WILDFIRE NEWS OF THE DAY - 020410

Los Angeles County Fire Department will use a juvenile probation camp in Big Tujunga to house nearly 100 inmate firefighters who were displaced when their fire camp was destroyed by the Station Fire last summer, in our first wildfire article today (1); and another legacy of the Station Fire - mudslides - will force authorities to keep the Angeles Crest Highway closed for several more weeks as debris is cleared and roadbed repaired from the resultant damage (2). The Humane Society of the US reminded pet-owners in Southern California to be prepared if they have to evacuate during a wildfire (3); while a fire forum for residents of Central California communities was judged successful in conveying the importance of defensible space and other means to lessen wildfire danger to homes (4). Lawsuits related to a wildfire that resulted from debris burning in a Colorado community in 2008 have finally been settled (5); but the importance of community colleges in training future firefighters is underscored by another article from that state (6). Rangers and residents in Montana are mounting an effort to clean up a recreation area that has been damaged by wildfires (7); and the New Jersey State Forest Fire Service plans a series of controlled burns over the next few weeks (8). USFS will be burning about 84,000 acres of timberland in Alabama in a series of controlled burns (9); while residents of Collier County, Florida, will be getting some pointers on wildfires from local firefighters (10). The British Columbia Forest Practices Board has released a new report on wildfires in that Canadian province titled Managing Forest Fuels in the Wildland Urban Interface which argues that local governments need to reign in home construction in areas at risk from wildfires (11); even as their next-door neighbor, Alberta, is making an additional $1 million available to areas hit by natural disasters, such as wildfires (12). Rangers in South Africa's Table Mountain National Park are having to deal with illegal fires that could do irreparable damage to the slow-growing vegetation (13). The Australian Parliament paused to remember the Black Saturday bushfires (14); while the National Youth Mental Health Foundation website offered help to youngsters still haunted by images of the Black Saturday bushfires (15). An Op-Ed piece from Victoria examines best bushfire practices for homeowners (16); but the following article decries the lack of preparations made at the community level, prompting an ominous warning that Black Saturday could recur this month (17). Only a tiny fraction of residents burned out by the Black Saturday bushfires are rebuilding, according to insurance companies (18); their despair epitomized in the next story (19); and Victoria's wildlife struggles to cope with the aftermath of the devastation to their numbers wrought by the Black Saturday bushfires, even after a year's time (20). Not everyone is paralyzed by the event, however, as artists use their own unique form of expression to cope with their losses (21). Some confusion remains over the responsibilities of employers and employees in New South Wales during bushfires (22); and a few spot fires are breaking out near bushfires burning in Tasmania's Central Highlands (23); while motorists in Western Australia are being warned about hazardous driving conditions due to smoke from two bushfires in a national park obscuring visibility (24).

(1) LA county to relocate inmate firefighters at Angeles Forest probation camp

(2) Angeles Crest Highway to remain closed through late March

(3) Pet owners need emergency plan for animals

(4) Fairfax fire forum success

(5) Attorney: Civil lawsuits settled over wildfire near Carbondale

(6) Chiefs depend on fire science program

(7) Groups Want to Restore Rattlesnake National Recreation Area

(8) Control burns planned in Hamilton, EHT, Estell Manor

(9) Controlled burnings beginning

(10) Wildfire workshop to be held today in Naples

(11) Deal with wildfire threat now, B.C. forest watchdog warns

(12) Province aids municipalities hit hard by wildfires and windstorms

(13) Illegal fires leave burning question

(14) Parliament remembers Black Saturday

(15) Website forum to bushfire survivors

(16) Despite Code Red, remember a few home truths about safety

(17) Black Saturday could happen again this month

(18) Victorian bushfire victims wary of rebuilding

(19) Australia wildfires haunt 'lost soul' survivors

(20) Wildlife still fragile, a year after Black Saturday

(21) Artists inspired by Black Saturday fires

(22) Workplace warning

(23) Crews fight new spot fires in Central Highlands

(24) Drivers cautioned as bushfires continue