WILDFIRE NEWS OF THE DAY - 091712

Wildfire NOTD subscriber Paula Nelson, Public Affairs Officer for International Association of Wildland Fire, sent along a New York Times article that offers a disturbing picture of how extensive the drought is in the US (1); which is fueling wildfires across the West (2); while another New York Times article revisits the thorny issue of whether prescribed burns by the US Forest Service are a good idea (3); even as fire scientists debate whether mega-fires are a new phenomenon or not (4). Wildfire NOTD subscriber Tony Morris, Communications Director at Wildfire Research Network, sent along a link to their 2001 video that discusses the importance of initial attack on wildfires in Southern California's Topanga Canyon (5); while firefighters have fully contained a 90-acre wildfire that ignited near the Getty Center north of Los Angeles (6); and Orange County Fire Authority firefighters swarmed over a wildfire that burned between 3 and 5 acres in Laguna Canyon (7); another burning between 20 and 30 acres in the San Bernardino National Forest near Banning (8); while firefighters brought a 1,200-acre wildfire burning on the grounds of Camp Pendleton Marine Base to 95% containment (9); which is music to the ears of Temecula residents, who have been inundated with smoke from that fire (10); and a 45-acre wildfire outside of Placerville is now 60% contained (11); firefighters declaring full containment of the 41,983-acre wildfire that was burning in the Mendocino National Forest (12). Firefighters have brought Oregon's 16,500-acre Pole Creek Fire to 10% containment (13); the Red Cross setting up to help people displaced by the blaze (14). Over 3,500 firefighters continue to man the lines of 240 wildfires burning in Washington state (15); over 100 firefighters from British Columbia's Wildfire Management Branch lending a hand (16); but as a high pressure system remained over those wildfires, firefighters made progress (17); where officials in the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest restricted access to some areas like Alpine Lakes Wilderness (18); as well as ordering evacuations from the town of Liberty (19); homeowners near burn areas being advised that wildlife may come calling since their forage has burned up (20). A five-acre wildfire in Gem County, Idaho, forced closures on Highway 16 (21). Firefighters near Fairview, Utah, quickly wrapped up a 75-acre wildfire on Saturday (22); but a 350-acre wildfire on West Mountain is being blamed on target shooters (23). It was pygmies and the giant as three SEATs joined the DC-10 in battling a 34,630-acre wildfire in Wyoming Sunday (24); while a 140-acre wildfire near Merna threatened homes (25); but in a sign of an improving wildfire picture, US Forest Service has deactivated C-130 aircraft borrowed from the National Guard and Air Force Reserve for firefighting duty (26). CoreLogic Spatial Solutions' wildfire report indicates that $659 million worth of homes in Wyoming are in danger from wildfires (27). A wildfire which has scorched 10,678 acres in Montana's Custer National Forest is now 28% contained (28); while a wildfire which has burned over 8,500 acres near Livingston is now 51% contained (29); and thousands of visitors were expected as US Forest Service reopened Bozeman's Hyalite Canyon following closures during the Millie Fire (30). The early moments of British Columbia's Peachland wildfire are heard in dispatch recordings reviewed by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (31); and in the South American nation of Colombia, 440 wildfires have already burned 13,820 hectares since June, and the dry season is just beginning (32). Wildfire activity in Southern Europe continue to diminish, with a couple of fires reported in Spain and Portugal (33); but the damage already done has profoundly affected singer Julio Iglesias, whose Marbella estate was badly damaged by Spanish wildfires (34). Heading to Australia, bushfire-ravaged Murrindindi Shire Council is asking the Victorian Bushfire Reconstruction and Recovery Authority for another $14 million to help with maintenance costs on $43.8 million worth of infrastructure improvements (35). New South Wales Rural Fire Service officials are concerned that a trio of bushfires lit around Tweed this weekend may have been arson (36); but overall, the bushfire situation is improving (37). Queensland's Rural Fire Service firefighters continued to protest cuts that would result in substantial cuts to paid firefighting positions in the state (38). Department of Environment and Conservation firefighters continued to battle a 100-hectare wildfire outside of Collie Shire, Western Australia (39); but a leaked DEC document shows that fire managers were overworked at the time the Margaret River bushfires broke out in 2011, possibly contributing to the destruction done (40). And finally, firefighters in Okinawa, Japan, had a forest fire triggered by a dangerous source: an unexploded artillery shell!

(1) Drought’s Footprint

(2) Wildfires continue to burn in the West

(3) Forest Survey Questions Effect of Prescribed Burns

(4) Fire scientists fight over what Western forests should look like

(5) Initial Attack 2001

(6) Firefighters beat back blaze near Getty Center

(7) Official: 'No active flames' in Laguna brush fire

(8) BANNING: Wildfire reported on Banning Bench

(9) Camp Pendleton fire is 95 percent contained

(10) Temecula Residents Get Relief From Camp Pendleton Fire

(11) 45-acre wildfire is 60% contained

(12) North Pass Fire 100 percent contained

(13) Growth slows dramatically on Pole Creek Fire

(14) Wildfire roundup: American Red Cross opens aid station for Pole Creek fire

(15) More than 240 wildfires now burning in Washington

(16) B.C. wildfire fighters to assist with several Washington state blazes

(17) Fires quiet overnight, more burnouts planned today

(18) Fires restrict access to Alpine Lakes Wilderness, other areas

(19) Table Mountain Fire forces Liberty evacuation

(20) Wildfires in Washington ravage deer habitat, food

(21) Wildfire causes Highway 16 delays

(22) Wildfire burning near Fairview

(23) Small wildfire burning on West Mountain started by target shooters

(24) Alpine Lake Fire whipped by winds, now over 34,630 acres, Sage Creek Road closed, NO evacuations have been ordered

(25) Wildfire west of Pinedale is threatening homes; 2 hand crews sent to new fire from Jackson

(26) Forest Service Deactivates C-130 Firefighting Operations

(27) Wildfires threaten $659M of Wyoming home value

(28) Dugan Fire burning at 10,678 acres near Ekalaka

(29) Wildfire near Livingston at 8,500+ acres, 51% contained

(30) Forest Service opens Hyalite after Millie Fire closure

(31) 'We're helpless here': radio dispatches reveal early minutes of B.C. wildfire

(32) Fires scorch thousands of acres in Colombia

(33) EFFIS - Current Situation

(34) Iglesias devastated by Spanish fires

(35) Vic bushfire council asks for $14m

(36) Bushfire causes under spotlight

(37) Bushfire danger eases

(38) Firefighters protest Queensland job cuts

(39) Collie Shire blaze considered suspicious

(40) Firefighters at breaking point before blazes

(41) Unexploded shell disposal triggers Hansen forest fire