What Causes Wildfires from the US National Weather Service

Good information from the National Weather Service on what causes wildfires that was shared by the US National Weather Service IMET on April 22nd, I am embedding the original post from the US National Weather Service so you may see their description on what causes wildfires along with their really great graphic.

2024 New Jersey Wildfire Season: Snowbowl Wildfire Final Update

I wrote on April 26th about the Snowbowl Wildfire that burned in Jefferson Township, Morris County on Bowling Green Mountain. According to the New Jersey Forest Fire Service on Facebook on April 27th the Snowbowl wildfire burned 40 acres and is at 100 percent containment.

2024 New Jersey Wildfire Season: Snowbowl Wildfire, Jefferson Twp.

Most, but not all of the NJ Wildfires that I  write about are either what the NJ Forest Fire Service calls major wildfires (over 100 acres) or complex wildfires (smaller wildfires resulting in road closures or affecting structures and other property), see this April 2024 news release from the NJ Forest Fire Service for more information.

Today, thanks to information that from my friends at the B10 NJ Wildland Fire Page provided on their webpage (page updated frequently), I am able to write a little bit about a smaller wildfire (acreage unknown) known as the Snowbowl Wildfire. As I write this the Snowbowl wildfire may still be burning in Jefferson Township, Morris County New Jersey on Bowling Green Mountain near the Milton Station Fire Tower. From what I understand, this wildfire was first reported yesterday, April 25th. Yesterday, the helicopter and bucket stationed at the Aeroflex Airbase in northern New Jersey did bucket work on the wildfire to support the NJFFS ground crews. A dozer was also used. Yesterday evening there was a small spot fire of about 1/2 an acre about one mile from the wildfire. No structures were threatened.

April 27th, 10:20 AM The snowbowl fire burned 40 acres and is 100 percent contained.

2024 New Jersey Wildfire Season: County Line Fire Contained

I wrote yesterday afternoon, April 24th, about the County Line Fire that was burning in the Wharton State Forest in Waterford Township (Camden County) and Shamong Township (Burlington County). The wildfire which burned 510 acres is now contained and Jackson Road was reopened yesterday evening. The cause of the wildfire is under investigation. NJ Forest Fire Service crews will remain on site to monitor the wildfire. One campground remains closed through Sunday and a couple of trails remain closed.

Kudos the the New Jersey Forest Fire Crews for their work on this wildfire and for taking care of us. Thank-you!

2024 New Jersey Wildfire Season: County Line Fire (Camden and Burlington Counties)

Thanks to my friends from the New Jersey Forest Fire Service Section B10 Webpage where I first learned of the County Line Fire that is burning in Wharton State Forest in Waterford Twp., Camden County and Shamong Township in Burlington County, No structures are threatened; there is a road closure, a campground is closed, and a few trails are also closed. As I write this, the wildfire has burned 300 acres and is at 40 percent containment. In addition to NJ Forest Fire Service ground crews, the NJ Forest Fire Service has deployed an observation helicopter. The video that I embed below was uploaded around noon today before the NJ Forest Fire Service posted their 3 PM update (shared above). Thanks to the New Jersey Forest Fire Service for working to keep us safe. Stay safe.

Here are two reports from earlier this afternoon from CBS 3 in Philadelphia and New Jersey Advance Media (1 PM). The Burlington County Times just posted an update at 4 PM that may be found here.

Direct link to video from 6ABC Philadelphia on YouTube

2024 New Jersey Wildfire Season: April 21st Brush Fire in Ocean County with SEAT drops

 As I was looking on Facebook yesterday at some NJ Forest Fire Service pages, I noted a 9 minute YouTube video from the Jersey Shore Fire Response of the response, including a couple of Air Tanker Drops from a SEAT (Tanker 81). According to the description of the video, the brush fire was reported at about 4:30 PM on April 21st along some train tracks in Manchester Township, Ocean County. Route 70 west was closed for a couple of hours, and the only structure protection was in place at a nearby pallet yard. The brush fire of unknown acreage was contained before the video was posted on YouTube on April 22nd.

In this 9 minute video you will see some units from the New Jersey Forest Fire Service as well as local fire companies, NJ Forest Fire Service ground crews working the fire, dozer operations and two tanker drops. For those that are interested in dozer operations, you may find them at about 1'48" (minutes, seconds) and 3'40". Tanker drops are at 2'12" and 6'59"). You will hear some audio as well. 

New Jersey 2024 Wildfire Season: Elevated Risk for Wildfires (April 23)

 

 

Special Weather Statement National Weather Service Mount Holly NJ 113 AM EDT Tue Apr 23 2024 DEZ001>004-MDZ012-015-019-020-NJZ001-007>010-012>027-PAZ054-055- 060>062-070-071-101>106-232200- New Castle-Kent-Inland Sussex-Delaware Beaches-Kent MD- Queen Annes-Talbot-Caroline-Sussex-Warren-Morris-Hunterdon- Somerset-Middlesex-Western Monmouth-Eastern Monmouth-Mercer-Salem- Gloucester-Camden-Northwestern Burlington-Ocean-Cumberland- Atlantic-Cape May-Atlantic Coastal Cape May-Coastal Atlantic- Coastal Ocean-Southeastern Burlington-Carbon-Monroe-Berks-Lehigh- Northampton-Delaware-Philadelphia-Western Chester-Eastern Chester- Western Montgomery-Eastern Montgomery-Upper Bucks-Lower Bucks- Including the cities of Wilmington, Dover, Georgetown, Rehoboth Beach, Chestertown, Centreville, Easton, Denton, Newton, Washington, Morristown, Flemington, Somerville, New Brunswick, Freehold, Sandy Hook, Trenton, Pennsville, Glassboro, Camden, Cherry Hill, Moorestown, Mount Holly, Jackson, Millville, Hammonton, Cape May Court House, Ocean City, Atlantic City, Long Beach Island, Wharton State Forest, Jim Thorpe, Stroudsburg, Reading, Allentown, Bethlehem, Media, Philadelphia, Honey Brook, Oxford, West Chester, Kennett Square, Collegeville, Pottstown, Norristown, Lansdale, Chalfont, Perkasie, Morrisville, and Doylestown 

113 AM EDT Tue Apr 23 2024...ELEVATED FIRE DANGER THIS AFTERNOON... 

The combination of low relative humidity values between 20 and 30 percent, southerly winds around 10-15 mph, gusting between 15 to 20 mph, and drying fuels will increase the potential for the spread of fires this afternoon. Residents are urged to exercise caution handling any potential ignition source...including machinery...cigarettes...and matches. Be sure to properly discard all smoking materials. Any dry grasses and tree litter that ignite will have the potential to spread quickly.

2024 New Jersey Wildfire Season: April 15th Wildfires Along Train Tracks in Camden County

Last week, I missed the Facebook post from the NJ Forest Fire Service that on April 15th there were more than 20 wildfires along train tracks, sparked by a passing train, in Winslow Township, Camden County NJ. The fires were contained. A SEAT with a 600 gallon tank and an observation helicopter flew the fire per this NJ Forest Fire Service Facebook post. By the end of that same day, the NJ Forest Fire Service most of these wildfires were contained. 

• CBS3 in Philadelphia reported on these wildfires here.
• New Jersey Advance Media also had a report on the fire.
• Patch in Gloucester Township NJ reported on April 16th that "A passing train sparked the fires, officials said. Conrail, which operates the train, must reimburse the Forest Fire Service for the cost of responding to the blazes, according to a spokesperson for the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection, which oversees the Forest Fire Service."

Friday Fun: SEATs (2016) Spring Checkouts

I always enjoy watching videos of SEATs. Enjoy this 2016 video from airrailimages of SEATs during early spring checkouts in advance of going on contract for the 2016 wildfire season.

Direct link to video from airrailimages on YouTube

A Visit to the Empty Sky Memorial in Liberty State Park, NJ

 I knew about the Empty Sky Memorial in Liberty State Park, NJ but had not visited the Park in 15 years. Yesterday I went to the Park with a friend to refresh ourselves on how to get there for an upcoming trip. To say I was moved by seeing the Empty Sky Memorial, New Jersey's memorial to those with ties to New Jersey who died in the September 11th attack on the World Trad Center is an understatement. I live in western Hudson County for sixteen years where I saw the World Trade Center every day, I move a few months before the attacks. For reasons I can not quite explain I felt like I had to take a time out from my usual fare on this blog and dedicate this post to all who died at the World Trade Center in the attacks as well as the first responders, those who died and those who survived.

Direct link to video on YouTube from TravelTouristVideos 

2024 Wildfire Season: Air Tanker Maintenace Continues

As April began, Coulson Aviation and Neptune Aviation and continued spring maintenance of their air tankers as the following embedded (posts with photos) from their Facebook page show. I expect that other air tanker and helicopter operators who fly wildfires are also conducting spring maintenance that are not mentioned here.

Neptune Aviation Services

Coulson Aviation

New Jersey Forest Fire Service: Fire Towers Observers Detect Wildfires

I have posted on other occasions about the network of 21 fire towers around the State that are staffed when conditions are ripe for wildfires. For a description of the each fire tower and to learn more about the importance of fire towers in detecting wildfires in NJ go to the Detection page on the NJ Forest Fire Service web page.

Obtained on April 11, 2024 from https://www.nj.gov/dep/parksandforests/fire/program/detection.html

As we in New Jersey are currently in the spring wildfire season these fire towers will be staffed as necessary. Speaking of the wildfire season in New Jersey, the NJ Forest Fire Service recently put out a nice press release urging all in New Jersey to be aware of the wildfire danger with steps that citizens should take and how they may access information about wildfire danger, as well as the role of prescribed burning, and the importance of the 21 fire towers. The press release speaks to the role of fire tower observers

'Fire observers are critical to the Forest Fire Service’s mission of early detection and rapid response to wildfires', said Bill Donnelly, State Forest Firewarden and Chief of the Forest Fire Service. 'New Jersey has some of the most volatile forest fuels in the country. Having eyes in the sky with the ability to dispatch resources at the first sign of smoke, as well as relaying to ground crews what the wind speed, wind direction and other weather conditions are doing, is immensely important.'

 The New Jersey Forest Fire Service made a Facebook on April 9th discussing the import role of fire towers in New Jersey to detect wildfires. A short video is included.

2024 New Jersey Wildfire Season: Old Mine Fire (April 10th update)

11 AM

Following up on my April 9th post where I first reported on the Old Mine Fire, the fire continues to burn in the Worthington State Forest in the Delaware Water Gap remaining at 30 acres burned this morning with containment increasing to 75 percent. Old Mine Road remains closed. According to the New Jersey Forest Fire Service, two wildland firefighters were treated yesterday at the scene for heat related injuries and released. The NJFFS also reports that the incident commander flew an observation flight in a NJFFS helicopter this morning and the acreage burned by the fire is not expected to grow. There will be an update this evening about 8 PM from the NJ Forest Fire Service and when that update comes I will revise this post.

April 10th 8 PM update from the NJFFS

I did not check the NJFFS Facebook page until the morning of April 11th. The Old Mine Fire is at 100% containment at 34 acres. NJFFS crews will stay on scene for mop up and monitoring. Nice job everyone. Old Mine Road is now open to traffic.

2024 California Wildfire Season: Welcome to 737 Tanker from NSW Rural Fire Service

The New South Wales Rural Fire Service in Australia is sending their 737 Large Air Tanker "Marie Bashier" to California where she will first undergo annual maintenance by Coulson Aviation at their Palm Springs Facility before being deployed to assist Cal Fire in their upcoming fire season. See the comments in the embedded Facebook post from the NSW Rural Fire Service for more information about Coulson's contract for maintenance of the Marie Bashir. Thanks to the NSW Rural Fire Service for sending the Marie Bashir to help my friends in California this season.

2024 New Jersey Wildfire Season: Old Mine Wildfire (Delaware Water Gap, Warren County)

 

5:40 PM

There is a small wildfire known as the Old Mine Fire burning near Old Mine Rd in Worthington State Forest in the Delaware Water Gap, see the image from Google Earth below. An 800 gallon tanker and an observation helicopter were on the scene this afternoon with the tanker making drops on the fire. The map shows the location of Old Mine Road, not the location of the wildfire.  Old Mine Road starts at Interstate 80 just before it crosses into Pennsylvania and runs north along the Delaware River. According to the NJ Forest Fire Service it may be caused by humans. There was a prescribed burn near the wildfire, that burn has been stopped and did not cause the wildfire. The NJ Forest Fire will have another update later tonight, so stay tuned for later updates.

8:30 PM update

My friends at the NJFFS Section B10 website confirmed that the 800 gallon tanker (known as tanker 81) on contract for the month and based in Ocean County flew the Old Mine Road Fire earlier today and was released from the fire at about 4:40 PM. As of 8:30 PM the fire is at 25 percent containment and Old Mine Road is currently closed.

April 10th, 11 AM See my April 10th post for the latest update

2024 New Jersey Wildfire Season: Prescribed Burning (April 8th update)

As weather and other conditions have allowed, the New Jersey Forest Fire Service continues with doing prescribed burns. A prescribed burn is planned for today in northern New Jersey (Division A):

Recent prescribed burns were done on

March 30th

March 26th 

Friday Fun: Super Scooper Tanker Up Close

Join me in looking at a video report from KRTV news out of Great Falls Montana as one of their reporters takes us inside a Super Scooper from Bridger Aerospace, probably one of their De Havilland Super Scoopers. According to the the webpage that I just referred to Bridger Aerospace has 10 Super Scoopers, six CL415EAF super scoopers and four CL215T super scoopers.

Direct link to video from KRTVNews on YouTube (uploaded July 27 2021)

2024 Wildfire Season: Air Tanker Spring maintenance

When I was first learning about general aviation 13 years ago, and going on scenic rides, one of my key takeways was the importance of regular maintenance of aircraft. As I recall, the maintenance of the small planes that I was familiar was guided and mandated by FAA requirements with different maintenance and inspections being done at regular intervals  (hours flown) and signed of by an Airframe and PowerTrain Mechanic. More complicated and thorough inspections and maintenance were called for at longer intervals. But things like oil changes and the like were done at shorted intervals. But I am not writing about maintenance of general aviation airplanes and if I were, I would have to brush up on the requirements.

I am writing about spring maintenance done by contractors on contract with the US Forest Service, or at least two contractors, Coulson and Neptune. I am not privy to what is done in a spring maintenance, nor am I privy to the more routine maintenance that is done through the period when the tanker is on contract. Also, I am not ignoring helicopters on contract with various agencies that fly fires but I have no information on maintenance by helicopter contractors. I am certain that the contractors maintain their helicopters and may also engage in spring maintenance.

I did recently note on Facebook, two companies with US Forest Service Contracts making a post about spring maintenance. What is important is that spring maintenance occurs and while I don't know specific maintenance and inspection procedures, I want to share these two posts about taking time for winter/spring maintenance before individual tankers go on contract.

Coulson Aviation

Neptune Aviation

2024 Wildfire Season: Airtanker Contractors Continued Training for Upcoming Wildfire Season

 I shared last Friday that Neptune Aviation's pilots were engaged in training before going on contract for the upcoming wildfire season. Unfortunately, I know no specific timetables and the like of when tanker and helicopter contractors are doing their training, spring maintenance and the like in what air tanker and  preparation for the wildfire season. However, thanks to following social media, in this case Facebook, I have an idea of what some of the contractors are doing. I do appreciate when companies are able to share on Facebook, but understand that the important thing is taking care of their aircraft and their pilots and posting to social media or elsewhere is not always possible. Nor do I have access to a listing of when airtankers are going on contract with the US Forest Service, when I do have this information, I will make a post to this blog.

Today I share two Facebook posts about air tanker contractors that were engaged in training for the upcoming wildfire season a week or two ago.

I am not able to embed a video clip from 10 Tanker highlighting training they were doing to prepare for the wildfire season, but I invite you to go to 10 Tanker's post on Facebook to look for yourself.share first this short video clip from 10 Tanker Air Carrier.

Finally, I share this post from AeroFlite Aerial Firefighting with photos about training for the upcoming wildfire season. AeroFlite has arrangements to use a property near their base in Chico for training runs simulating a wildfire.