Forest Fires in the United States: 19 August 1999
Forest Fires in the United States
19 August 1999
The National Interagency Fire Center reported on 18 August 1999 that six large fires burning in Arizona, California, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon and Utah for a total of 3,350 acres (1,355 ha). Regarding to the Wildland Fire Update of the above mentioned Center, wildland fire activity increased yesterday with five new large fires reported from California, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon and Utah. In addition, more than 400 small fires were reported from nearly every region of the country yesterday.
For more information please refer to the website of National Interagency Fire Center.
The BLM – Alaska Fire Service Initial Attack Management System (IAMS) is suite of computer applications developed by BLM/Fire to aid dispatchers and fire managers. IAMS Maps is one of these applications and provides graphical representation of various kinds of geographic data. Maps has been modified to produce output to a Web site to allow internet access to the data that IAMS stores. Dynamic data such as lightning (available May – September), fires, etc. are updated at the homepage of the BLM – Alaska Fire Service (select Maps / AFS IAMS Maps Viewer) every 15 minutes during the fire season.
Fig.1. IAMS image of active fires in Alaska, 18 August 1999
(Source: BLM – Alaska Fire Service )
According the INCIDENT MANAGEMENT SITUATION REPORT the current situation for 18 August 1999 can be quoted as follows:
“…
CURRENT SITUATION:
Moderate initial attack activity was reported throughout the western states. New large fires were reported in the Northern California, Western Great Basin and Eastern Great Basin Areas. Good progress was achieved on a large fire in the Northwest Area. Very high to extreme fire indices were reported in Oregon, California, Idaho, Utah, Nevada, South Dakota, Wyoming, Colorado, Oklahoma and Texas.
Two tractor plow operators received burns in unrelated incidents while working on a Louisiana state fire, near Winn Parish. One operator received second degree radiant burns and is in stable condition.
OUTLOOK:
“…
A fire weather watch is posted for northeast, east central and southern Nevada for dry lightning.
Very warm high pressure aloft will remain centered over northern New Mexico, maintaining a dry and stable air mass. Very warm temperatures across the inland west will be the result of this high pressure.
Monsoon moisture continues to circulate around the high bringing isolated to scattered wet thunderstorms to south Texas and the Four Corners states today. Along the periphery, isolated thunderstorms will be mainly dry over eastern Nevada and Wyoming. Weak weather disturbances embedded in the southerly flow will bring isolated mainly dry afternoon thunderstorms to the Sierra Nevada and Cascades eastward into western Montana.
Temperatures will cool slightly in western Washington. Elsewhere there will be no significant changes in temperature or humidity. Winds will be generally below 15 mph except near thunderstorms.
Maximum temperatures will be in the 60’s along the west coast and in the higher mountains. Elsewhere, highs will be in the 70’s and 80’s. Highs in the
90’s to near 100 are expected for the southwest deserts and Texas.
…”
Following basic fire data describe the fire situation in the UNITED STATES.
Number of FIRES in the last 24 hours HECTARES burning in the last 24 hours FIRES
YEAR-TO-DATE HECTARES
YEAR-TO-DATE 401 2,310 64,865 1,564,354
For detailed information regarding specified regions, please refer to the whole report.
