WILDFIRE NEWS OF THE DAY - 072110

A landscaping crew hired to clear vegetation in the Southern California foothill community of La Canada/Flintridge apparently ignited a wildfire (1); and a fatal automobile crash near Gold Beach, Oregon, sparked a wildfire which closed Highway 101 briefly on Tuesday (2). Elsewhere in that state, a wildfire near Forest Grove has burned about 15 acres (3); while fire restrictions on the Umatilla National Forest, which straddles the border between Oregon and Washington, are being imposed by forest officials (4). An eight-acre wildfire near Soap Lake, Washington, has been contained (5); but another wildfire which has burned nearly 10 mi.² near Yakima is still only 85% contained (6). A wildfire in Arizona's Kaibab National Forest is being allowed to burn for ecological purposes (7); but lightning is being blamed for a pair of wildfires in Moffat County, Colorado (8). A small, lightning-sparked wildfire near Logan, Utah, has been contained (9); however, a quintet of wildfires set near Brigham Young University have been labeled suspicious (10). Insurance companies in Idaho are urging homeowners to clear defensible space around their homes in order to keep insurance rates down (11). An update on wildfires burning in Wyoming's Yellowstone National Park is provided by the next article (12); while a wildfire sparked by an abandoned campfire in rugged terrain is keeping Montana heli-tankers busy (13). Firefighters in Clay County, Florida, will be conducting controlled burns in Jennings State Forest (14); while a US Forest Service study published in Forest Science Magazine has shown that preparing one's home for wildfires pays big dividends (15). An enhanced visual system that utilizes near-infrared and signal processing capabilities to allow crews of firefighting aircraft to see through smoke and haze was successfully tested during wildfire suppression tests in Alaska (16); and NASA has unveiled a map of Earth's forests which can be used, in part, for wildfire education and deforestation studies (17). Canadian firefighters are still mopping up over a dozen wildfires which were sparked by lightning over the weekend in British Columbia (18); even as they keep a wary eye on thunderstorms rolling across the tinder-dry province (19). The Saskatchewan Outfitters Association feels that the provincial government hasn't done enough to prevent wildfires which have impacted their members' businesses (20). Firefighters in the UK had to battle a blaze in Ashdown Forest sparked by a flaming model plane (21); while the next article gives a view of one possible future for France's aerial firefighters, as EADS contemplates converting some of their aircraft to firefighting (22). As temperatures around the Moscow area rose to levels not seen since the 1930s, firefighters continued grappling with multiple wildfires outside the Russian capital (23); but an expert from the Jewish National Fund commented on the fact that human-caused wildfires have destroyed forests in Israel that may take 50 years to regrow (24). The African nation of Gambia plans to plant 1 million trees nationwide to replace canopy lost to illegal logging and bushfires (25). A study by Australia's National Insurance Brokers Association shows that premiums have risen between 10% and 30%, due in part to bushfires (26). One plaintiff in the Australia Capital Territory Supreme Court bushfire compensation trial has settled out of court (27); but another is in the fight until the bitter end (28). The woman who started Firefoxes, a Kinglake, Victoria, organization which helps bushfire survivors, took the place of bushfire recovery chair Christine Nixon at a speech (29); but a political tug-of-war is being played out in Victoria's government over the Royal Bushfire Commission's report (30). And finally, firefighters had to literally cut their way through the roof of an elderly woman's home in order to remove her body because garbage was piled up to within 1 foot of the ceiling!

(1) Crew hired to prevent forest fire in La Canada Flintridge likely caused one

(2) Fatal crash on Hwy 101 near Gold Beach starts wildfire

(3) David Hill wildfire worst locally in a generation

(4) Forest imposes fire restrictions on campers

(5) Wildfire east of Soap Lake contained to 8 acres

(6) Firefighters gain ground on Washington wildfire

(7) Juniper fire on Kaibab allowed to burn

(8) Lightning cause behind two Moffat County wildfires Monday

(9) Canyon fire under control

(10) Provo officials investigate 5 suspicious fire

(11) Wildfire Protection Could Safeguard Your Budget Too

(12) Yellowstone's Beach Fire grows to 500 acres

(13) Siegel fire keeps burning

(14) Prescribed Burn in Jennings State Forest

(15) Wildfire Prevention Pays Big Dividends In Florida, Study Finds

(16) Max-Viz. EVS Performance Exceeds Expectations on Wildfire Suppression Tests

(17) NASA plots first-of-a-kind map of the Earth’s forests

(18) Lightning storm sparks 16 blazes

(19) Dry weather, lightning equals recipe for forest fires

(20) Saskatchewan forest fires a disaster: outfitter

(21) Model plane causes fire in Ashdown Forest

(22) AIR SHOW: EADS Studying Fire-Fighting Role For Aircraft

(23) Wildfires in Moscow Region tackled - Emergencies Ministry

(24) 'Humans caused forest fires to rage across Israel': JNFexpert

(25) Gambia to plant one million trees nationwide in 2010

(26) Insurance premiums rise in 2010

(27) Bushfire death: family settles out of court

(28) Bushfires plaintiff fights on

(29) Kinglake hero takes Nixon's place

(30) Push for special sitting on bushfires report

(31) Ill. firefighters cut through roof to reach hoarder