WILDFIRE NEWS OF THE DAY - 060811

As fire season is upon them, firefighters in Santa Barbara, California, are concerned about plans to ground their two firefighting helicopters in efforts to save reduce a $72 million budget deficit (1). Fire crews in Arizona struggled to keep a 389,000-acre wildfire away from towns in its path (2); smoke from the blazes being reported as far away as Iowa (3); even as the Arizona National Guard lent three 2,500-gallon fuel tankers to firefighters (4); a stunning series of photographs of those wildfires provided by the next item (5); where a state senator appealed to the US Forest Service to reform its land-use policies to better protect against future wildfires like those currently burning in the state (6). As firefighters continued to grapple with Arizona's Murphy Complex Fire, residents of the community of Rio Rico were thankful that firefighters protected their community successfully (7); but the wildfire danger prompted US Forest Service to put fire restrictions in place on the Kaibab National Forest (8). Wildfire NOTD subscriber Dan Ware, Fire Information Officer for New Mexico State Forestry, commented on the dispatch of state firefighters to battle wildfires raging in nearby Arizona (9). A summary of wildfire activity in Southeastern Colorado is provided by the next article (10) ; as the governor signed an extension to the state's Wildfire Preparedness Fund to help pay the costs of suppression (11). Three young people have admitted to starting a wildfire outside of Moab, Utah, by setting off fireworks in a campground (12). As Arizona wildfires approach transmission lines running from the Palo Verde power plant to El Paso, Texas, electric utilities may suffer rolling blackouts (13); while Texas Forest Service provided an update on wildfires in that state, along with some fireworks safety tips (14); where a 200-acre wildfire burning in Western Travis County is now 95% contained (15); but officials in Guadalupe County have announced a special Fourth of July deal: light up your backyard barbecue, gets six months in jail! (16) Firefighters from Wisconsin commented on the mild fire season this past spring (17); however, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources reported an 814-acre wildfire in Crawford County yesterday (18). Although a 1,000-acre wildfire burning in Baldwin County, Alabama, broke out of containment, firefighters have finally locked it in again (19); but a 2,000-acre blaze in Jefferson County continues to spread (20); prompting the governor to issue an Emergency Drought Condition Declaration that clamped burn bans on all 67 counties in that state, which has seen 1,808 wildfires burn over 41,000 acres since January (21). Several forest fires were reported in Blount County, Tennessee (22); but as North Carolina's wildfire season stretches on longer than usual, fire officials have determined that at least a dozen wildfires in Onslow County have been arson (23); while fire officials in Georgia reported four new lightning-sparked wildfires burning in the southern part of that state (24). Firefighters in Charlotte County, Florida, battled a 243-acre wildfire that briefly threatened an RV park (25); the next article providing a behind-the-scenes look at Florida Division of Forestry firefighters battling blazes across the state (26); some of which are highlighted in the following article (27). Firefighters in Alaska continued to battle several blazes, including a 12,770-acre fire which threatened homes (28). A wildfire in northern Alberta, Canada, has now reached 415,000 ha in size, one of 34 currently burning in that province (29); where an injured firefighter faces a long recovery after being struck by a falling tree top while battling wildfires around Slave Lake (30). A comprehensive look at Israel's new firefighting squadron, along with future projections of the acquisition of CL-415 aircraft to complement the existing AT-802 SEATs, is up next (31); followed by a report on 1,000 Chinese firefighters battling a wildfire in Liancheng National Nature Reserve, where fire officials were moving cloud-seeding rocket launchers into position (32). The next article takes a detailed look at Australia's National Aerial Firefighting Centre evaluations of firefighting aircraft Down Under (33). And finally, since wildfires are such a hot topic in the Arizona news right now, we finish with an article today which summarizes the five best ways to start a forest fire!

(1) Fire Season Off to Hot, Wet Start

(2) Crews Try to Keep Flames from Reaching Ariz. Towns

(3) Smoke From AZ Wildfires Travels Across Nation

(4) Guardsmen provide 3 fuel tankers to fight Wallow Fire

(5) Arizona Wildfire Rages On: The Dramatic Photos

(6) Allen calls on federal government to reform forest management policies

(7) Rio Rico residents dodge bullet, applaud firefighters

(8) Forest Service implements fire restrictions on the Kaibab National Forest

(9) NM firefighters prepare to battle AZ wildfire

(10) Wildfires burning in Las Animas, Bent counties

(11) Tanker Planes Called In To Fight Colo. Wildfires

(12) Three admit to starting Moab fire

(13) Arizona forest fire could bring rolling blackouts to El Paso area

(14) Texas Forest Service Update: Fire In Throckmorton County 80 Percent Contained

(15) Wildfire near Reimers Ranch Park all but 5 percent contained

(16) Bring BBQ indoors: Texas county bans grills for July 4

(17) Wildfire season 'not a big deal' in local communities

(18) 'Conditions were perfect for a fire': Crawford County undersheriff reports Grayling wildfire 100 percent contained

(19) Seminole fire contained after more than 1,000 acres burned in Baldwin County

(20) Adger wildfire spreads to more than 2,000 acres

(21) State issues burn ban

(22) Series of forest fires moving through Chilhowee Mountain

(23) 12 Fires Could Be Connected By Arson

(24) Lightning sparks new wildfires in Okefenokee Swamp area of south Georgia

(25) Wildfire threatened Punta Gorda RV park

(26) Firefighters dig in to root out flames

(27) Florida wildfires continue to grow

(28) Burnout works on Hasting Fire but firefighters keep a watch as winds shift

(29) Massive northern Alberta wildfire continues to grow

(30) Chilliwack man injured fighting Slave Lake forest fire

(31) Israel's new firefighting squadron

(32) Raging forest fire caused by lightning strike

(33) Australia's new tactics in battle against bushfires

(34) Five Best Ways to Start an Arizona Forest Fire