Wildland Fire Update
The National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC) based in Boise (Idaho) provides key information on current
wildland fire situations, related information and background materials. The following
information is updated daily and can be accessed directly:
- State-by-State daily and year-to-date summary of fire activities
http://www.nifc.gov/fireinfo/nfn.html
- Year-to-date State-by-State total number of wildland fires and area
burned (table)
http://www.nifc.gov/fireinfo/nfnmap.html
- Daily locations of large fires (map)
http://www.nifc.gov/fireinfo/firemap.html
The National Interagency Coordination Center (NICC) provides daily situation reports. These reports include:
- Incident Management Situation Reports (fires and area burned reported to NICC). The files include current, previous and archived reports
- Prescribed Fire and Wildland Fire Use (year-to-date fires and area burned reported to
NICC, posted weekly on Monday mornings)
http://www.nifc.gov/news/RXWFUYTD.htm
Archived NICC Incident Management Reports (recent daily reports and archived daily reports 1994-1997) are provided by the Center for International Disaster Information (CIDI)
Fire Weather & Fire Danger InformationThe Wildland Fire Assessment System (WFAS) is a contribution of "The Fire Behavior Research Work Unit", Missoula (Montana USA). The broad area component of the Wildland Fire Assessment System (WFAS) generates maps of selected fire weather and fire danger components.
Fire Danger (Potential) is a normalized adjective rating class across different fuel models and station locations. It is based on information provided by local station managers about the primary fuel model, fire danger index selected to reflect staffing level, and climatological class breakpoints. Low danger (Class 1) is green and extreme potential (Class 5) is red.
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Fire danger maps for the United States for 30
June 2002 (observation time) and 01 July 2002 (forecast)
(Source: WAFS)
Dead fuel moisture responds solely to ambient environmental conditions and is critical in determining fire potential. Dead fuel moistures are classed by timelag.
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10-HR Fuel Moisture |
100-HR Fuel Moisture |
1000-HR Fuel Moisture |
Fuel moisture maps for conterminous US, 30 June 2002
(Source: WAFS)
The Keetch-Byram Drought Index (KBDI) is a soil/duff drought index. Factors in the index are maximum daily temperature, daily precipitation, antecedent precipitation, and annual precipitation. The index ranges from 0 (no drought) to 800 (extreme drought) (details).
Keetch-Byram Drought Index Maps for conterminous US, 30 June
2002
(Source: WAFS)
Operational
Significant Event Imagery (OSEI)
The following significant events were identified by Satellite Analysis
Branch meteorologists and reviewed by the OSEI support team of the
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA):
NESDIS/OSEI NOAA-14 POES AVHRR LAC satellite images,
Heat signatures (red) and smoke (light blue haze) are visible from fires burning in Arizona and Utah. The Rodeo/Chediski Fire has burned 417,000 acres three miles north of Cibecue,AZ and was 10% contained. The Rattle Complex Fire has charred 23,975 acres in eastern Utah and was 10% contained. This information is from the National Interagency Fire Center Incident Management Situation Report from 06/28/2002.
(Source: OSEI/NOAA)
UPDATE - Firefighters making stand to save Arizona town
SHOW LOW, Ariz. - Firefighters hoping to save a tiny Arizona town from the worst wildfire in state history made their stand last week at a state highway serving as the last major line of defense about a mile
(1.6 km) away.
Fire crews, already exhausted after a protracted battle to save the mountain community of Show Low were sent racing 35 miles (60 km) west to dig in around Forest Lakes, an enclave of about 800 people that was evacuated earlier this week.
The main part of the monster blaze remained south of State Route 260,but fire spokesman Jim Whittington said spot fires were developing across the highway, where crews worked furiously to extinguish them.
Whittington said that if firefighters could hold the line, if temperatures cooled and if the winds dropped overnight, they expected to make inroads against the flames, which were licking up through a series of
finger canyons on the south side. "It's just a matter of time, in the sense that if we can make until tonight
with the fire across 260, it should lose its punch and we should be able to hold it tomorrow," Whittington said. "We've had a lot of active fire behavior today. It's something we're really concerned about."
Whittington said crews had been diverted from the mountain community of Show Low, about 35 miles (60 km) east of Forest Lakes, that had spent much of last week in danger of being overrun by the 420,000-acre (170,000 hectare) blaze before it was turned away.The area scorched by the blaze measures 650 square miles (1,690 sq.km), - twice the size of the city of New York - and has a perimeter of about 200 miles (320 km).
HIGHWAY A CRITICAL FIRE LINE
"We've been pumping people into the (Forest Lakes) area since this morning," Whittington said. "We've also got three hot shot crews burning fire lines out by 260 and a 'dozer line around the community."
The massive fire began Friday about 5 miles (8 km) away from Forest Lakes, but high winds sent it charging through bone-dry pine forests toward the town before crews could slow it down. About one-third of the crews, plus equipment, that once were dedicated to Show Low were now defending Forest Lakes, Whittington said. Evacuated Show Low residents could be back within days, he said,
although no timetable has been set.
At Forest Lakes, meanwhile, crews were busy building fire lines, lighting backfire and dumping retardant and water on both side of State Route 260 in hopes of stopping the fire, which has been fueled by extreme
drought conditions gripping the U.S. West. If the fire jumps the highway, the concern also is that it could roar unabated through fuel-rich Ponderosa pine for at least another 30 miles (50 km), fire officials said.
More than 4,300 firefighters are on the scene of the massive blaze, and 500 more are expected to arrive by the end of Friday. In all, 423 homes have been destroyed. Weather may help firefighting efforts with winds of 10 to 20 mph (15 to 30kph) and mild summer temperatures. There was a 20 percent chance of
thunderstorms, officials said. No timetable has been set to allow the more than 30,000 people evacuated by the massive fire back into their homes. Motor tours are scheduled for Friday and Saturday for residents to see if their homes were spared, but they will not be allowed out of the vans.Officials said the danger was too great to allow residents back into the area yet.
OFFICIALS OPTIMISTIC IN COLORADO
The biggest fire in Colorado's history, which has destroyed 133 homes, was expected to be fully contained by Sunday evening, three weeks and a day after it was ignited, fire information officer Randy Moench said.
The Hayman fire, 55 miles (90 km) southwest of Denver has scorched 137,000 acres (55,000 hectares). The U.S. Forest Service employee who allegedly started the fire on purpose was released on bail to a half-way house on Wednesday. She must stay away from drugs and alcohol and keep out of the forest.
But a fire near Durango in southwest Colorado was not under control,
Moench said. After having destroyed 57 homes it was still threatening other houses and lightning in the forecast meant crews could be kept busy trying to snuff out flare-ups.
Crews nationwide were battling 18 large fires burning in eight states for a total of about 930,000 acres (372,000 hectares), said the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise, Idaho. To date 2.6 million acres (one million hectares) have burned, more than double the 10-year average of 1 million acres (400,000 hectares) it said.
Source: Planet
Ark
For more information on the recent fire situation see: Recent Media Highlights on Fire, Policies, and Politics , especially several articles referring to the situation in Colorado.
Long-range weather forecasts
National Weather
Service
Long-range, 30-day weather forecasts are predicting above-normal temperatures for
the southern tier of states from southern California to Florida and throughout the Midwest
(see 30 and 90-day forecast maps).
30 and 90-day temperature and precipitation forecast maps (June
2002 and June to August 2002)
(Source: National Weather
Service)
The Florida
Division of Forestry gives the following long-range Wildfire Season Forecast September - March 2002
for Florida:
"A return to near normal conditions in the equatorial Pacific Ocean marks the end
of the prolonged La Niña event that brought very active fire seasons to the state
the past few years. Normal to slightly warmer sea surface temperatures in the Pacific will bring us our first “normal” winter in a while, and if sea surface temperatures continue to slowly warm we may get above normal rainfall this winter."
For further information see: Wildfire
Season Forecast of the Florida Division of Forestry
For further information you may also see to the U.S. Drought Monitor.
For background information on the Southern Area see the Edited Version of the Southern Area Intelligence Briefing Paper for 22 April 2001.