The Ethiopia Fire Emergency between February and April 2000 – A summary retrospective provided by GFMC and GTZ

Satellite Remote Sensing of Fires

The United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), National Environmental Satellite, Data, and Information Service (NESDIS), International and Interagency Affairs Office, on the request of the Government of Ethiopia through its embassy in Addis Ababa, provided the following remote sensing information:

U.S. Air Force Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP)
The DMSP Operational Linescan System has the capability to detect fires at night in a light intensified visible channel. DMSP images were provided at 2.7 km resolution for the East African region. A special survey area where the fires occurred (Goba and Shakiso Regions – 5-9° N, 38-42° E) were produced daily between Monday through Friday.

NOAA Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR)
The NOAA AVHRR has been designed to provide information for meteorological, hydrologic and oceanographic studies. POES AVHRR Local Area Coverage (LAC) 1 km resolution data recorded onto NOAA-14 spacecraft were processed from 8 to 10 March and occasionally later. Restrictions were due to the fact that the satellite’s orbital track changed and the spacecraft did not image directly over Ethiopia due to other commitments for recording 1×1 km resolution data.

The Situation between 10 and 14 March 2000: Building up the Field Forces

On 9-10 March 2000 the fires continue to burn in the same areas as in the previous days. There are no updated estimates on effected hectares of forest land or other damages incurred. The six days weather forecasts predict slow to moderate winds and relatively low humidity, conditions which are quite suitable for fire fighting. However, there is still no forecasts predicting rains.

Three crew leaders from the Republic of South Africa (RSA) arrive on 8 March. A South African and a US fire specialist leave for Robe/Goba in order to carry out some training of ground crew leaders.

Later, the Ministry for Agriculture (MoA) receives a report on a serious fire in Yabello Forest Priority Area. Reportedly, about 350 ha had been burnt or were still under fire. The fire is raging in natural Juniperus procera stands, which are dominating the forest area. Yabello Forest is one of four isolated dry juniper woodland/forest areas in the southern part of Ethiopia. Fire fighting is severely constrained by shortage of staff (many Woreda Agricultural Office staff members are assigned to the Shakiso fires) and shortage of field equipment (axes, bowsaws, back-pack pumps, fire beaters, head lamps, etc).

The spotter plane from South Africa arrives on Friday 10 March afternoon. Later that day (23:00) 15 forest fire fighters arrive from Johannesburg, South Africa. On 11 March they are dispatched to Gobe Base Camp. 15 Ethiopian soldiers who will team up with the South African fire fighters have been trained in fire suppression techniques by a South African training specialist on Friday morning. They successfully extinguish two training fires which were purposely lit at the Robe airstrip.

On Saturday morning it is reported from Bale Zone that students from an agricultural training center, soldiers and community members succeeded to contain the fires in Kumbi Forest (south west of the Bale National Park). On the other hand, fires have broken out in Yabello State Forest (Borana Zone), which is located about 100 km south of Shakiso Town. Reportedly, 350 ha of natural juniper forests have been consumed. Fire fighting in this forest is constrained by shortage of personnel, field equipment and difficult access.

On 12 March 2000 the South African pilot trainer, technician and additional four crew leaders arrive. According to reports from the fire sites as received by the Ministry in the morning, ground-based fire fighters made the following progress:

• In Mena-Angetu Forest (south of Bale National Park) 723 firefighters which were organised in eight groups have suppressed wildfires at different spots around Angetu
• In Bale National Park 132 fire fighters organised in three teams have managed to control fires at Tirak and Hada.

In Borana Zone fires are still burning in Megada and Sewana forests. Out of the ten fire spots where fires are still burning, reportedly seven fires are under control. However, this information needs confirmation through aerial surveying.

On 13 March 2000 the helicopter-based fire fighting operations come into full swing in Bale Zone. 38 fire fighters (18 South African and 20 Ethiopian), which are organised in four teams, contain fires extending over an area of 25 ha in Berbere and Goro locations in the east of the National Park. It proves difficult for the spotter plane and the helicopters to maintain altitude and it was, therefore, decided to relocate the Base Camp from Robe/Goba (> 3000 m.a.s.l.) to Delo Mena (ca. 1500 m a.s.l.) in order to save a fuel for air operations.

The aerial surveyors assessed that the burnt-over forest area in Bale Zone alone is in excess of 100,000 ha. However, systematic surveying with GPS readings will be carried out and more reliable damage estimates are expected at a later stage. Low-level flights over the forests reveal that even in the parts that were believed to be uninhabited, farmers have established camps and small land clearings. There are also reports that farmers have re-started fires in areas, where fires were extinguished or contained during the previous days. Due to these facts the area supervisors have difficulties to motivate the ground-based fire fighting crews (community members, soldiers and students) to continue their efforts. This underscores the need for an mid- to long-term integrated fire management program, in order to address the causes of fires.

In Borana Zone, there are still fires in Wacho Sololo, Bore and Mengado sites. In addition to that, new fire started in Jigessa Kebele. The local authorities are worried that from Jigessa fires could spread again to the neighbouring Districts (Uraga, Shakiso and Adola) were fires have already caused considerable damage but were recently suppressed.

The Ministry also receives a report about a serious fire in Nechisar National Park of Southern Region. The Park is located in the south-west of Shakiso area, directly in between Lake Chamo and Lake Abaya (Rift Valley). The park is famous for its ground water forests, which are unique for country. It also comprises grasslands and bushlands in the higher altitudes. Reportedly, the fire was confined to the latter vegetation types. The Ministry dispatches a team of experts in the afternoon in order to assess the situation and assist the local authorities in organising the fire fighting activities.

In the afternoon of 13 March 2000 update reports are received from Bale and Borana Zones. Around Angetu (Bale Zone, south of the National Park), where fires were reported to be contained just two days again, new fires have started again. Most likely, these fires were purposely started by farmers for land clearing purposes.

In Sewana Forest around Jigessa (Borana Zone) a very vicious fire is raging the forests. The expert of the Ministry of Agriculture who is monitoring the situation in that area describes it as the “most enormous” fire he has encountered since he was deployed to the area (three weeks).

On 14 March 2000 17:00 the fires in Nechisar National Park and in Yabello Forest have been suppressed. Nevertheless, the Ministry of Agriculture (MoA) will dispatch some of the 320 back-pack water pumps from Germany which arrived by special air freight from Germany in the morning.

Helicopter-based fire fighting proved difficult on 13 March. The helicopters are not equipped with high altitude kits, resulting in high fuel consumption, reduced maximum pay load (only a maximum of 8 crew members can be taken at any time) and general difficulties to maintain high flight levels. Furthermore, it turns out to be difficult and dangerous to rapel firefighters by winches, since serious turbulences are being created between the hovering helicopter and the tree crowns. It requires a lot of skills and experience to safely reach the ground and being caught up in the trees. The trees in the forests are fairly high (above 50m), which aggravates the situation. Due to a shortage of suitable landing sites, fire fighters have to hike up to 10 km in difficult terrain to the fire sites. Hence, only two to three hours net fire fighting time is left. Therefore only three localised fires were suppressed successfully.

Fires are reported from ten locations in Bale Zone, namely Kiret, Bakabuja, Angetu-Kallo, Hobe, Dugeda, Tara, Ebicha, Wollasha, Korechaffa and Golja, all located in the Angetu/Dolo Mena Area. Furthermore, a serious fire started in Goba Area. There is no new report from Borana Zone (Shakiso).

The Incident Commander, accompanied by the Logistics and Planning Chiefs, leaves for Bale Zone in order to critically review the fire attack strategy. At the same time, all the equipment received from the Governments of Germany and South Africa are airlifted to the fire sites.

Since too many hopes in the local and international media had been placed on the effectiveness of water bombing the following assessment is given by the leader of the South African assessment team:

• The area is not suited for Helicopter/Bambi bucket fire fighting due to the lack of available water.
• The type of fires are not suited for Helicopter bucket fire fighting as they are generally burning “cool” and slowly and without any clearly recognizable fire front.
• Therefore, the priority is: Specialized ground fire fighting teams dispatched to the fires by helicopter.
• It is important to expose the Ethiopian Air Force and the Ministry of Agriculture to the use of the Bambi Bucket for consideration in future use and as an additional application at existing fires if fire situations and water availability should change.

The Situation between 15 and 28 March 2000

On 15 March the Global Fire Monitoring Center (GFMC) approaches the UNEP and suggested a cash donation to ensure the continuation of South African fire fighter involvement. On 17 March the government of Ethiopia officially requests UNEP assistance.

Parallel to the UNEP negotiations the GFMC discussed a contribution of the United Kingdom to upgrade the national Ethiopian remote sensing capabilities for fire detection.

On 19 March 2000 heavy rain showers occur in Robe (Friday night) and Goba (Saturday) and Bore Forest (Borana Zone). However, the southern parts of the fire-effected areas did not received any rains and fires continue to burn.

In Dolo Mena area (Bale Zone) there are still two major fires burning in Mada Wellabo and Nensabo locations. Likewise, two major fires are reported from Shakiso area (Borana Zone).

During the last two days 271 mobilised fire fighters (community members, militia men, etc.) have been trained successfully in fire fighting techniques. The previously trained Ethiopian soldiers effectively contribute as trainers and, hence, to the training success. Starting Saturday one helicopter is being deployed for dropping water over actual fire sites. The Ethiopian pilots make considerable progresses and improved their skills with every drop.

The Incident Command Team receives an updated map with fire spots and perimeters of burned areas. A large area exceeding 100,000 ha was calculated as being burned or still burning as of 17 March 2000. However, it is noted that the fires were quite patchy, i.e. not all forest areas within the delineated perimeters are fully burned. This is the reason why a correct estimation is not possible at this stage.

The surveyors also identified more than 100 fire spots (smoke columns) at that time. The Government of Ethiopia replaces the damaged helicopter.

About 50% of the South African team members are now scheduled to remain for another week (departure planned for 28 March 2000) and they will be complemented by a larger group of Ethiopian nationals. Depending on the conditions, also training activities for ground-based fire fighters will be carried out in Borana Zone. Water bombing activities will be continued as well, until all accessible (in economic flight distance) fires are suppressed.

On 20 March the Air Base Camp is partly relocated to Shakiso. Water bombing continues in Shakiso area.

The Incident Command Team receives a report from Bale Zone that all the fires around Dolo Mena which are accessible from the ground are being contained. However, in this area there are no rainfalls as yet and there is still the risk of new fire starts. Furthermore, there are still some smoke columns in the remote forest areas spotted from the air. Mobilised community fire fighters are monitoring the situation in recently controlled fire areas.

In Shakiso (Borana Zone) two serious fires are reported in the Kebeles (sub-districts) Sewana and Angadi. In the other Kebeles fires are contained. 636 community members, soldiers and militia men are assigned to observe the fire situation in eight Kebeles where fire had occurred previously. At the same time they have been tasked to mop up smouldering stems and stumps.

On 21 March 2000 the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) hands over a cash donation of $US 20,000.

As scheduled, 14 fire fighters from South Africa return to their home country. The remaining teams continue with training and actual fire fighting in Shakiso area. Funding for this is covered by the UNEP contribution.

On 22 March reports are obtained about new outbreaks of fires in Nechisar (Southern Region, East of Arba Minch) and Awash (Affar Region) National Parks. The Ethiopian Ministry of Agriculture (MoA) did not receive any detailed information on the fires, but it is believed that the fires were occurring in woodland, bushland and grassland ecosystems. All of these are adapted to fire and, hence, do not call for immediate fire fighting action. The fires presumably had been started by pastoralist groups which are residing close to or even inside the parks in order to encourage growth of fresh grass and to eliminate tick populations. The Ministry dispatched some of the withheld back-pack water pumps from Germany to Nechisar Park to make sure that the fires there do not spread into the unique ground water forests of Arba Minch.

The relocation of the Air Base Camp faces some unforeseen problems and is not yet completed. The focus thus far had been on training of mobilised civilians and soldiers in fire fighting techniques around Shakiso. As of 21 March a total of 209 fire fighters have been fully trained.

On 24 March the fire in Nechisar National Park is contained. It is estimated that 10 to 15% of the total Park Area had been burned. The spotter continues to survey the area and reports to the Incident Command. There is still a serious fire around Amare Mountain, which is located east of the National Park. Another fire is reported from Butajira Mountain (Gurarghe Mountain), approximately 100 km SSW of Addis Ababa. The fire reportedly is raging in the Erica arborea Zone of the forest, but no details are known yet.

Fires in Borana Zone are still serious. Three major fires are burning in Shakiso Woreda (Sewana, Angedi and Amegedu locations) and five serious fires in Bore Woreda. Some of these fires reportedly developed to crown fires. Due to logistic problems (fuel supply) the helicopters are only available for transport purposes during the last days. The focus was, hence, on ground-based fire fighting and training. The newly trained trainers were split up in three groups and carried out training in three different Woredas. In Shakiso Woreda, another 50 civilians and soldiers have been trained on the job yesterday, the figures from the other Woredas were not reported. Including these 50, the number of trained fire fighters totals 530 now (for both Zones).

The remaining South African fire fighters are deployed to combat a fire close to the microwave tower nearby Shakiso town. The fire had been contained at the access road to the tower last night and the suppression activities are presently continued. Winds are fairly strong on 24 March, but calmed down on 25 March. There are no reports about rains.

On 26 March heavy showers are occurring on 24-25 March in Bale Zone around Dolo Mena. No smoke columns were observed in that area during surveying activities on Saturday and Sunday morning. The fires in this area appear to be under control. In Shakiso area (Borana Zone) only very light rains were received. There are fire reports from four Woredas of the Zone, namely Shakiso, Adola, Uraga and Bore. In the last three Woredas fires were accessible for ground-based fire fighters. The fire around the microwave tower was fought for the last two days by the South African and Ethiopian specialist crews. They were supported by water bombing from one helicopter. Technicians of the Ethiopian Telecommunication company were stand-by to dismantle the electronic parts of the tower if the fire should further approach. On 27 March the fire is contained.

On 27 March six new fires in Kumbi forest are spotted despite the rains in Dolo Mena area (Mena Angetu Woreda) which were reported the day before. Presumably, the fires were deliberately started by forest dwellers for land clearing purposes. Efforts are underway to re-mobilize fire fighters.

For the entire Bale Zone official fire damage statistics are released (as of 23 March 2000) which are presented in the table below:

Woreda (District)

No of PAs affected

Forest Area burned
(ha)

Wild Coffee (ha)

Livestock killed (heads)

Wildlife killed

Beehives destroyed

Houses burned

Mena Angetu

14

6500

940

10

9

332

13

Berbere

11

25000

32

 

26

857

8

Goba

6

11900

   

5

 

2

Goro

4

2100

     

407

  Sinana

1

3600

   

5

3000

  Gura Dhamole

3

1060

7

   

50

  Meda Walabu

6

2677

 

20

4

431

20

Total

45

52837

979

30

49

5077

43

On 28 March fires continued to burn in the same areas of Borana Zone as reported on 27 March. In addition to these, a new fire started in Alona Woreda. The fire around the micro wave tower is still active, but all combustible material in the immediate vicinity of tower has been cleared. Fire lines are being established to contain the fire but this proves difficult due to the high number of collapsing trees. These are falling over the fire lines and start new fires in previously unburned areas.

The quality of water bombing continues to improve and proves very effective in supporting the ground crews around the micro wave tower. Apart from the already reported rains, no new rainfalls are received in either of the two zones.

On 29 March the number of fire spots in Dolo Mena area (Kumbi Forest) has increased to 10, as compared to six fires on 28 March, resulting in re-mobilization of fire fighters. No further rains are recorded in Bale Zone. Three fires east of Nechisar National Park (Southern Region) are confirmed to be extinguished.

All South Africans leave Ethiopia on 29 March as scheduled. On 28 March the South African Embassy had organized a reception in their honour. and they all left with a set of traditional Ethiopian clothes – farewell presents of the Ethiopian Government.

On 31 March reports were received today that there were heavy showers, in both Borana and Bale Zones, on 29 and 30 March 2000. A helicopter survey of Dolo Mena, Goba and the area west of Shakiso was carried out on 30 March and no smoke columns were spotted. No information about Bore Forest is available, but it is likely that it also rained there.

The ground crews continue to be assigned to monitor the situation since it is unlikely that the rains completely extinguished smouldering trees, roots and stumps and the risk of spreading fires remains.

The number of civilians and soldiers that were trained in fire fighting techniques totalls 755 on 30 March 2000. Hence, considerable capacities have been built during the fire incident. The Incident Command Team continues to monitor the situation.

 

7 April 08:00 GMT: Fires Under Control

On Wednesday 5 April 2000 the Vice Minister of the Ethiopian Ministry of Agriculture, Mr.Belay Ejigu, gave a press conference on the Forest Fires in Bale and Borana Zones. He declares that the wildfires in these Zones are suppressed. The experts of the Ministry of Agriculture are called back to Addis Ababa and asked to prepare their final reports. Except for continued monitoring of the situation by zonal experts the fire fighting activities are being completed for the time being.

 

A Short Resumé by the GFMC (7 April 2000)

At this stage the Global Fire Monitoring Center (GFMC) would like to thank all national Ethiopian and international partners for successful collaboration in combating the disastrous wildfires.

This fire fighting campaign – the very first and successful multinational intervention in history – had started in late February 2000. On request of the Government of Ethiopia immediate situation analysis and subsequent assistance was provided by a group of countries. The agencies officially involved through the diplomatic channels and the individual fire specialists dispatched to Ethiopia or supporting the campaign from their home offices worked together smoothly and efficiently.

From the beginning of the situation the GFMC, in close collaboration with the Government of Ethiopia and the German Agency for Technical Cooperation (GTZ), has assessed, monitored and supported the campaign A short and more condensed version of this report will be published in the April 2000 issue of International Forest Fire News on this website and printed as United Nations Publication (see IFFN). In this report all the aid rushed to Ethiopia will be described in detail, to mention notably the fast response by Germany, South Africa, United States of America, and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).

The Armed Forces of Ethiopia, the staff of the Ministry of Agriculture and the numerous villagers and enthusiastic students which provided voluntary help are acknowledged here.

All worked together to save the ecologically and biodiversity rich assets of the afro-montane forests of Ethiopia.

More challenges are ahead: The burning of forests and the escaping of wildfires will continue. In order to address uncontrolled and destructive wildfires a long-term prevention and preparedness program in fire management must be installed. The need for such development does not only apply for Ethiopia but also for all other countries in Africa. Following the example of Namibia, a National Round Table on Fire will be convened soon in Ethiopia. At this Round Table all national stakeholders involved in land-use and fire problems will be convened, together with the international community.

Ethiopia is facing another major environmental and humanitarian crisis. The prolonged drought has caused a major decline if agricultural and pastoral production. Millions of Ethiopian people are endangered by famine and death. International solidarity is required to respond fast.

The conflicts are visible: People need land and food. Forests are “reserve” lands for providing space for the rapidly expanding populations. If we all want to save human lives and the forests we need to act responsibly. Let us not forget that humanitarian and environmental disasters interact or cause each other.

The GFMC will further follow the fire situation in Ethiopia. The GFMC has to go back to its working mode which currently allows updating of the global fire situation only during weekdays due to limited finances and personnel.

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