WILDFIRE NEWS OF THE DAY - 062512

A 700-acre wildfire burning near the Southern California community of Gorman is now 60% contained (1); and a 12-acre wildfire broke out in Lytle Creek Canyon over the weekend (2). Firefighters had to hike into the backcountry to battle a half-acre blaze burning on Nevada's Mount Charleston, near Las Vegas (3); while wildfire activity across New Mexico is the focus of the next article (4). Details of the progress of the High Park Fire, which has burned 83,000 acres and destroyed 248 homes, is provided by the next article (5); followed by an update on the 3,600-acre Waldo Canyon Fire (6); and two articles from the Denver Post provide statistics on acreage burned and homes destroyed in Colorado's largest wildfires (7)(8); meanwhile, four C-130 aircraft from the 153rd Airlift Wing in Cheyenne, Wyoming, and the 302nd Airlift Wing in Colorado Springs have added their weight to firefighting in Colorado (9); but in addition to the cost of fire suppression, Colorado's wildfires could have a profound impact on tourist income (10); and a Denver resident accused of posing as a wildland firefighter at the High Park Fire had his day in court (11). Wildfire activity in Utah, where at least three major blazes are burning, is summarized by the next article (12); while fire officials in Oklahoma and Arkansas have imposed fire restrictions in two national forests (13). As Fourth of July approaches, 83 of Texas' 254 counties have imposed burn bans (14); and a trio of wildfires is keeping firefighters outside of Butte, Montana, busy (15). A 50-acre wildfire burning in South Dakota's Black Hills is 5% contained (16); while an 800-acre area was burned in Webster County, Kentucky, over the weekend (17). A wildfire that has burned more than 21,000-acres in North Carolina's Croatan National Forest is now 80% contained (18). In Canada, Yukon Wildland Fire Management quickly contained a wildfire sparked by lightning which briefly forced closure of a mining operation (19); while residents of North West River and Sheshatshiu, Labrador, are being allowed to return after being evacuated due to a wildfire nearby (20); including 700 that had been put up at Canadian Forces Base Goose Bay (21). Forest fires have scorched 20,000 acres in Himachal Pradesh, India, over the past three weeks (22); and wildfires continue to crop up on Borneo island at the enclaves of Anduki Seria and Lumut, Malaysia (23). A New Zealand firm has sold 9,000 radios to be used by more than 1,200 brigades in Victoria's Country Fire Authority (24); while a carriage load of fertilizer spilling onto railroad tracks in Duchess, Queensland, sparked a massive bushfire (25). And finally, firefighters battling an apartment fire in Lugoff, South Carolina, ran into an additional hazard: an alligator!

(1) Wildfires burn 700 acres of Calif. brushlands

(2) Fire burns 12 acres in Lytle Creek Canyon

(3) Firefighters hike to try to control Mount Charleston wildfire

(4) New Mexico significant wildfires update

(5) Colorado wildfire, Day 19: 83,000 acres burned, 248 homes destroyed

(6) Waldo Canyon Fire: Firefighters Brace for Challenges

(7) Colorado's largest wildfires (burn area)

(8) Colorado's most destructive wildfires (homes destroyed)

(9) U.S. Forest Service Mobilizes More Air Tankers, MAFFS, to Assist with Wildfire Suppression

(10) Wildfires threaten summer Rocky Mountain tourism

(11) Accused High Park firefighter impersonator appears in Fort Collins courtroom

(12) Wildfire continues to rage across Utah’s Sanpete County

(13) No campfires in 2 national forests in Ark., Okla.

(14) Texas agency urges wildfire caution with fireworks

(15) Fire crews scramble to battle 3 wildfires near Butte

(16) Western SD Forest Fire Only 5 Percent Contained

(17) Kentucky 109 now open after massive fire in Providence

(18) UPDATE: Croatan National Forest fire now 80 percent contained

(19) Alexco Reports Bellekeno Production Back Online After Wildfire Disruption

(20) Evacuation order lifted in Labrador bush fire

(21) Canadian Forces Provide 700 Forest Fire Evacuees with Food and Lodging at CFB Goose Bay

(22) Fires destroy 20,000 acre of forest land in Himachal in three weeks

(23) Several Forest Fires Reported In Anduki And Kg Lumut

(24) Tait sells 9000 radios to Aussie brigades

(25) Duchess crash starts bushfire

(26) S.C. Firefighters Discover Gator While Battling Blaze