WILDFIRE NEWS OF THE DAY - 101812

The Red Cross has unveiled a free new wildfire app for Android smartphones that provides timely information on wildfires in the US (1). A wildfire broke out in the Southern California beachside community of Malibu (2); while US Forest Service announced that a 44-acre wildfire burning near Santa Barbara is 75% contained (3); but not before a firefighter suffered a knee injury and had to be evacuated by the Santa Barbara County Search and Rescue team (4); CAL FIRE reporting a 2 1/2-acre wildfire in San Luis Obispo County (5); and another blaze north of Vacaville that burned between 5 and 7 acres forcing a partial closure of Interstate 505 (6). Federal funds will provide $6 million for construction of new facilities at Reno's Stead Airport, where a new air-tanker section is operated by the Bureau of Land Management (7). The US Forest Service's Southwest Director of Fire and Aviation Management remarked about the severe wildfire season in New Mexico over the past two years in the next article (8); where a series of controlled burns got underway in the Jemez Mountains (9). Wildfires continued to crop up across Southwest Colorado yesterday (10); and a pair of escaped campfires sparked wildfires in the White River National Forest as well (11); firefighters continuing to keep a close eye on the remains of the 630-acre Fern Lake Fire (12); while a forest supervisor does some Q&A in the next article (13). High winds and low humidity prompted the National Weather Service to issue Red Flag warnings for North-Central Oklahoma (14); even as two firefighters were arrested for setting wildfires during the summer (15). Although fire officials announced the end of Montana's fire season yesterday, residents were told to remain vigilant (16); while a wind-driven wildfire destroyed half the residences in the North Dakota town of Bucyrus (17); and a wildfire which blazed across 3,000 acres in South Dakota forced evacuations from Crookston, Nebraska (18). Although Harvard University is trying to study forest regeneration after a severe storm in Petersham, Massachusetts, a firebreak was established to reduce the wildfire danger to nearby settlements (19). Heading Down Under, a bushfire near Brisbane, Queensland, may have been linked to a badly-burned body recently discovered in the burn area (20). As bushfires in New South Wales' Dorrigo Ranges scorched 6,000 ha, residents of the Tamworth region were inundated with smoke (21); while residents of the Clarence Valley will benefit from Rural Fire Service's $2.3 million bushfire education program (22). South Australia's bushfire preparations are being put under the microscope by a parliamentary committee (23). And finally, a researcher from University of North Carolina, Pembroke, has a burning question: how do Eastern box turtles survive wildfires?

(1) American Red Cross Releases 'Wildfires' App, Helps You Keep Your Cool When Things Get Hot

(2) Los Angeles County Firefighters Respond Quickly to Decker School Road Fire

(3) Santa Barbara wildfire now 75 percent contained

(4) Firefighter Injured Fighting "Lookout Fire"

(5) Wildfire near Laetitia Winery caused by passing vehicle

(6) Firefighters suppress blaze north of Vacaville before it does major damage

(7) $6 million worth of construction in the works for Reno Stead Airport

(8) Forest Service vet: Fire seasons likely to remain severe

(9) Prescribed fire under way in the Jemez Mountains

(10) Fires ignite across region

(11) Escaped campfires cause two new wildfires on White River National Forest

(12) Firefighters continue to patrol Fern Lake Fire

(13) In Manitou Springs, Waldo Canyon Fire spokeswoman Jerri Marr talks about public service

(14) Conditions ripe today for wildfires, according to NWS

(15) Two Oklahoma Firefighters Arrested on Arson Charges

(16) Montana wildfire season officially over

(17) Wildfire wipes out small North Dakota town; 27 people displaced, but no one injured

(18) Wildfire that spurred Crookston evacuation is mostly tamed

(19) Storm-recovery study at Harvard Forest in Petersham

(20) Bushfire and charred body may be linked

(21) Bushfires bring smokey days across Tamworth region

(22) New public awareness campaign ahead of the bushfire season

(23) Committee to look at bushfire preparation

(24) Talking Turtles UNC Pembroke Professor Studies Turtles' Response to Fire