containing peat, and is now burning deep underground in the organic soil, making it extremely difficult to suppress. Unless the area receives a great deal of rain soon, it will most likely burn for weeks, or longer.

Extraordinary photo of vehicle fire

A motorist that had to stop when a vehicle fire in Missoula closed a road, took some photos of the burning car. One of them captured the moment a vessel inside the car exploded, demonstrating why firefighters need to employ proper tactics on these fires, and why adequate personal protective equipment should be worn.

Photos of prescribed fires, Oregon and Florida

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags , , 2 Comments on Photos of prescribed fires, Oregon and Florida
St.Vincent Island prescribed fire
St.Vincent Island prescribed fire USFWS photo by Brian Pippin

Today we have photos of prescribed fires in opposite corners of the United States, all are from U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service projects. The photo above is a prescribed fire on St. Vincent Island in north Florida (map). The entire 12,000-acre island is a USF&WS refuge. Brian Pippin took this photo from a helicopter during the the 1,150-acre burn.

The photos below show prescribed fires in Williamette Valley near Eugene, Oregon. More photos from similar projects can be found on their Facebook page.

USFWS Prescribed fire
Williamette Valley prescribed fire near Eugene, OR. USFWS photo

USFWS Prescribed fire in Williamette Valley

Thanks go out to Brian