Forest Fires in the United States: 23 November 1999
Forest Fires in the United States
23 November 1999
Kentucky’s forestry department is asking for back-up as it continues to fight forest fires raging across the state. The request comes after one of the largest forest fires in Kentucky was re-ignited by an arsonist. The fire is still burning in Pike County. Fourteen fires in all are still burning in the eastern part of the state. Investigators believe most of the fires were deliberately set.
Several active fire signals were recorded by OSEI with the NOAA-14 POES AVHRR HRPT satellite on 21 and 22 November 1999 in the Midwest and Southeast regions of the United States. According to the NIFC Incident Management Situation Report (see below) a total of 64 fires burned 3,490 ha in the Southern Area.
Fig. 1. and 2. Geographical Regions (modified map) and Large Wildland Fires in the United States
(Sourc: National Interagency Fire Center).
Fig. 3.-5. The left image shows heat signatures and smoke plumes from areas of fire in Missouri and Arkansas. Some may be due to agricultural controlled burns, but officials report many wildfires in the area. The middle and the right images show fires from hte same areas on Sunday and monday in Kentucky and West Virginia. Many fires have been burning for over a week, and officials believe many were set deliberately.
(Source: NOAA http://www.osei.noaa.gov/)
According the INCIDENT MANAGEMENT SITUATION REPORT the situation for 22 November 1999 can be quoted as follows:
“…
CURRENT SITUATION
Moderate initial attack activity continued in the Southern Area. Containment objectives were met on several large fires. The National Interagency Coordination Center mobilized a helicopter, large transport aircraft, and miscellaneous overhead. Very high to extreme fire indices were reported in Missouri and Oklahoma.
OUTLOOK
A red flag warning is posted in southern California for srong, gusty northeast winds and low humidity for the mountains and valley areas below canyons and passes.
There will be a strengthening north to northeast flow over Southern California today that will combine with drying air to produce light to moderate Santa Ana winds which will weaken in the afternoon through Tuesday. In the mountains, high temperatures will be in the upper 40’s and 50’s and winds will be
35 MPH. Humidities will be 10 to 20 percent. The deserts will have high temperatures in the 60’s and 70’s with humidities at 10 to 20 percent and winds at 25 MPH. The rest of the area will be sunny, high temperatures in the 60’s, humidities 10 to 25 percent and winds at 35 MPH.
A possible Red Flag warning is posted for Oklahoma today for winds and low humidities.
Missouri will be mostly cloudy with a chance of showers in the west and partly cloudy in the east. High temperatures will be 65 to 75 and humidities 45 to 50 percent.
Kentucky and Tennessee will be mostly cloudy with high temperatures in the 60’s to 70’s and humidities at 55 to 70 percent.
Virginia and North Carolina will experience considerable cloudiness with high temperatures reaching 60 to 70 and humidities 55 to 70 percent.
… .”
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 68 3,533 88,975 2,262,138
For detailed information regarding specified regions, please refer to the whole report.
