WILDFIRE NEWS OF THE DAY - 082509

First up in wildfire news today, a 65-acre wildfire in Kern County, California, has finally been brought under control. The former forest supervisor of the Willamette National Forest in Oregon comments on the balancing act necessary for healthy forests; even as firefighters struggled to contain a 48-acre wildfire in that state; and a dog that was caught in one of the wildfires succumbed to smoke and heat. Firefighters in Washington were taking no chances with a small wildfire, throwing half-a-dozen airtankers and 70 firefighters at the blaze. A wildfire burning in Utah is drawing quite a crowd of firefighters; but so far this year, Idaho fire agencies have had more problems with boredom than with wildfires. Texas Forest Service employed two bulldozers and an air tanker to rope in a small wildfire yesterday; while firefighters in Kentucky have earned a $500,000 windfall for help in preventing wildfires in that state. As wildfires brew up and evacuations are once again made, British Columbia, Canada, is suffering under another fire siege; but low fire activity in Alberta has allowed fire agencies to once again send more help to fight wildfires in BC. With over 150,000 acres burned so far this year, firefighters appear to finally have wildfires in Spain and Portugal under control. Firefighters in Greece are declaring victory over the wildfire that threatened Athens, but nearly 50,000 acres have burned in that country in the past few days; Balkan neighbor Macedonia dispatched help to fight the Greek wildfires, as the next article details; while insurance companies in Greece are not too worried about damage claims from the recent wildfires; and an insightful article from the BBC asks whether the recent Greek wildfires are an aberration or a trend of the future for southern Europe? At a time when wildfires in Greece have been making headlines, Turkey has also been beset with wildfires. A firefighter from Victoria recalls the intense radiated heat from the Black Saturday bushfires that melted glass and set his house ablaze; but the situation was exacerbated by a council's refusal to let residents clear "hazard” vegetation from their property before the fires. Although building officials were able to unveil new bushfire building codes fairly quickly, a companion handbook may not be available until the end of this year; and bushfire bunker specifications could take years to complete. Air-tankers and firefighters battled the blaze along New South Wales' central coast; while a pair of water-dropping helicopters were used on a wildfire burning in rugged terrain in southeast Queensland. And finally, in a testament to their ruggedness, a B-17 bomber which was used as an air-tanker for many years by Aero-Union, will be flying an air show at Chico in Central California!

Lebec fire nearly under control

Oregon's forests: balancing protection with beneficial use

Wildfire chars 48 acres near O'Brien

Dog perishes in Southern Oregon wildfire

Brush fire near Kettle Falls brings in heavy duty support

Winds fan wildfire south of Scipio

Idaho fire season one of the slowest on record

Forest Service helps battle fire near Alice

Volunteer Fire Departments To Get Grants

Evacuation Order for Notch Hill Fire

Alberta sending more crews to help battle raging forest fires in B.C.

Wildfires under control on Iberian Peninsula

Greece: Athens wildfires under control

Macedonia to help Greece fight wildfires

Greek insurers see limited impact from wildfires

Forest fires - a continuing Greek tragedy?

17 forest fires destroy 503 hectares in one day

Firefighting family couldn't save home

Council protected bushfire 'hazard' vegetation

Victorian bushfires building handbook delayed

Bushfire bunker standards may take years

Choppers dousing central coast wildfire

Water bombs used for Qld bushfire

Air show to include bombs & booms