WILDFIRE NEWS OF THE DAY - 100208

There were a number of articles out of San Diego today, beginning with a study done by UCSD on understanding the effects of wildfire pollution, including credits to two members of the San Diego Regional Fire Safety Forum, Steve Erie and Richard Carson. Next up, two articles from Ramona, the first discussing public participation and understanding in wildfire mitigation, the second about a family who lost their home in the 2007 wildfires, but have received a donated one. KPBS aired a segment about the new defensible-space law, while Miramar is having an air show that will feature an S-2T from Cal Fire, along with an old Stearman like the type used by the first USFS air-tanker crews back in the '50s! Staying in California, four more stories discuss wildfires in the Los Padres National Forest (one at the north end, one at the south), the Trinity-Shasta area, and Sequoia National Park. Moving east, three small blazes broke out in Colorado, while an arson fire in Kentucky slumbers fitfully. Moving back to the far west, trouble in paradise again as a wildfire scorches some vegetation near Pearl Harbor. Several preventative and restoration projects are underway, beginning with one in North Carolina, where over 40,000 acres were scorched, moving next to Idaho, where about 400 miles of trails are being cleaned up, from there to the Manzano Mountains of New Mexico, and finally to some controlled burns in South Dakota. Arson stories appear in the next four entries: the first from Oregon, where a spate of suspicious wildfires cropped up over the summer; next to Arizona, where three young men accidentally started a wildfire; then down under, where someone is torching grass trees in Western Australia; and then to New South Wales, where another arsonist hunt is underway. Finally, a cautionary tale from Florida about the importance of not taking any souvenirs from a crash site, particularly body parts (just put the foot down and back away slowly...)

One Year after California’s Devastating 2007 Wildfires, Environmental and Health Effects of Smoke Better Understood

Olesons get keys to donated home

New Defensible Space Law Seeks To Reduce Damage From Wildfires

Clear the runway

Los Padres forest fire now 13 percent contained

Fire erupts in Ventura County forest

Crews respond to 3 new fires in Trinity County

Sequoia fires under control

150 Acre Wildfire Erupts in El Paso County

Volunteers injured fighting 127-acre Jay Fire

Larimer County Fires Keep Firefighters Busy

Fire in south-central Ky. continues to smolder

Hillside wildfire in Kunia burns 55 acres

Pocosin Lakes National Wildlife Refuge Recovers from Wildfire

Wilderness trails get overhaul after wildfires

Project Expands Plan For Wildfire Protection

Controlled burns underway in Black Hills

Summer blazes ignite more mayhem and mystery than answers

3 Texans guilty in Grand Canyon wildfire case

Grass trees targeted by arsonist

Already in the line of fire

Severed Foot Update: Firefighter Resigns