WILDFIRE NEWS OF THE DAY - 052913

Our first article today takes a look at an innovative method for automatically detecting, locating and tracking forest fires that makes use of the science of spectrometry (1). Quick work by Southern California fire crews has roped in a trio of wildfires burning in the Los Padres National Forest, Santa Ynez, and Santa Clarita (2); the 55-acre fire burning near Santa Clarita's Six Flags Magic Mountain theme park being brought to 80% containment (3); the Red Cross rolling out their wildfire app for mobile devices as a new fire season is upon us (4); while a Kern County Fire engineer was given an award by US Forest Service for averting an air-tanker tragedy at Fox Field Air Tanker Base (5); even as air-tankers battling Santa Barbara's White Fire operated out of Santa Maria Airport's Air Attack Base (6); and a Chico company has unveiled a new lightweight wildfire suppression system suitable for ATVs, light trucks, and other vehicles that can go where heavy firefighting apparatus cannot (7). Drought conditions and wildfires are prompting wildlife to enter neighborhoods in New Mexico, increasing the danger for both the wildlife and homeowners (8); but having come across nearly 2 dozen unattended campfires, officials in Colorado's San Juan National Forest reminded people of the wildfire danger the area faces (9). FEMA will be reimbursing Travis County, Texas, for $511,368.08 in 2011 wildfire expenses (10); while a resident of Moulton, Alabama, faces 10 years in prison and a $15,000 fine for setting eight wildfires in Lawrence County (11). A resident of Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania, voiced her thanks to air-tanker pilots and firefighters on the ground who battled a wildfire in the Poconos in April in a letter to the editor of the local paper (12); but officials are convinced that a 60-acre wildfire in North Carolina's Croatan National Forest was deliberately set (13). An overview of the fire situation in Ontario, Canada, where the Thunder Bay and Nipigon districts are facing extremely hazardous conditions, is provided by an update from the Ministry of Natural Resources (14). Heading to Europe, three new wildfires have been reported near Aeropoli, Chania, and Kyparissia, Greece, and another outside of Canakkale, Turkey (15); several more wildfires being reported in six Turkish districts, including a wind-driven blaze in the Sabuncubeli region of Manisa which caused traffic disruptions (16); a striking satellite image provided by NASA's Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer showing wildfires raging across Siberia (17); while Wildfire NOTD subscriber Mikel Robinson, Executive Director of the International Association of Wildland Fire, sent along an update on their 4th Fire Behavior and Fuels Conference in St. Petersburg, Russia, which will take place in July (18). With controversy still swirling around the response to January's 37,000-hectare Harrietville, Victoria, Australia, bushfire, the Minister for Bushfire Response has asked fire chiefs to hold “relationship-building” meetings (19); but in South Australia, the Mitcham Council voted down a proposal which would've forced people selling homes in bushfire-prone areas to have their property inspected and rated on fire risk (20). And finally, we have two cases of firefighters averting a cat-astrophe: firefighters in Anne Arundel County, Maryland, used thermal imagers to get a kitten out of an apartment wall; and firefighters in Hoboken, New Jersey, rescued two kittens inside the wall of an uptown office building!

(1) Smoky Spectra – Finding Forest Fires with Spectrometry

(2) Los Padres National Forest fire: Crews gain upper hand

(3) Update: Wildfire near Magic Mountain theme park 80 percent contained

(4) Red Cross Wildfire App Brings Safety Information to Mobile Devices

(5) Kern County fire employee receives safety award

(6) White Fire Tankers Using Santa Maria Air Attack Base

(7) MTECH’s QTAC Mobile All-Terrain Firefighting Systems Feature Vycom’s Hitec Material

(8) Drought, wildfires increase wild animal encounters

(9) Officials: Campers should be attentive to their fires

(10) FEMA reimburses Central Texas first responders for 2011 wildfires

(11) Suspect charged in connection to 8 wildfires in Lawrence County

(12) Thanks to emergency responders who put out Jackson Township forest fire

(13) Arson suspected in Croatan National Forest fire

(14) Fire hazard climbing

(15) EFFIS - Current Situation

(16) Forest fire breaks out in Turkey's Aegean province

(17) NASA image: Wildfires in Siberia

(18) 4th Fire Behavior and Fuels Conference in St. Petersburg, Russia

(19) 'Nothing could be done for Harrietville'

(20) Mitcham Council rejects bushfire rating proposal

(21) Firefighters rescue kitten stuck in Glen Burnie wall

(22) Hoboken firefighters are the cat's meow after rescuing kittens