WILDFIRE NEWS OF THE DAY - 121509

Residents of Orange County, California, have been provided with an online wildfire survey as part of efforts by Orange County Fire Authority to prepare for fire season (1); while arson investigators are labeling the origins of the Sheep Fire suspicious (2). Thanks to the rainy weather lately, fire restrictions have been lifted in Los Padres National Forest northwest of Los Angeles (3); but despite the fact that wildfire season is still months away, residents of Ashland, Oregon, are considering how best to defend their properties from wildfires (4). Fire agencies tested the reverse 911 system in Spokane, Washington, that will be useful for wildfire evacuations (5); while 'Forest Guard ', the fire detection brainchild of a group of Nevada school kids, will be broadcasting its first images to delegates at the Climate Change conference in Copenhagen, Denmark (6). Conferees at the Climate Change conference are seeing REDD as a potential means to reduce carbon emissions and deforestation in Indonesia, Brazil, and other developing nations where rampant wildfires are common (7); and a new initiative in Brazil could help to re-forest areas that have been ravaged by wildfires, both accidental and deliberate (8). A governor in Gambia, Africa, is urging residents of his district to refrain from setting forest fires and conducting illegal logging (9); while China is taking notes on how best to run one of their national parks (including controlled burns) from Zion National Park in Utah (10). Another story about the DC-10's arrival in Australia sums up their contribution as being an 'insurance policy' to protect Victoria through March (11). A trio of stories about the Royal Bushfire Commission hearings as they close down for this year is up next: reservations about bushfire warning messages reaching threatened communities in time were aired (12); better guidelines for powerline safety in Australia are being proposed by experts (13); and there was some confusion over establishment of bushfire refuges in Victoria, with only a handful of areas having been so designated (14). Speaking of bushfire refuges, residents of a South Australia community at risk from bushfires were unable to enter a padlocked refuge that had supposedly been set aside by fire authorities (15); and a post-op of firefighting efforts in South Australia revealed some confusion in bushfire warnings to residents (16). Homeowners along South Australia's west coast are facing an increased bushfire threat (17); one of which was squelched by firefighters on the Eyre Peninsula yesterday (18). Communities in Australia Capital Territory will be a test zone for the new bushfire warning system on Thursday (19). And finally, in a scene straight out of a Hollywood movie, a former stunt man demonstrated his new firefighting contraption, which blasts wildfires with a 'shotgun' sprayer!

(1) Online wildfire survey aims to help firefighters

(2) Humans caused the Sheep Fire, investigators say

(3) Fire Restrictions Lifted In Los Padres National Forest

(4) Wildfire preparation urged

(5) County testing ‘reverse 911’

(6) 'Forest Eye' fire-detection system prototype installed

(7) Carbon price of $10/tonne could help save forests-report

(8) In One Brazilian Farm Town, Reviving The Forest

(9) Gambia: CRR Governor Deplores Illegal Forest Activities

(10) Zion forms relationship with nat'l park in China

(11) Water bomber state's bushfire 'insurance policy'

(12) Concern bushfire messages not getting through

(13) Stronger power line fire-safety strategies urged

(14) Only 3 of 90 bushfire 'safer places' ready

(15) Emergency code confusion

(16) Firefighters discuss bushfire fallout

(17) Bushfire threat on West Coast

(18) Firefighters stop SA bushfire's advance

(19) SMS bushfire warnings to be trialed

(20) Velocity Fire Force Tanker Demonstration