WILDFIRE NEWS OF THE DAY - 120213

An inventor from Southern California was inspired by the space shuttle's heat-resistant tiles to create a better emergency shelter for wildland firefighters (1); while discussions about improving the capabilities of fire crews at Fallen Leaf Lake will be held at a meeting of the El Dorado County Board of Supervisors December 7th (2). A fundraiser will be held December 12th to benefit an endowment for Oregon's Clackamas Community College set up to honor a Granite Mountain Hotshot killed in the Yarnell Hill Fire (3). In Colorado, Black Forest Fire survivors will get a chance to ask questions about insurance coverage at a workshop to be held Thursday at Woodmen Valley Chapel (4); two stories taking a look at rebuilding efforts after the blaze (5)(6); and the Black Forest Fire Protection District's Board of Directors will be meeting tonight to discuss, among other things, the fate of the embattled Fire Chief (7); delays in contractors removing dead trees from the burn area will no doubt be on the agenda following a contentious session at the El Paso County Board of Commissioners meeting last week (8); while Colorado State University will be hosting the Wildfire and Flood Recovery Manager panel (9). The former director of South Dakota's Wildland Fire Suppression Division announced that he will be running for governor (10); and a Penn State scientist who is the Director of the Earth Systems Ecology Lab explains why we can expect bigger wildfires in the West (11). A wildfire in Escambia County, Florida, drew a sharp response from Escambia Fire Rescue and the Florida Forest Service (12); even as authorities in Brevard County warned of the elevated wildfire danger now that hurricane season is over (13). In Canada, residents of Kelowna, British Columbia, can learn more about wildfire fuel mitigation efforts in the area at a meeting Tuesday night (14); a press release highlighting FIRESENSE, an automatic early warning system which takes advantage of recent advances in multi-sensor surveillance technologies to protect historical archaeological sites in southern Europe (15). A trio of helicopters assisted fire crews fighting a two-hectare bushfire in Dunedin, New Zealand, over the weekend (16). Australian Capitol Territory's Rural Fire Service Chief urged homeowners to prepare for bushfire season by preparing a bushfire survival plan (17); while Queensland Fire and Rescue Service firefighters grappled with an 80-acre wildfire north of Brisbane (18). A small bushfire in New South Wales' Royal National Park was quickly squelched by fire crews (19); even as the state Finance Minister tried to assure critics that, despite a slow start, the government was doing all it could to clean up debris left behind by bushfires in the Blue Mountains (20); but the Australian Transport Safety Bureau has determined that a wing lug caused the crash of a PZL-Mielec M18A aircraft near Ulladulla fighting those bushfires (21). Aircraft assisted firefighters on the ground battling a four-hectare bushfire outside of Fremantle, Western Australia (22); a Victoria Cross recipient doing his part urge homeowners to prepare for what has been forecast to be a horrendous bushfire season in that state (23). Tasmania's Emergency Services stated that they are more prepared for bushfire season this year after a statewide exercise (24). And finally, fire crews in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, performed a tricky extrication: getting a crow snagged by fishing line out of a tree over the Lehigh Canal!

(1) Valencia man's idea may better protect firefighters from intense heat

(2) Firefighting capabilities a concern at Fallen Leaf

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