WILDFIRE NEWS OF THE DAY - 070613

A New York Times article looks at the vicious cycle of new home construction in wildfire-prone parts of the Western US and the wildfires that menace them (1); while a Washington Post article disputes the premise that climate change alone is worsening wildfires (2). An article from the Southern California mountain community of Idyllwild touches on the wildfire danger posed by insects killing trees in nearby forests (3); while a small vegetation fire was reported in the Stanislaus National Forest (4). A lightning-sparked 9,030-acre wildfire on Nevada's Mount Charleston is threatening 400 structures (5); an article from Reno discussing the importance of Fire Adapted Communities in wildfire-prone parts of the state (6). Evacuees from Arizona's Yarnell Hill Fire waited for word that they could return home (7); comfort dogs from Lutheran Church Charities in Addison, Illinois, doing their part to soothe nerves (8); even as experts postulated that the Granite Mountain Hotshots' escape route may have been inadequate, Wildfire NOTD subscriber Dan Ware, Fire Prevention and Outreach Program Manager for New Mexico State Forestry, confirming the accuracy of the map used in the investigation (9); the next article offering a run-up to the tragedy (10); a National Public Radio program discussing what's next for firefighters as that blaze nears containment (11); the Diamondbacks baseball team honoring the 19 fallen firefighters by wearing black jerseys with a "19" embossed on the front (12); but amid all the tributes to the dead 19 heroes, controversial Westboro Baptist Church vows to picket their funerals (13); and a photo of the flag-draped bodies of the Granite Mountain Hotshots has also drawn some criticism (14); while an Op-Ed piece from American Thinker dissects the Associated Press's linkage of Arizona wildfires and climate change (15); and Sen. John McCain discussed the importance of allowing private companies to clear forests and devote more resources to firefighting efforts (16). Educators gathered in Colorado burn areas for a training session sponsored by nonprofit Coalition for the Upper South Platte (17); the Colorado Department of Health and Environment providing a list of landfills capable of taking wildfire debris (18); but amid major corporate fundraisers to help Colorado wildfire survivors, some children have set up a lemonade stand to do their part (19); however, not everyone is there to help (20). Following 340 wildfires that have scorched 11,000 acres in Utah so far this year, the Natural History Museum of Utah has unveiled “Nature Unleashed: Wildfire” to educate the public on the danger posed by wildfires (21). Fort Worth, Texas, firefighters were busy over the Fourth of July with more than 100 wildfires, some of them sparked by fireworks (22); while the next article tells the tale of how an entrepreneur in Minnesota developed a firefighting suppressant called Fire Jell (23). A member of the Ohio Interagency Fire Crew, which consists of about 200 firefighters, recounts his exploits fighting wildfires in the West each summer (24); and the North Carolina National Guard's 145th Airlift Wing will be departing for MAFFS operations in Arizona on Sunday (25). Thirty helicopters and six Canadian air-tankers continued to battle wildfires that have scorched over 300,000 ha near James Bay, Québec (26); but food shipments have been disrupted by the blazes (27); and as firefighters in Labrador continued to grapple with a huge wildfire, a senior climatologist with Environment Canada is forecasting a warmer-than-normal summer for British Columbia as well as Newfoundland and Labrador (28). A downed power line sparked a bushfire on the outskirts of Canterbury, New Zealand (29). And finally, two firefighters participated in a race in Georgia in full turnout gear, with SCBA, in honor of the fallen firefighters in Yarnell, Arizona!

(1) Homes Keep Rising in West Despite Growing Wildfire Threat

(2) Climate change is not the main cause of forest fires

(3) Fire and forest: Fire season here/prevention setback...

(4) Fire In Stanislaus National Forest

(5) Uncontrolled Mount Charleston wildfire threatens 400 structures in its path

(6) Creating defensible space to protect against wildfires: your home, your responsibility

(7) Arizona wildfires: Yarnell evacuees await word to go back

(8) Comfort Dogs Go To Arizona To Help Wildfire Victims

(9) Wildfire cut off Hotshots' access to safety zone creating trap, fire officials say

(10) From lunch on a ridge to disaster: How just another day on the line turned tragic for Hotshots

(11) Once The Fire's Out, Arizona's Firefighters Will Reflect

(12) Diamondbacks honor fallen firefighters

(13) Westboro Baptist Church praises Arizona wildfires that killed 19 firefighters, vows to picket their funerals

(14) Photo of fallen Arizona firefighters stirs sadness, anger

(15) Arizona's Wildfires and Climate Change

(16) McCain says deadly Arizona wildfire highlights need

(17) Tour of burn areas helps teachers understand fire, forest ecology

(18) Where to dump trash, waste, garbage damaged in Colorado wildfires

(19) Lemonade stand raises money for Colo. wildfires second year in a row

(20) Two men charged with stealing from Black Forest fire area

(21) Program highlights wildfire preparedness

(22) Fort Worth firefighter suffers minor injuries when fireworks are thrown at him

(23) South St. Paul company's solution to firefighting drawbacks? Make it a solution

(24) Columbus firefighter volunteers out West

(25) Charlotte National Guard team to fight wildfires in Arizona

(26) Forest fires burning out of control near James Bay community

(27) Quebec forest fires disrupt food shipments to northern communities

(28) Odds in favour of warmer-than-normal summer - Forest fire officials expecting more fires than average season

(29) Wind, bushfire, power outages in Canterbury

(30) Firefighters run race in full gear to honor Yarnell 19