WILDFIRE NEWS OF THE DAY - 081811

NOAA reported that July 2011 was the seventh warmest across the globe since 1880, when record-keeping began, no doubt adding fuel to wildfires (1); followed by a New York Times article about public-private partnerships between the US Forest Service and various water districts in the Southwest trying to keep their tap water pure during periods of wildfire runoff (2). With a second mild fire season underway, fire officials in California reflect on wildfires of the past in the next article (3); nevertheless, a 214-acre wildfire that is burning near Greenfield is now 75% contained (4); and CAL FIRE contained a five-acre wildfire burning near Redding yesterday (5). Although it's been a slow fire season for the Pacific Northwest, conditions in Oregon and Washington could lead to more wildfires over the next few days (6); prompting officials in Washington's Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest to impose campfire restrictions (7); while wildfires were already reported in Washington (8); one of which closed Highway 2 through the Cascades (9). Even though one home has been burned in Nevada's 5300-acre Ray May fire, firefighters now have brought containment up to 50% (10); the following item showing a photo of a P-2V dropping on the blaze (11). U.S. Forest Service Chief Tom Tidwell directed his personnel to work quickly to rehabilitate the 538,000 acres burned by Arizona's Wallow Fire (12); which includes reopening portions of the Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest (13). Norwood, Idaho, has added its name to the list of Firewise Communities in that state after a 2009 wildfire served as a wake-up call to their peril (14); while the Bureau of Land Management indicated that three quarters of the wildfires which have burned 139,000 acres in Idaho were human-caused (15); which was the case for a wildfire in the Boise National Forest (16); while a new start was reported in Kellogg (17). A three-acre wildfire has been reported in Colorado's Roosevelt National Forest (18). Calmer winds in several Texas counties are giving firefighters an edge a roping in wildfires that have threatened dozens of homes, as the next two articles show (19)(20); but tire blowouts are presumed to be the cause of two wildfires burning in Palo Pinto County (21); while the talk at the West Texas Legislative Summit mostly focused on wildfires this year (22). A wildfire burning in Montana's Flathead National Forest has blanketed the town of Choteau with smoke (23); that wildfire, which is burning in the Bob Marshall Wilderness, is now 10% contained after increasing to more than 700 acres in size (24). A fatal wildfire which has burned 5,214 acres in South Dakota's Black Hills is now fully contained (25); but a shift in the wind is blowing more smoke from a wildfire burning in Virginia's Great Dismal Swamp Wildlife Refuge into Hampton Roads (26). Six new wildfires have been reported in Northern Ontario, Canada, bringing the total to 919 fires that have burned 613,576 hectares this year (27); while in the Mediterranean Basin, wildfires were reported in Spain, Portugal, Italy, Albania, and the North African nations of Algeria and Tunisia (28). In Australia, Victoria's Minister for Bushfire Response is receiving a lot of flak over plans to spend billions to prevent power lines from causing future bushfires like the Black Saturday blazes (29); but the author of a scathing report on FESA's performance on recent bushfires in Western Australia held a public meeting to discuss the report (32); the Emergency Services Minister narrowly avoiding being sacked as a result of that report (31). And finally, facing a wildfire danger of its own, Los Angeles, California, is looking for a few good... goats!

(1) Global temperatures were seventh warmest on record for July

(2) To Protect Tap Water, Cities Sharing Costs of Slowing Wildfires

(3) Mild Calif. fire season - but things could heat up

(4) Wildfire outside of Greenfield 75 percent contained

(5) Fire Near Iron Mountain Road Contained

(6) Threat of wildfires to rise along with the thermometer early next week

(7) Campfire restrictions go into effect in Chelan County

(8) Wildfires Burning Near Leavenworth And Mason County

(9) Wildfire closes Highway 2 near Leavenworth

(10) One home lost in Ray May Fire, but crews getting the upper hand

(11) Photo: Airtanker drops retardant on Ray May Fire today

(12) Forest Chief Wants Quick Rehab of Wallow Fire Area

(13) More areas reopen after Wallow fire; officials urge caution

(14) Hagerman's Norwood Community Looks to Firewise to Prevent Future Wildfires

(15) BLM: 75 percent of wildfires are caused by people

(16) Bogus Basin Wildfire Could Have Been Worse

(17) Forest Fire Plagues Kellogg

(18) Fire spreads in west Fort Collins

(19) Update: Mandatory evacuations still in place for Jasper, Tyler Co. fires

(20) Update: All roads reopened in Jasper County; fire 90% contained

(21) Blown tire blamed for starting Graford-area fire

(22) Weather, fires hot topics during summit at ASU

(23) Smoke from fires on the Flathead National Forest blankets front

(24) Wildfire in Bob Marshall Wilderness grows to over 700 acres

(25) Coal Canyon forest fire contained, officials say

(26) Code red air alert expected in Hampton Roads

(27) Current Forest Fire Situation - Aug. 18th

(28) EFFIS - Current Situation

(29) In memory of 119 dead

(30) Keelty calls for an end to the blame game over bushfire disaster

(31) Johnson hangs on after no confidence motion defeated

(32) Wildfire mitigation, with cloven hooves