WILDFIRE NEWS OF THE DAY - 062011

An 8-acre wildfire near Southern California's Lake Elsinore was contained Sunday (1); and a new Bell 205 has been approved by the FAA for firefighting work in San Diego County (2); while a wildfire burning in San Luis Obispo and Kern Counties is now 20% contained after scorching nearly 5,000 acres (3); but battle lines were drawn between environmentalists and the US Forest Service over logging areas burned in Lake Tahoe's Angora Fire (4). The impact of winds on aerial firefighters in Arizona is examined by the next article (5); where US Senator John McCain blamed illegal immigrants for several of those wildfires (6). An update on New Mexico's wildfires is provided by the next article (7); followed by a video segment that chronicles the contribution of Single-Engine Air Tankers (SEATs) in battling wildfires across that state (8). Firefighters in Colorado were gaining the upper hand on two massive blazes burning there (9); while Rio Grande National Forest imposed fire restrictions today due to the wildfire threat (10). A look at the difficult conditions under which Oklahoma firefighters battled a grass fire is provided by the next article (11). Triple-digit temperatures, drought, and wind led to a firefighter's nightmare scenario in Texas (12); Texas Forest Service providing a report on wildfires in the Panhandle in the next article (13); followed by dozens of photos that convey the impact of the Texas wildfires (14). Midway, Texas, had to be evacuated Sunday as a 1,640-acre wildfire approached (15); while a 2,500-acre wildfire burning in Jasper County was 25% contained, but firefighters continued to grapple with a 15,000-acre blaze in Trinity County (16); consuming much of the firefighting resources in the vicinity (17); and another burned 140 acres in Kendall County, adding to the tally since November of 12,189 fires that have burned 3,012,876 acres statewide (18). Wildfire NOTD subscriber Kevin Ryan, a Research Forest Ecologist with US Forest Service's Missoula Fire Labs, sent along an announcement from the International Association of Wildland Fire about their 2011 scholarship awardees (19). A video segment provides an update on the wildfire burning in Dare County, North Carolina, which is now 89% contained (20); while rain assisted firefighters in Southeast Georgia trying to get a handle on wildfires that have already burned over 295,000 acres (21); where the Georgia Forestry Commission was revising its estimate that no homes burned in a wildfire that blazed through Waycross after local news sources disputed that claim (22). The Florida National Guard lent three Blackhawk helicopters to Flagler County to assist with blazes there, helping bring containment to 50% (23); and there were still plenty of wildfires burning across that state, as the next article demonstrates (24); but volunteers were having a tough time keeping firefighters in Putnam County fed! (25) Ontario's fire season was heating up, with 7 new wildfires reported in that Canadian province (26); but although 122 forest fires have burned 5,420 hectares in Siberia, Russian wildfire activity was actually down by 25% (27). A 341-acre wildfire was reported in Morocco over the weekend (28); while Gambia's Forestry Minister complained about the damage bushfires are doing to that African nation's forest cover (29). A scientist from Australia's Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) argued for more early-season burn-offs to reduce the amount of fuel and, therefore, the intensity of bushfires that emit greenhouse gasses (30). In another sign of continued recovery from Victoria's Black Saturday bushfires, the Strzelecki Ranges' Harbour Bridge is back in service (31); but there was a bit of a tussle over balancing foliage beautification and bushfire danger in the Yarra Ranges (32). And finally, the state of West Virginia found a unique way to pay back volunteer firefighters for their service: help paying their workers' compensation insurance premiums!

(1) UPDATE: Fire North Of Hwy. 74 In Lake Elsinore Contained

(2) STC Approved For Aerial Firefighting Role For Bell 205A-1

(3) 4,740-acre California wildfire raging untamed

(4) USFS defends plan to log burned forest at Tahoe

(5) Pilots answer why planes were grounded

(6) McCain blames some Arizona wildfires on illegal immigrants

(7) Crews still fighting flames across NM

(8) Single-engine air tankers prepared to battle blazes

(9) Firefighters winning battle in two blazes

(10) Fire restrictions on Rio Grande National Forest

(11) Firefighters work in extreme conditions

(12) Firefighters battling dozen new wildfires in Texas

(13) Fires in the Panhandle

(14) Photos: Wildfires sweep across Texas

(15) Wildfire claims 1,640 acres in Walker County

(16) Forest fires prompt evacuations in Jasper County

(17) UPDATE: Two Jasper Co. wildfires limiting firefighting resources

(18) Fire damages RV park, closes I-10 in Kendall

(19) The International Association of Wildland Fire 2011 Scholarship awardees

(20) Coastal wildfire 89% contained

(21) Rain Quiets SE Georgia Wildfires

(22) Wildfires Destroy Homes, GA Forestry Takes a Closer Look after Story Airs

(23) Flagler County Fire Containment Up To 50%

(24) Active wildfires continue to grow

(25) Putnam Struggling to Feed Volunteer Firefighters; Jacksonville Spared Major Wildfire Activity

(26) 7 new forest fires reported this weekend

(27) Siberian forest fire area shrinks 25 pct over past 24 hours

(28) EFFIS - Current Situation

(29) Gambia: Forestry Minister Decries Bushfires, Calls for Afforestation

(30) Burnoffs 'need to be halved'

(31) 'Harbour Bridge' recovery set for bushfire-hit region

(32) Cox calls for more roadside planting

(33) W.Va. offering help to firefighters on premiums