WILDFIRE NEWS OF THE DAY - 071009

CAL FIRE has added another jet to the stable of air-tankers available to fight wildfires in California, as the 747 Supertanker makes its debut; and they may all be needed, as temperatures go up in Southern California, pushing the danger level in the Angeles National Forest to 'very high'. A small wildfire near Orosi, California, is being deemed suspicious by firefighters; and a small wildfire in Washington has been burning for a couple of days now, closing some hiking trails. A pair of wildfires burning along the Colorado/Utah border are being monitored by Bureau of Land Management; and as Texas withers through dry, hot weather, the fire danger is rapidly escalating in parts of that state. As Anchorage, Alaska, continues to have prime fire weather, firefighters are getting quite a workout with wildfires. Canadian aircraft and firefighters are being staged to parts of The Yukon in anticipation of a busy weekend ahead; and, in a first test of the new European Union firefighting force, France has requested aircraft to assist with fires on the island of Corsica. After weeks of merciless grilling and accusations directed at Country Fire Authority's chief, lawyers for the CFA are hitting back as Australia's Royal Bushfire Commission goes into recess. The Australian government was warned by a telecommunications provider about the antiquated phone systems and the danger their limitations posed to civilians six months before the Black Saturday bushfires. A senior researcher in the Office of the Emergency Services Commissioner and author of The Australian Bushfire Safety Guide weighs in on the current debate over bushfire policy. Different training and licensing standards hobbled powerline repair crews during and after bushfires in Australia. Even though it's officially wintertime in Australia, the city of Darwin had a trio of suspicious blazes threaten homes in the area. And finally, an article was submitted by Sam Gowen of the Orange County Register in which firefighters had to rescue a black-crowned night heron from a tree in Fullerton, California, (say what?!?)

Nation's largest air tanker to fight California wildfires

Fire Danger Level Raised In Angeles Forest

UPDATE: Firefighters close to containing 30-acre wildfire near Orosi; blaze's cause called suspicious by fire official

Wildfire closes trails near Holden Village

Crews monitoring wildfires in western Colo., Utah

Texas' dry, hot days expected to last awhile

Record wildfires in Anchorage pose problems

Yukon girds for more forest fires

European Union helps fight forest fires in France

CFA angst over chief's treatment

Telco gave warning on 000 faults

Let's not throw good policy into the fire

Black Sunday power delays 'a problem'

Fire threatens Darwin homes

Endangered bird rescued after snagged in tree