WILDFIRE NEWS OF THE DAY - 112013

A 1925 Ford Model T will be auctioned off Friday in Anaheim, California, with the benefits going to the memorial fund for the Granite Mountain Hotshots families (1); but Department of Interior Sec. Vilsack urged Congress to do more about wildfires in a visit to Fresno yesterday (2). Franklin County, Washington, will be reviewing a proposed Community Wildfire Protection Plan from Northwest Management this week (3); an article from Arizona takes a closer look at the science of controlled burns on the Kaibab National Forest (4). Utah's Department of Natural Resources praised Washington County's efforts at wildfire prevention as a model for the rest of the state (5); while fire crews have brought the 1,620-acre wildfire in West Virginia's Monongahela National Forest to 70% containment (6). Researchers at Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Engineering Systems Division have released a new study which examines the root problem of funneling more money to wildfire suppression at the expense of fire prevention (7); but fire crews in New York State had to return to Clausland Mountain after a wildfire which they thought was extinguished rekindled (8). A five-acre wildfire has been reported in Virginia's George Washington National Forest (9); fresh crews arriving in North Carolina's Pisgah National Forest as firefighters brought a 2,481-acre blaze to 40% containment (10). In a video segment from the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, three people discuss their close encounters with bushfires (11). To help clear bushfire debris in Lake Macquarie, New South Wales, an Eco Angel Clean Up has been organized for this coming weekend (12); while a local band hopes to raise $2,000 for bushfire survivors in Horsley Park Friday night (13); the next article praising some bushfire heroes (14); the one which follows providing some pointers to insurance brokers on how to be heroes to homeowners who have lost everything to bushfires (15). Firefighter concerns over reduced staffing levels and training within Country Fire Authority may pose problems for the Victorian government ahead of bushfire season (16); while the Water Corporation advised homeowners in Western Australia to have a substantial water supply on hand to fight bushfires (17). And finally, firefighters in Matheson Hammock, Florida, had to perform a tricky extrication: getting a raccoon's head out of a jar!

(1) Auction of Classic Car Will Fund Memorial For Arizona Firefighters

(2) In Fresno, Vilsack Calls For New Approach To Wildfire Fight

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