WILDFIRE NEWS OF THE DAY - 121813

Firefighters in Northern California have brought an 800-acre wildfire that has destroyed 22 structures in Big Sur to 20% containment (1); but steep terrain is hampering their efforts (2); and smoky skies have kept air-tankers away from the blaze (3); smoke from the wildfire being reported in Santa Cruz County (4); as well as the Bay Area and Silicon Valley (5); an Op-Ed piece from the San Francisco Chronicle arguing against salvage logging in the Rim Fire burn area (6). In Colorado, the El Paso County Commissioners debated the virtue of leaving trees killed by the Black Forest Fire standing a little longer (7); while their decisions on fire codes have helped at least one homeowner begin to rebuild (8). Wildland firefighter safety is the focus of an article from Idaho (9); while fourteen agencies in Australia have signed up for Twitter Alerts to quickly disseminate bushfire information during emergencies (10). The work of Wildlife Information, Rescue and Emergency Services in New South Wales is examined by the next article (11); but a resident of Sydney has been charged with burglary during last month's bushfire outside of Yarramundi (12). Wildfire NOTD subscriber Nathan Maddock, Communications Officer at Victoria-based Bushfire CRC, sent along their latest newsletter in which their research on the January 2013 bushfires in New South Wales is discussed (13); the forecast of a heat wave leading Victorian officials to issue a statewide bushfire alert (14). In South Australia, Country Fire Service crews are making progress on a 750-hectare bushfire burning in the Adelaide Hills (15); the next article taking a closer look at Western Australia's aerial armada as it prepares for what promises to be a busy bushfire season (16). Southern Tasmania is under a total fire ban as weather forecasters predict a heatwave that has prompted over 5,000 Tasmanian Fire Service volunteers to stand to (17); where the shadow of January's Dunalley bushfire still looms large on the political landscape (18). And finally, a woodworker is using wood from fire-ravaged timber in Arizona as a teaching tool about the growing dangers of wildfires!

(1) Big Sur wildfire consumes 800 acres, now 20 percent contained

(2) Steep terrain slows fight against California coastal fire

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