2023 Wildfire Season: NWS Incident Meteorologist (IMET) deployments (August 29th)

There have been several deployments of NWS Incident Meteorologists since August 25th. In the list of deployments, the first link in each deployment is to the US NWS IMET listing on Facebook and the second link is to InciWeb, or if there is no InciWeb information for the fire to another agency (if available).

IMET deployments on Friday, August 25th

• Ridge Creek Fire in the Idaho Panhandle National Forests near Hayden, Idaho. See the Ridge Creek Fire on InciWeb
• Valentine Fire in the Tonto National Forest near Young Arizona. See the Valentine Fire on InciWeb.
• An IMET Trainee was deployed to the 2023 SRF Lightning Complex in the Six Rivers National Forest near Hoopa, California. See the 2023 SRF Lightning Complex on InciWeb.
• Tiger Island Fire near DeRidder, Louisiana. See the August 29th update for the Tiger Island Fire (31,242 acres)  from the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry No information on InciWeb.

IMET deployment on Saturday, August 26th

• Bedrock Fire in the Williamette National Forest near Vida, Oregon. See the Bedrock Fire on InciWeb
• Camp Creek Fire in the Mt. Hood National Forest near Sandy, Oregon. See the Camp Creek Fire on InciWeb.

IMET deployment on Sunday, August 27th to the Tyee Ridge Complex near Sutherlin, Oregon. See the Tyee Ridge Complex on InciWeb.

IMET deployment on Monday, August 28th to the  East Fork Fire in the Kootenai National Forest near Trego, Montana. See the East Fork Fire on InciWeb.

IMET deployments on Tuesday, August 29th

• Happy Camp Complex in the Klamath National Forest near Yreka, California. See the Happy Camp Complex on InciWeb
• Petes Lake Fire in the Willamette National Forest near Three Rivers, Oregon. No information available on InciWeb. See the August 29th Evening update from Central Oregon Fire Info
• South Fork Complex in the Shasta-Trinity National Forest near Hayfork, California. See the South Fork Complex on InciWeb.

IMETs save lives! Any errors in these listings are mine.

US Forest Service Awards New Airtanker Contract

I am sure that some of you already know that the US Forest Service awarded five companies a potential of a 10 year contract worth $7.2 billion, especially those of you who follow Fire Aviation as I do. Specifically. Kelly Andersson has written two articles about these contracts, the first was on August 14th announcing the five companies that got the awards, I'll get to that in a minute and a second article on August 17th  where he followed up with some questions that he and his readers had and the answers from  public affairs specialists that NIFC referred him to. I hope that you will read this coverage, especially the Q&A post on August 17th. I am going to summarize to the best of my ability.

Five companies were awarded contracts with a guaranteed minimum of $10,000 (not $10 million) over the ten years of the contract:

• 10 Tanker Air Carrier, LLC
• Aero Air, LLC
• Aero Flite Inc
• Coulson Aviation USA Inc
• Neptune Aviation

As I understand the $7.2 billion figure will give them flexibility in having the necessary number of airtankers in this year and subsequent years to meet the demand for airtankers. At the time that Kelly wrote the August 17th article the Forest Service had contracted with 25 airtankers, a number that is likely to change as time goes on. Finally, there is no limit to the number of airtankers that can be contracted for each year, the only limit is the total amount of the contract, $7.2 billion.

Kudos to Kelly Andersson of Fire Aviation for providing us with this information and for his efforts in contacting a public affairs specialist who answered his questions.

Friday Fun: Sixty-seven year old Turbine Otter Seaplane

 Just the thing for some Friday Aviation Fun. I was poking around YouTube for a fun aviation video and found this cool video of a beautiful De Havilland Canada Vazar Turbine Otter Seaplane from wcolby.

I am across the country from Seattle but I am loving this Otter Seaplane and wish that I could see her up close and personal. But that will have to wait. This Otter Seaplane is from Kenmore Air.

Direct link to video from wcolby on YouTube

Firefighting Helicopter near miss with a drone in Texas

Direct link to video from KBTX News on YouTube

This story from KBTX News illustrates the dangers in flying drones in fire zones. Last Friday a helicopter was flying a small fire in Caldwell County Texas when a drone came within several feet of colliding with the helicopter. The helicopter pilot had no way of knowing that the drone was near by. Please, no drones in fire zones. Thanks to Mike Archer from Wildfire News of the Day for pointing me to this article in his August 23 Wildfire News of the Day e-mail (go here for more information and to subscribe). 

Updated on August 25th: I only just saw a very good article by Kelly Anderson of Fire Aviation written on August 23rd titled 'PLEASE ground your drone, PLEASE'. He writes about the near miss of a drone and helicopter in Caldwell County Texas and about the importance of grounding drones over a wildfire.

2023 New Jersey Wildfire Season: Dragway Wildfire (Wharton State Forest) Aug 22nd update

August 22nd, 8:45 PM

The Dragway Wildfire has burned 1,700 acres and is at 95 percent containment. Jackson Road remains closed because of smoke impacts and weakened trees from the wildfire. NJ Forest Fire Service (NJFFS) crews will remain on site to monitor containment lines and ensure safety to the public as long as necessary. Click on more to see the complete post from the NJFFS as well as some fire photos. Nice job NJFFS crews! 

August 22nd 4:40 PM

Direct link to video from CBS Philadelphia on YouTube

This update from the NJ Forest Fire Service (shared below) about progress made on fighting the Dragway Wildfire is current as about 4:40 on August 22nd. I believe that the last update was at about 11:30 AM on August 22nd.

2023 New Jersey Wildfire Season: Dragway Wildfire (Wharton State Forest) Aug 21st update

August 21st, 9:30 PM update

This just in. Scroll down for earlier updates from the NJ Forest Fire Service and a video from Fox 29 Philadelphia.

August 21st, 9 PM

As you can see from the NJFFS update below, the Dragway Wildfire has grown to 1,200 acres and is at 40% containment. Jackson Road continues to be closed and no structures are threatened. 

  

Here is an early evening report on August 21st on the Dragway Wildfire from Fox 29 in Philadelphia.

Direct link to video from Fox29 Philadelphia on YouTube

August 21st, 11:15 AM

Last night, August 20th, I posted about the Dragway Fire that is burning in the Wharton State Forest, go here to see that post. As I write this, according to the latest update (embedded below) from the NJ State Forest Fire Service, the Dragway Wildfire has burned 600 acres and is 10 percent contained. Jackson Road will be closed at 11:30 AM. With the additional acres burned, the Dragway Wildfire is now in Camden and Burlington Counties.

2023 New Jersey Wildfire Season: Dragway Wildfire, Wharton State Forest, Camden County

Thanks to my good friend at the NJ Forest Fire Service Section B10 website for telling me about the Dragway Wildfire. The Dragway Wildfire was reported late on the afternoon of August 20th. At the time I write this post, the Dragway Wildfire has burned 100 acres and is not contained. No structures are threatened and there are no road closures. New Jersey Forest Fire crews are currently working to build containment lines. 

Update: August 20th, 10:21 PM

NOAA Incident Meteorologist Deployments as of mid-August 2023

As I write about the deployments of NWS Incident Meteorologists (IMET) to wildfires, and other missions as appropriate, I am always curious about the number of IMET deployments year to date. Every so often the US National Weather Service IMET (office) posts this information and I am always on the lookout for this information. As I was checking the US NWS IMET Facebook page late last night, I saw that they had made a post with this information on or about August 16th. I am embedding their post below. While they had 20 qualified IMETs and 2 trainees deployed at the time the IMET office posted on Facebook, I suspect that these numbers have changed, perhaps increasing? I saw this because at the time I write this I have noted several more deployments since they posted their year to date number for 2023. 

IMETs save lives!

New Jersey Forest Fire Service: Catfish Fire Tower

Back when my knees were in better shape I did a lot of day hiking in and near the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area on sections of the Appalachian Trail as well as other trails. One of my favorite trails was the loop up to the Catfish Fire Tower is a moderate hike up the ridge via a loop trail, go here to access a trail map and description of the trails. The ridge is beautiful and I recommend the hike to the Catfish Fire Tower (aka Fire Lookout Towers) and beyond. While it has been years since I hiked that trail, I have clear memories of seeing the Fire Tower from the trail. It is awesome.

The Catfish Fire Tower is one of several Fire Towers operated by the NJ Forest Fire Service to detect wildfires. You can see from the NJFFS map of NJ Forest Fire Service Lookout Tower Locations that all three NJFFS Divisions are well represented by Fire Lookout Towers.

Obtained on August 16, 2023 from https://www.nj.gov/dep/parksandforests/fire/docs/towerlocations.pdf

What NOAA Incident Meteorologists Do: A NOAA Photostory (Sept 2022)

 I check the NWS Incident Meteorologist Facebook page every day or so to see where IMETs are deployed and to get other news about IMETs. I am always interested in stories about what IMETs do so when I saw a reference to a September 2022 NOAA Photostory on what Incident Meteorologists (IMETs) do, I knew that I wanted to share the story with you. It is well worth checking out this photostory. You will see a couple of YouTube videos about IMETs in the photostory, one on protective gear and the second on using balloons for upper air weather observations. The photostory is divided into sections, each with a picture, you will learn about:

• Goal: keep firefighters safe
• Long days and nights (16 hour days
• Wildfire i
• Gearing up (protective gear)
• Clearing a path
• Communications is key
• Wildfires blaze across the West (late summer 2022)
• Wildfire impacts go beyond acres burned
• A team effort
• Eyes on the sky for firefighters on the ground
• Going forward

2023 Wildfire Season: Update on Maui Wildfires (August 11)

Direct link to video from The Washington Post on Youtube

I wrote about the wildfires in Maui on August 10th, and I continue to follow these fires. I found an update on the current status of the fires in Maui courtesy of the good reporting of CNN:

• current death toll is 55, numbers expected to climb when emergency workers go into burnt structures.
• Thousands of people are evacuated from their homes and businesses, including both residents and tourists.
• The historic town of Lhaina on Maui is "all gone" per the Maui County Mayor.
• The wildfire that devastated Lhaina is currently at 80 percent containment
• Power outages and disruptions in communications are continuing.

This just in (August 11th, 4:40 PM) On a slightly busier than normal afternoon I just checked in with Wildfire Today to see what they posted today. In today's post on WildfireToday, August 11th, 'Opinion: Maui fire shows that Hawaii paradise was a dream', Wildfire Today references an opinion piece by Naka Nathaniel, an opinion columnist for Honolulu Civil Beat, linking to an opinion piece he wrote on CNN. I found Nathaniel's piece very illuminating and I learned something, I hope that you take a few moments to read it.

I found an excellent video from Fox Weather (uploaded on or about August 10th) discussing the meteorological factors that contributed to the wildfires. There is also some footage of photos before and after the wildfire. 

Direct link to video from Fox Weather on YouTube

2023 Wildfire Season: Maui (Hawaii) Wildfires

 I first knew of the wildfires in Maui from coverage in both the New York Times and the Washington Post, both of which I subscribe to but their articles are behind a paywall and while I can get gift articles from both newspapers for free access. But the free access is good for only ten days so this is not appropriate for my blog. I did link to today's coverage from both the New York Times and the Washington Post, but am uncertain if you will be able to access the articles, but out of appreciation for the fine coverage of both newspapers, I have to try.

Fortunately, Wildfire Today has provided excellent coverage in an article they posted on August 9th (with videos and links to media reports) where they report on an untold number of businesses and residences being burned, the western portion of Maui being closed to traffic, power outages, and people jumping in the ocean to get away from the flames. You may want to check out the coverage from Wildfire Today. Among the media reports cited by Wildfire Today is coverage from CNN, I found an updated article in this morning's news feed from CNN, you may find it here (with a video and a map). 

The coverage I referenced earlier from the New York Times and the Washington Post reports that (at least) 36 people have died in the wildfires. 

Here is an earlier video report on August 9 from MLive with some very impressive fire footage. 

Direct link to video from MLive on YouTube

Here is some helicopter footage of the Maui Fires.

Direct link to video from 11Alive on YouTube

Flying a drone in a wildfire zone means firefighting aircraft are grounded

It has been awhile since I have written about the dangers of drones over wildfire zones. So, I am here to remind everyone that if you have a drone, please do not fly it over a wildfires of any size. If you fly your drone, all firefighting aircraft are grounded and it may be illegal. to do so. I want to thank my friend at the NJ Forest Fire Service Section B10 for the inspiration to write about the danger of drones over wildfire zones. 

From the New Jersey Forest Fire Service

From the Forest Service - Interagency Fire Center

Direct link to video from the Forest Service - Interagency Fire Center on YouTube

Wildland Firefighter death on August 4th near Powers Oregon

 Over the weekend, I checked out WildfireToday where I first learned of the tragic death of 21 year old Benjamin Charles Sapper in a vehicle accident while he was on duty on August 4th near Powers, Oregon, Wildfire Today wrote about the loss of Benjamin in an August 6th post. He was traveling with his fire crew when the accident happened. Benjamin was from Boulder, Colorado and had recently graduated from college this year. He was a first-year wildland firefighter. Antonia Velez of 9News out of Denver,  Colorado wrote a nice article on August 6th about Benjamin (with video).

I offer my condolences and prayers for Benjamin's family friends, colleagues and all who loved Benjamin. May he rest in peace.

Three firefighters who died in mid-air crash in Carbazon CA identified

obtained from @CAL_FIRE (X, formerly known as Twitter on Aug 7 at 3 PM

Earlier this morning, I wrote about the mid-air collision of two helicopters early in the evening of August 6, 2023. You may find my earlier post here.

In a recent tweet on X (formerly Twitter), CAL FIRE released the names of the deceased, but you will probably need a Twitter account to see the tweet, CAL FIRE's tweet may be found here. Fortunately, I just saw an article  on CBS Los Angeles identifying the namse of the deceased:

• CAL Fire Assistant Chief Josh Bischof
• CAL Fire Fire Captain Tim Rodriquez
• Exclusive Use Helicopter Pilot Tony Sousa

I offer my heartfelt condolences and prayers to the families, colleagues, CAL FIRE, friends, and all who loved the deceased. May you rest in peace and always fly in favorable winds.

Three firefighters dead in mid-air collision over Cabazon Fire in Riverside County, CA

I am very saddened to learn of the mid-air collision of two helicopters over the Cabazon Brush Fire in Riverside California early in the evening of August 6th. I learned of this mid-air collision from my friends at NJ Forest Fire Service Section B10 who post wildfire videos each day. According to the KCAL News video report that I embedded, three occupants on board a contract Bell Helicopter that was reported to be doing observation over the fire died, names have not been released: CAL Fire Division Chief, CAL Fire Air Captain, and the pilot of the Bell. The other helicopter involved in the mid-air is a Sikorsky SkyCrane that may have been dropping water on the fire, the SkyCrane landed and the two occupants survived. A report from CBS News in Los Angeles (with the video I embedded) may be found here. In addition, you will want to check out Fire Aviation's coverage of the mid-air posted on August 7th.

I offer my prayers to the families, colleagues, friend, CAL Fire, and all who loved those who died in the crash, may they always fly in favorable winds. I also offer my prayers for the two occupants of the Sikorsky SkyCrane who survived the crash.

Direct link to video from KCAL News on YouTube

2023 Wildfire Season: NWS Incident Meteorologist (IMET) deployments (August 4th)

There have been several deployments of NWS Incident Meteorologists since July 31st. In the list of deployments, the first link in each deployment is to the US NWS IMET listing on Facebook and the second link is to InciWeb.

IMET deployments on Monday, July 31st

• Flat Fire in the Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest near Agness, Oregon. See the Flat Fire on InciWeb.
• Colt Fire in the the Lolo National Forest near Seeley Lake, Montana. See the Colt Fire on InciWeb.
• Eagle Bluff Fire near Oroville, Washington. See the Eagle Bluff Fire on InciWeb.
• Hayden Fire near Leadore, Idaho. See the Hayden Fire on InciWeb.

IMET deployments on Tuesday, August 1

• Big Knife Fire near Arlee, Montana. See the Big Knife Fire on InciWeb.
• Elkhorn Fire near Warren, Idaho. See the Elkhorn Fire on InciWeb.
• The York Fire is burning in the Las Vegas Nevada Mojave National Preserve, 47 miles NW of Needles, California. See the York Fire on InciWeb.

IMET deployment on Wednesday, August 2 to the Dry Lake Fire in the San Juan National Forest near Bayfild, Colorado. At the time I write this I could not find an InciWeb listing for this fire.

IMET deployments on Thursday, August 3

• An IMET trainee was deployed to the Dry Lake Fire in the San Juan National Forest near Bayfild, Colorado. At the time I write this I could not find an InciWeb listing for this fire.
• Big Knife Fire near Arlee, Montana. See the Big Knife Fire on InciWeb.

IMETs save lives! Any errors in these listings are mine.

2023 Wildfire Season: NJ Forest Fire Service Crew in New Mexico

I recently wrote that the New Jersey Forest Fire Service (NJFFS) sent a 20-person type 2 initial attack crew to New Mexico to assist in fighting wildfires in New Mexico, see my July 28th post. By now the crew is in New Mexico working wildfires, I don't exactly know where, that does not matter. What matters is that this crew, from NJFFS Division A (northern New Jersey) is providing important service helping New Mexico during this part of their wildfire season. You honor New Jersey with their service, stay safe.