WILDFIRE NEWS OF THE DAY - 050209
Wildfire news today begins with FEMA digging deeper into the $9.4 million clean-up contractors conducted in San Diego after the 2007 wildfires there; followed by a story about how former CAL FIRE Air Ops Chief Mike Padilla is under scrutiny by state officials over his dealings with CAL FIRE aviation contractor DynCorp International (his current employer) while still working for CAL FIRE. The continuing saga of the battle over Santa Maria's air-tanker base status is updated by the next item; and firefighters in Northern Arizona were breathing a sigh of relief that there was no wind when a wildfire started at the base of a hill with homes on top. With budget cuts of up to 30% in some categories, Oregon Department of Forestry is concerned about their response to wildfires this year; but despite a calmer spring fire season than last year, Virginia fire officials are not letting up their guard as fire season comes to an end this year. A wildfire expert from Tennessee fills homeowners in on how to protect their homes from wildfires; while a silent auction is being held in North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, to help people who suffered losses in the recent wildfire there, but with an estimated $25 million in property losses alone, it will take a lot of auctions to make a difference. Pristine arctic air in Alaska is getting sullied by smoke from Siberian wildfires, among other things. A trio of stories from Halifax, Nova Scotia: taking no chances of a flare-up, firefighters are sticking around to make sure the largest wildfire in that city's history is well and truly dead; one city official touring the burn areas was amazed at how much damage the fires had done; while neighboring New Brunswick is taking a closer look at what just happened in Nova Scotia and wondering if it could happen there as well. Parts of Spain are under a burn ban as winds pick up in areas that are at high fire risk. India's own version of Southern California's Santa Ana winds are blowing across northern states, keeping fire agencies on the alert; and firefighters, afraid of Maoist rebels and wild animals in the forest, have begged off fighting a blaze in India's Orissa state for over a month. A detailed analysis of Victoria's fire funding plans is provided in the next item. And finally, high-tech giant Google is employing 800 self-propelled weed-eaters to keep the vegetation trimmed around their Mountain View, California, campus, thereby abating the wildfire danger.
FEMA wants probe of wildfire cleanup program
Fire official's job jump draws state review
Fire, forest officials at odds over SMX tanker base
Wildfire near Forest Highlands chars 7.5 acres
Possible ODF budget cuts could hurt wildfire response
Forest Fires Still A Concern In VA
Wildfire expert's tips could save homes
Auction to raise money for SC wildfire victims
Springtime smoke in Siberia is our arctic haze
Firefighters to remain in Spryfield for a few days
Halifax official surprised by forest fire's damage
Take heed of lessons learned from N.S. brush fire
Emergency declared over forest-fire risk
Hot winds sweep into HP, forest fires reported
Fire broke out in Malkangiri Chitrakonda forest of Orissa
$200m from fire shield
Google fields low-tech wildfire prevention: goats
Wildfire news today begins with FEMA digging deeper into the $9.4 million clean-up contractors conducted in San Diego after the 2007 wildfires there; followed by a story about how former CAL FIRE Air Ops Chief Mike Padilla is under scrutiny by state officials over his dealings with CAL FIRE aviation contractor DynCorp International (his current employer) while still working for CAL FIRE. The continuing saga of the battle over Santa Maria's air-tanker base status is updated by the next item; and firefighters in Northern Arizona were breathing a sigh of relief that there was no wind when a wildfire started at the base of a hill with homes on top. With budget cuts of up to 30% in some categories, Oregon Department of Forestry is concerned about their response to wildfires this year; but despite a calmer spring fire season than last year, Virginia fire officials are not letting up their guard as fire season comes to an end this year. A wildfire expert from Tennessee fills homeowners in on how to protect their homes from wildfires; while a silent auction is being held in North Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, to help people who suffered losses in the recent wildfire there, but with an estimated $25 million in property losses alone, it will take a lot of auctions to make a difference. Pristine arctic air in Alaska is getting sullied by smoke from Siberian wildfires, among other things. A trio of stories from Halifax, Nova Scotia: taking no chances of a flare-up, firefighters are sticking around to make sure the largest wildfire in that city's history is well and truly dead; one city official touring the burn areas was amazed at how much damage the fires had done; while neighboring New Brunswick is taking a closer look at what just happened in Nova Scotia and wondering if it could happen there as well. Parts of Spain are under a burn ban as winds pick up in areas that are at high fire risk. India's own version of Southern California's Santa Ana winds are blowing across northern states, keeping fire agencies on the alert; and firefighters, afraid of Maoist rebels and wild animals in the forest, have begged off fighting a blaze in India's Orissa state for over a month. A detailed analysis of Victoria's fire funding plans is provided in the next item. And finally, high-tech giant Google is employing 800 self-propelled weed-eaters to keep the vegetation trimmed around their Mountain View, California, campus, thereby abating the wildfire danger.
FEMA wants probe of wildfire cleanup program
Fire official's job jump draws state review
Fire, forest officials at odds over SMX tanker base
Wildfire near Forest Highlands chars 7.5 acres
Possible ODF budget cuts could hurt wildfire response
Forest Fires Still A Concern In VA
Wildfire expert's tips could save homes
Auction to raise money for SC wildfire victims
Springtime smoke in Siberia is our arctic haze
Firefighters to remain in Spryfield for a few days
Halifax official surprised by forest fire's damage
Take heed of lessons learned from N.S. brush fire
Emergency declared over forest-fire risk
Hot winds sweep into HP, forest fires reported
Fire broke out in Malkangiri Chitrakonda forest of Orissa
$200m from fire shield
Google fields low-tech wildfire prevention: goats
Labels: air-tankers, bushfires, firefighting, forest fires, wildfires
posted by Michael Archer @ 5:39 PM
0 comments
