Fire danger in California and Texas

If you live in Southern California, chances are you know that Red Flag Warnings are up through Wednesday, January 15 for portions of Southern California including (but perhaps not limited to) Los Angeles, Ventura, and Orange and Counties. I'm not sure if San Diego County is under a Red Flag Warning, and if they are not, they are under a high wind advisory. CAL FIRE has an advisory for the current Red Flag Warnings and Fire Watches here as well as a News Release (1/11/2014) about strong winds and high fire danger

Or perhaps you follow Wildfire Today where Bill Gabbert has reported on the red flag warnings in Southern California on January 12 and again today. Some of you may subscribe to Michael Archer's Wildfire News of the Day as I do and I saw that he referenced a few articles in today's WNOTD. If you don't subscribe to WNOTD, I recommend it, just go to his blog (includes an abbreviated edition of WNOTD) and follow the link in the current entry. 

For example in today's edition of WNOTD, Archer referenced these articles on the fire danger in Southern California:

USA Today on Santa Anna winds

Orange County CA on alert

Restrictions in Los Padres National Forest due to elevated fire danger

High wind watch in San Diego County

The Storm Prediction Center of the National Weather Service (NWS) has web page devoted to fire weather outlooks where you can get information, in addition to going to the main page for the NWS, weather dot gov and using the map to navigate to the portion of the country you are interested in.

Back to California where in addition to Red Flag Warnings in the southern portion of the state, there are also Red Flag Warnings in the mountains outside of San Francisco today into early Tuesday (Jan 14). Stay safe everyone! I know that you've already had some wildfire activity, check out CAL FIRE's incident page or the California page on inciweb

Finally, I don't want to leave out areas of Texas that are also under Red Flag Warnings today. And portions of Oklahoma were under Red Flag Warnings yesterday.

Stay safe everyone! Thanks for all you do to keep us safe!

Update on icing in NJ Rivers including Delaware

Last Thursday I wrote here about an ice jam in the Delaware River in Trenton NJ/Morrisville PA. To the best of my knowledge that particular ice jam had weakened by last Friday.

I was busy on Friday and Saturday making river ice observations on a River near my house for the National Weather Service. I had seen some larger ice chunks covering half the channel near a bridge abutment and another smaller area of large ice chunks near a bend in the River. With the anticipation of a warm up with what may have been a heavy rainfall last Saturday I have to admit that I was a little concerned about ice jams. Fortunately, the rainfall was lighter than predicted and when I went out early Sunday morning to look at my river, the large chunks were gone with no apparent flooding.

So if you were wondering what happened to me last Friday and Saturday, now you know. I'll be back later today with another post.

Ice Jam on Delaware River near Trenton NJ/Morrisville PA

direct link to video and report from 6ABC in Philadelphia

We in New Jersey and eastern Pennsylvania shared the frigid temps that many in the eastern half of the U.S. experienced earlier this week. And I suspect other areas are sharing in the woes of ice jams on rivers. The Delaware River that forms the border between NJ and Pennsylvania has an ice jam near a bridge in the Trenton NJ/Morrisville PA area of the river. I knew from reading discussions from the National Weather Service (NWS) Office in Mt. Holly NJ that a Coast Guard Vessel was on the Delaware opening up a channel south of the ice jam. I looked around for a video to share with you where you can see the Coast Guard Cutter on the Delaware and found the video from 6ABC in Philadelphia.

More information including video reports and photo galleries may be found at:

NJ dot com (story and photo gallery)
Philly dot com (picture of Cutter)
10NBC in Philadelphia (also links to aerial footage of ice jam - must see)

The NWS at Mt. Holly has raised both flood warning and flash flood warnings for Mercer County NJ and Bucks County PA:

FLOOD STATEMENT
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MT HOLLY, NEW JERSEY
449 PM EST THU JAN 9 2014

...THE FLOOD WARNING CONTINUES FOR THE FOLLOWING RIVERS IN NEW JERSEY...
PENNSYLVANIA...

  DELAWARE RIVER AT TRENTON AFFECTING MERCER AND BUCKS COUNTIES

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

SAFETY MESSAGE...DO NOT ATTEMPT TO DRIVE THROUGH FLOODED AREAS. THE WATER MAY BE
DEEPER THAN YOU THINK.

&&

NJC021-PAC017-100749-
/O.CON.KPHI.FL.W.0001.000000T0000Z-140110T0900Z/
/TREN4.1.ER.140108T2251Z.140109T0030Z.140110T0300Z.NO/
449 PM EST THU JAN 9 2014

THE FLOOD WARNING CONTINUES FOR
  THE DELAWARE RIVER AT TRENTON.
* AT 4:15 PM THURSDAY THE STAGE WAS 19.0 FEET.
* FLOOD STAGE IS 20.0 FEET.
* MINOR FLOODING IS ONCE AGAIN POSSIBLE THIS EVENING.
* IMPACT...AT 20.5 FEET...ROUTE 32 SOUTH AT EAST COLLEGE AVENUE IN YARDLEY
  BOROUGH BEGINS TO FLOOD.

$$

                   FLD     OBSERVED           FORECAST
 LOCATION          STG    STG    DAY TIME     CREST

DELAWARE RIVER
  TRENTON          20.0   18.99  THU 4 PM     20.5    THU 7 PM

&&

FLOOD WATCH
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MOUNT HOLLY NJ
1219 PM EST THU JAN 9 2014

NJZ015-019-PAZ071-106-100130-
/O.EXT.KPHI.FF.A.0001.000000T0000Z-140110T1300Z/
/00000.0.IJ.000000T0000Z.000000T0000Z.000000T0000Z.OO/
MERCER-NORTHWESTERN BURLINGTON-PHILADELPHIA-LOWER BUCKS-
INCLUDING THE CITIES OF...TRENTON...MOORESTOWN...MOUNT HOLLY...
PHILADELPHIA...MORRISVILLE...DOYLESTOWN
1219 PM EST THU JAN 9 2014

...FLASH FLOOD WATCH NOW IN EFFECT THROUGH FRIDAY MORNING...

THE FLASH FLOOD WATCH IS NOW IN EFFECT FOR

* PORTIONS OF NEW JERSEY AND SOUTHEAST PENNSYLVANIA...INCLUDING
  THE FOLLOWING AREAS...IN NEW JERSEY...MERCER AND NORTHWESTERN
  BURLINGTON. IN SOUTHEAST PENNSYLVANIA...LOWER BUCKS AND
  PHILADELPHIA.

* THROUGH FRIDAY MORNING

* AN ICE JAM CONTINUES ON THE DELAWARE RIVER NEAR TRENTON. THIS
  HAS RESULTED IN FLOODING UPSTREAM TO THE NORTH OF THE ICE JAM.
  WHEN THIS ICE JAM BREAKS, THERE MAY BE ENOUGH WATER BEHIND THE
  JAM TO CAUSE FLASH FLOODING DOWNSTREAM.

* ICE JAMS ARE UNPREDICTABLE, BUT AS TEMPERATURES WARM, ARE MORE
  LIKELY TO BREAK UP. HIGH TEMPERATURES THIS AFTERNOON WILL BE
  NEAR FREEZING. HIGH ON FRIDAY WILL BE IN THE LOWER 40S AND HIGHS
  ON SATURDAY WILL BE NEAR 60.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A FLASH FLOOD WATCH MEANS THAT CONDITIONS MAY DEVELOP THAT LEAD
TO FLASH FLOODING. FLASH FLOODING IS A VERY DANGEROUS SITUATION.

YOU SHOULD MONITOR LATER FORECASTS AND BE PREPARED TO TAKE ACTION
SHOULD FLASH FLOOD WARNINGS BE ISSUED. PLEASE EVACUATE IF TOLD TO
DO SO BY EMERGENCY RESPONDERS.

&&

$$

KRUZDLO

Neptune Aviation Sole Source Contract under protest

I wrote about the the sole source contract that was awarded to Neptune Aviation on Dec. 12, 2013, on Monday, January 6. What I did not learn until today is that a four companies have protested this award. On December 23, protests were filed by Coulson Aviation USA, Minden Air, AeroAir, and 10 Tanker Air Carrier with the General Accountability Office. According to Fire Aviation the four companies

are protesting the non-competitive contract that the U.S. Forest Service gave to Neptune Aviation for two BAe-146 air tankers on December 12.

According to an article published about the protest in today's today's Missoulian (written by Ron Chaney) a decision by the GAO is due by March 28, 2014.

Neptune Aviation and Next Gen Contract

I admit that I am rather late in writing that on December 12, 2013 Neptune Aviation was awarded a sole-source to provide two 3,000 gallon BAe-146  jet tankers effective 2014. It is a four year contract with the option for five one-year extensions. My understanding is that the tank systems on the jets under this contract are not the same tank systems used by T-40 and T-41 in 2013. These "new" jets have reconfigured tanks. For more information see a Dec. 13, 2103 article in the Missouian and this Dec. 12. 2103 article on Fire Aviation.

For details and more documentation on the contract go to this page on the General Services Administration website.

Updated on January 8, 2014. I just found out that Neptune Aviation's contract is under protest, I wrote about it here. 

Miracle emergency landing on NYC expressway

A single engine airplane (Piper PA-28) with what may have been engine trouble made an emergency landing on a busy NYC expressway yesterday afternoon. Thanks to an alert DOT crew doing pothole repair who stopped traffic and the skill of the pilot, there were no fatalities. I can't seem to get the embed code from FoxNewsNYC or CBS2NYC to work, but I've provided links to both reports and video here. If you check out the video from FoxNewsNY, you'll see a video clip of the plane being towed off the expressway.

link to report and video on FoxNewsNYC

link to video on CBS2 NYC

link to report with video and radio audio clips on CBS2 NYC

Campbell Fire in Lassan National Forest CA

I heard about the Campbell Fire, currently burning in the Ishi Wilderness in the Lassan National Forest, yesterday. Thanks to a friend who gave me a heads up. There is a page on inciweb devoted to the Campbell Fire. According to the latest report on inciweb available to me, the fire has burned 220 acres in rugged terrain and is currently 35% contained. I understand from reading the Campbell Fire thread on Wildlandfire Hotlist that CAL FIRE tankers 80 and 81 out of Hollister were working the fire yesterday along with some helos and air attack Bravo 55. Structures are not threatened. The hope is that the fire will be contained at about 12:00 AM on Sunday, January 5.

I found a short article from KRCR 7 ABC on the fire

As a friend of mine told me a few years, it is always fire season in California. Stay safe everyone.

Ground crews and helos working wildfires in Australia

Over the almost five years that I have been writing about aerial wildland firefighting on this blog, I have often said that tankers and helos who fly wildfires do so to support the wildland firefighters on the ground. As I write this it is summer down under in Australia and fire season. The two videos that I am embedding here are of wildfire activity in Australia. Both videos, by ApexImagery, show firefighters on the ground and in the air, I'll get to that in a moment. According to the description on the first video (Toolleen Grass Fire), the footage is of a wildfire in Victoria, Australia. I believe but am not certain that the second video (Sedgwick Fire) is of wildfire footage in Victoria, Australia. 

You will see helos working fires in both videos. In the first video (below) you will see footage of a grass fire near Toolleen in Victoria Australia. At about 28 seconds and then again at about 1 minute 47 seconds you will footage of a helo dropping water from their belly tank near were an engine crew is working the grass fire with their hoses. 

direct link to video

In the second video (allow just under six minutes) you will see some footage of the wildland firefighters on the ground including shots of guys talking on radio and another shot of what looks like a hand drawn map of the fire. Point being that I know enough to know that there is a lot of radio communications going on between various wildland firefighters on the ground and also with those crews providing aerial support. So, as you watch these sections on the video, think about the importance of radio communications in all aspects of any kind of firefighting.  

In addition, you will some nice footage of an Erickson Air Crane working the fire, including a couple of shots of what could be the 'Crane filling her belly tank. In these shots (1:55 and 2:49), it looks like the 'Crane is disappearing behind some trees, but I think that she may be filling her belly tank from a water body. At about 4:16 you will the 'Crane dropping on the fire.

direct link to video

A funny airplane video on this New Years Eve

For you viewing pleasure, a funny airplane video from Bruce Branit and Jeremy Hunt. Stay safe everyone on this New Year's Eve.



direct link to video

The Shepard

direct link to video and to learn more about Alan Maitland

I love The Shepard. I consider embedding this video a holiday tradition, something that I have been doing for four years now. Enjoy.

Happy Holidays

Still more on the Erickson Air Crane in action

Here is As the Rotors Turn with Erickson Air Crane II (2012 edition) by B Dudas. Allow about 20 minutes for the video.



direct link to video

More on the Erickson Air Crane

I finally finished chipping and otherwise clearing the icy snowpack from my driveway, at least 95% of it. And like many of us, I've been getting ready for the holidays and getting over a cold. I leave you with this nice trailer about the Erickson Air Crane called "As the Rotor Turns" by B Dudas.



direct link to video

Erickson Air Crane can move snow

Thanks to temps that got above freezing today, with warmer temps to come at the end of the week, I have been making progress with getting the latest layer of snow/ice off of my driveway. After I wrote my article on Monday I found a video on youtube of a "crane moving snow for a previous Olympics. Ok, so I will happily eat some crow. Anyway, the video amused me, so I am sharing it with you. I wish that I could have seen a picture of the "Crane with the bucket of snow. But you will get the idea.



direct link to video

chipping away at ice and the Erickson Air Crane

Interesting title, huh? Between getting used to some changes in my google account and chipping away at the ice on my driveway, much of the day flew by. Yesterday we had our third snowfall in a week, and tomorrow a clipper system with some snow is coming through. I've measured almost seven inches of snow on my property. I had just finished cleaning up my driveway on Friday in anticipation of snow and freezing rain the next day. Saturdays snow was more difficult to get rid of because 3.5 inches of fluffy snow was compacted down to 1.5 inches after about 2/10th of freezing rain accumulated on top of the snow.

Still have some of this compacted icy snow in portions of my driveway, but it is passable. At least we have access. And after the snow ends tomorrow, I'll spend more time working on my driveway. I'm feeling greatfull for my ice chipper. Best thing since sliced bread. I do have a snow blower, but it is not real effective in 1.5 inches of compacted snow with a good ice crust on top.

Just one month ago I was worried about the dry fall we have been having. I found myself thinking about the fall fire season we had in November as I was chipping away at some of the icy residue on my driveway today. A rainstorm a couple of weeks ago and the snow this week has likely ended the fall fire season.

Now the Erickson Air Crane doesn't have a whole lot to do with chipping away at the thin layer of icy snow on my driveway, but it does have a whole lot to do with putting out fires. So, I'll leave you with this video that I found recently on youtube where you'll get to know the Erickson Air Crane up close and personal.



direct link to video

Enjoy!

Will be back later

I took a few days off to take care of some personal business. I'll be back later today with an article.

Air Attack Operations

On a cold day after scraping off the latest round of winter off of my driveway, I am feeling lazy and perhaps fighting a minor cold or some such. So, I thought you'd enjoy this video that I found on youtube last summer of air attack operations over the Stratton Creek Fire (OR)

direct link to video

MAFFS -WY National Guard

Two short videos of Modular Airborne Firefighting Systems (MAFFS) from the Wyoming National Guard:

Taking off:

Making a drop:

These two videos and some photos of MAFF mission preparations on this flickr set from the Wyoming National Guard. Thanks for your help!

43 El Grupo Memorial

Here is a nice memorial video done by 43 Grupo posting by Bombardier 415. May you always fly in favorable tail winds.



direct link to video

Dromader crash in NSW Australia (10/24/13): update

About six days after the fatal crash of a Dromader tanker on Oct. 24, 2013

while on a firebombing run in New South Wales Australia the Australian Civil Aviation Safety Authority (aka CASA) Bill Gabbert of Fire Aviation reported that CASA grounded seven Dromaders. A week later, on or about Nov. 6, CASA grounded all Dromaders as a cautionary measure, (see this article on AUNewsYahoo for more information). 

Later in November, CASA came out with directives requiring all Dromaders to pass specific maintenance checks on their wings and new inspections before they are deemed airworthy. On or about Dec. 2, 2013 the Australian Transport Safety Bureau issued its preliminary report of the Dromader crash citing fatigue cracking in a left wing lug. Witnesses reported seeing the left wing separate from the plane just prior to the fatal crash, for more information see this Dec. 2 article on AUNewsYahoo.

I continue to keep the family, friends, colleagues and all who love David Black, the pilot of the Dromader in my thoughts and prayers. May you continue to fly in favorable tail winds.

SEATs in action (2012)

Speaking of SEATs, here is a short video of SEATs in action in Idaho, Colorado, and Utah in 2012. Thank-you SEAT pilots for all you do to keep us safe.



direct link to video

Fighting wildfires in Western Australia

As we approach winter here in America and elsewhere in the colder climates of the northern hemisphere, summer is approaching in the southern hemisphere. And with summer in Australia comes wildfire or bushfire season. 

I literally stumbled on some wonderful videos of bushfire activity in Western Australia from the Department of Parks and Wildlife (DPaW) in Western Australia where they have some videos showing firefighters in the air and on the ground fighting bush fires on their youtube channel.

I am embedding and sharing four videos from the DPaW here. I will supply a direct link to each video and I encourage you to use that link to go to the about page for each video and read what the DPaW says about the bushfire activity that you are seeing. The videos are not taken at the same fire.

In the first video you will see a front end loader in action. According to the description on the about page for the video, "a front end loader is being used to construct a mineral earth break along the fire edge to assist fire tankers in containing the fire." 

direct link to video

The second video shows a Single Engine Air Tanker (SEAT) making two drops from 80 meters (262 ft) above ground level. 

direct link to video

The final two short videos show dozers, front loaders, and other ground pounders fighting fires on the ground.

direct link to video

direct link to video

Added on Dec. 5, 2013. The SEAT in the second video is a Dromader. It was a Dromader that crashed in New South Wales Australia on Oct. 24. The Australian Civil Aviation Safety Authority later grounded all Dromaders, requiring passing safety checks on wings along with passing a new inspection before being deemed airworthy. The Australian Transport Safety Bureau released a preliminary report on the crash recently, I have an article with more information and a couple of links that I posted on Dec. 5, 2013.

Next Generation Air Tankers: Coulson's C-130Q and Aero Flite's RJ85

Two short videos of US Forest Service Next Generation Air Tankers. The first video shows Coulson's C-130Q (N130FF) dropping on the. Wheeler Fire

. Thanks to my friends at the NJ Forest Fire Service Section B10 for posting the video on their video of the week page (new videos every weekend).

direct link to video (with some info on the tanker).

I was looking at Bill Gabbert's Fire Aviation Site when I noticed that he had written an article last October embedding a short video of Aero Flite's RJ85 making what appears to be a test drop (go here for Bill's article. Thanks for all your good work Bill!

direct link to video.

"Old Fire" (Old Bridge NJ) contained

As some of you may know, we here on the east coast of the U.S. have been under the influence of a coastal low that has brought rain and snow. According to my friends from New Jersey Forest Fire Service (NJFFS) Section B10, there was 1.8 inches on the fire near Old Bridge NJ that I wrote about on Nov. 24 and again  on Nov. 25. The fire, named the "Old Fire" because it started near Old Road, burned 230 acres and was declared contained at 8 AM this morning. I expect that rain probably helped to bring this fire into containment. 

A special thank-you to all firefighters on the ground and in air who worked the various wildfires in NJ, NY and elsewhere in the eastern region over this past weekend. I hope that with the rains, you can catch up on your sleep and then enjoy the holiday with your family and friends. You worked in very cold in windy conditions on Sunday, and those of you who where working or moping up a fire yesterday and last night where working in rain (and perhaps snow??). Thank-you for all you do to keep us in the eastern region safe from wildfires.

Speaking of rain, I am thankful for the rain that we here in NJ have received from this storm as it has been dry here the last couple of months. Not as dry, of course, as other areas of the U.S. I am sure that the NJFFS wildland firefighters and firefighters who provided mutual aid on the various wildfires around the state last weekend (and firefighters elsewhere on the east coast) are glad for the rain. Granted it comes on the busiest travel day of the year here in America. 

For those who are traveling today, stay safe.

Wildfire in Middlesex County NJ is almost contained

The wildfire in Old Bridge NJ that I wrote about yesterday is nearing containment. According to the latest report from my friends at NJ Forest Fire Service Section B10, the fire was at 80 percent containment at 5 AM this morning, be sure to check out some great shots of a helo and bucket (NJFFS Delta 5).

Go here to see a short article from NJ.com and a photo gallery of photos from the fire.

As for wildfires elsewhere in NJ and nearby NY, according to an article I saw yesterday in the Courier News there were numerous wildfires around NJ over the weekend (this article was written well before wildfire in Old Bridge was contained). CBS2 in NYC reported yesterday on two brush fires on Long Island.

Winds have died down considerably since yesterday. The National Weather Service is forecasting a nor'easter for Tuesday night into Wednesday. Depending on the exact tract of this storm, we could see some welcome rain. Although at a bad time for holiday travels. Stay safe everyone.

Wildfire in Middlesex County NJ

My friends in New Jersey Forest Fire Service Section B-10 are battling a multi-acre fire in Old Bridge, NJ. The wildfire was first reported about 8 AM this morning. Evacuations are in place and Cheese Quake State Park has been closed and evacuated. A helo with a bucket is on the way. Winds are gusting from 30-40 mph in places and Red Flag Warnings are in place until 6 PM. For more on this fire read this article from the Courier News and check out the New Jersey Forest Fire Service Section B-10 webpage (scroll down a bit to their current fire news).

This is the only wildfire that I know of, so there may well be other wildfires that I don't about.

I'm having intermittent problems with my internet connection. If I am able to get update information on the wildfire, I'll update later. Otherwise, check out the two links that I provided.

Red Flag Warnings for most of NJ and portions of adjoining states

URGENT - FIRE WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE MOUNT HOLLY NJ
343 PM EST SAT NOV 23 2013

DEZ001>004-MDZ008-012-015-019-020-NJZ007>010-012>027-PAZ060>062-
070-071-101>106-241145-
/O.NEW.KPHI.FW.W.0002.131124T1500Z-131124T2300Z/
NEW CASTLE-KENT-INLAND SUSSEX-DELAWARE BEACHES-CECIL-KENT MD-
QUEEN ANNES-TALBOT-CAROLINE-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-BERKS-LEHIGH-NORTHAMPTON-
DELAWARE-PHILADELPHIA-WESTERN CHESTER-EASTERN CHESTER-
WESTERN MONTGOMERY-EASTERN MONTGOMERY-UPPER BUCKS-LOWER BUCKS-
343 PM EST SAT NOV 23 2013

...RED FLAG WARNING IN EFFECT FROM 10 AM TO 6 PM EST SUNDAY...

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN MOUNT HOLLY HAS ISSUED A RED FLAG
WARNING WHICH IS IN EFFECT FROM 10 AM TO 6 PM EST SUNDAY.

* LOCATIONS...MUCH OF EASTERN PENNSYLVANIA...MARYLANDS EASTERN
  SHORE...ALL OF DELAWARE AND ALL OF NEW JERSEY EXCEPT SUSSEX
  COUNTY.

* WINDS...NORTHWEST 15 TO 25 MPH WITH GUSTS UP TO 40 MPH.

* RELATIVE HUMIDITY...AS LOW AS 20 TO 25 PERCENT.

* TEMPERATURES...FROM THE MID 20S TO THE MID 30S.

* IMPACTS...DESPITE THE UNUSUALLY COLD TEMPERATURES...ANY OUTDOOR
  FINE FUEL FIRES HAVE THE POTENTIAL TO SPREAD MORE RAPIDLY THAN
  USUAL DUE TO THE STRONG NORTHWEST WINDS AND THE GENERALLY VERY
  DRY CONDITIONS OF THE PAST 3 MONTHS.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A RED FLAG WARNING MEANS THAT CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS
ARE EITHER OCCURRING NOW...OR WILL SHORTLY DUE TO A COMBINATION
OF STRONG WINDS...LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY...AND DRY FUELS. ANY
FIRES THAT DEVELOP MAY QUICKLY GET OUT OF CONTROL AND BECOME
DIFFICULT TO CONTAIN.

FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT WILDFIRE DANGER...BURN RESTRICTIONS...
AND WILDFIRE PREVENTION AND EDUCATION...PLEASE VISIT YOUR STATE
FORESTRY OR ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION WEBSITE.

&&

$$

---

URGENT - FIRE WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NEW YORK NY
345 PM EST SAT NOV 23 2013

...VERY DRY AND WINDY CONDITIONS ON SUNDAY...

CTZ005>012-NJZ002-004-006-103>108-NYZ067>075-078>081-176>179-
240445-
/O.NEW.KOKX.FW.W.0003.131124T1500Z-131124T2300Z/
NORTHERN FAIRFIELD-NORTHERN NEW HAVEN-NORTHERN MIDDLESEX-
NORTHERN NEW LONDON-SOUTHERN FAIRFIELD-SOUTHERN NEW HAVEN-
SOUTHERN MIDDLESEX-SOUTHERN NEW LONDON-WESTERN PASSAIC-
EASTERN PASSAIC-HUDSON-WESTERN BERGEN-EASTERN BERGEN-
WESTERN ESSEX-EASTERN ESSEX-WESTERN UNION-EASTERN UNION-ORANGE-
PUTNAM-ROCKLAND-NORTHERN WESTCHESTER-SOUTHERN WESTCHESTER-
NEW YORK (MANHATTAN)-BRONX-RICHMOND (STATEN ISLAND)-
KINGS (BROOKLYN)-NORTHWESTERN SUFFOLK-NORTHEASTERN SUFFOLK-
SOUTHWESTERN SUFFOLK-SOUTHEASTERN SUFFOLK-NORTHERN QUEENS-
NORTHERN NASSAU-SOUTHERN QUEENS-SOUTHERN NASSAU-
345 PM EST SAT NOV 23 2013

...RED FLAG WARNING IN EFFECT FROM 10 AM TO 6 PM EST SUNDAY FOR
CONDITIONS FAVORABLE FOR THE RAPID SPREAD OF WILDFIRES...

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN NEW YORK HAS ISSUED A RED FLAG
WARNING FOR CONDITIONS FAVORABLE FOR THE RAPID SPREAD OF
WILDFIRES...WHICH IS IN EFFECT FROM 10 AM TO 6 PM EST SUNDAY.

* AFFECTED AREA...LOWER HUDSON VALLEY...NEW YORK CITY...LONG
  ISLAND...NORTHEAST NEW JERSEY...AND SOUTHERN CONNECTICUT.

* WINDS...NORTHWEST 25 TO 30 MPH WITH GUSTS UP TO 45 MPH.

* RELATIVE HUMIDITY...AS LOW AS 25 PERCENT.

* TIMING...FROM LATE MORNING INTO THE AFTERNOON ON SUNDAY.

* IMPACTS...RAPID FIRE SPREAD IF IGNITION OCCURS.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A RED FLAG WARNING MEANS THAT CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER CONDITIONS
ARE EXPECTED OR OCCURRING. A COMBINATION OF STRONG WINDS...LOW
RELATIVE HUMIDITY...AND DRY FUELS WILL CREATE EXPLOSIVE FIRE
GROWTH POTENTIAL.

Still more fall wildfire activity in the Mid-Atlantic

As I sit here and contemplate the meager rainfall that I have recorded in my rain gauge coupled with yet more enhanced fire danger weather this week and more enhanced fire danger expected this Sunday in my corner of NJ, I want to take a bit of time to note some of the wildfire activity that I have noted in the eastern region of the United States. But first, please read this article on the persistent fire danger in NJ this fall

• A Nov. 19th report from WVMetronews that the Smoke Hole Fire in WV was at 70 percent containment. Today's morning briefing from the Eastern Area Coordination Center reports that the fire is 90 percent contained.
• The Landfill Fire has burned 1,507 acres in Wythe County VA and is at 85 percent containment as I write this.
• The South Fork Fire has burned 600 acres in Page and Shenandoah Counties VA and is at 50 percent containment as I write this.
• Five to seven acre wildfire in MA (11/16/13)
• Wildfire in Berks County, PA (11/19/13
• A wildfire that burned hundreds of acres in Orangeburg NY (north of NYC) was was thought to be extinguished on Sunday, Nov. 17 only to rekindle on Tues. Nov. 19, 2013

Thanks to all the firefighters who have been working these fires. Stay safe everyone!

Note: I'm never sure how long news articles that I link to will be freely available. I viewed all of the articles before posting this article.

RIP Walt Darran

Walt,

You died on November 15, 2013 after a battle with cancer. You leave your beloved wife Christine, two sons, two grandchildren, your extended family and many friends and colleagues who love you. May you rest in peace.

It is my loss that I never got an opportunity to meet you in person. However, I have known you through your presence on the Associated Aerial Firefighters (AAF) Website.  It was not long after I began writing about aerial wildland firefighting in early 2009 that I first ran across your posts  and articles on the AAF. It did not take me long to learn that you flew as a tanker pilot for CAL Fire before you retired. I only recently learned that you flew in Vietnam and flew for the airlines. You did not just retire and disappear, you continued to have the best interests of the tanker biz in mind through your work with the AAF where, among other things, you  served on their board as well as working and writing about safety in the tanker biz. Over the last almost six years you have taught me a lot about the tanker business.  Somehow saying thank-you seems wholly inadequate. 

I suspect that you may have been a quiet follower of my blog over the years and you quietly had my back. Thank-you. We exchanged e-mail a couple of times, and you were most generous with your time, answering my questions and steering me in the right direction. Somehow saying thank-you seems wholly inadequate.

I know that you are flying in favorable tail winds. I offer my thoughts and prayers for your family, friends, colleagues and all who love you and mourn your death. 

To learn more about Walt's life, you might want to read some reflections on Walt's life by tanker pilot's and friends on the AAF webpage. Bill Gabbert, of Fire Aviation reposted an an interview with Walt that he did earlier this year. 

Entiat Hotshots in Action

direct link to video

A video highlighting the Entiat Hotshots 2012 fireseason. The Entiat hotshots work in the Pacific Northwest.

NJ Forest Fire Services helping out at WV Wildfire

The Smoke Hole Fire is still buying in the Monongahela National Forest in West Virginia. The wildfire (WV-MOF-130010) continues to be reported in the morning briefing (under the intelligence page) of the Eastern Area Coordinating Center (EACC). In this morning's briefing (Nov. 15), the EACC reports that the fire has burned 1,450 acres and is 30 percent contained, reporting that crews have made significant progress in constructing line.  A helicopter continues to work the fire.

I knew from media reports that other states had sent wildland firefighters and equipment to West Virginia to help fight the Smoke Hole Fire (go here). I found out yesterday from both the NJ Forest Fire Service Section B10 website and this article dated Nov. 13 from MetroNews - The Voice of West Virginia that New Jersey send a crew to work the Smoke Hole Fire. According to the NJFFS Section B10 website, the NJFFS sent a type 4 truck and 3 crew to West Virginia.

A photo gallery from photographer Darin Vance who was embedded with the U.S. Forest Service posted this photo gallery on WV MetroNews. Another article about the Smoke Hole Fire with links for more information may be found on the WJLA --ABC7 -- Weather Blog (Nov. 14).

More fall wildfire activity in the mid-atlantic

As I write this on November 13 we are experiencing an enhanced risk of wildfire spread through early this evening on the 13th in much of New Jersey (except for the five northeastern counties, southeastern Pennsylvania. Delaware, and the Maryland eastern shore. This is from the special weather statement issued by the Mt. Holly Office of the National Weather Service at 11:28 AM on Wednesday, Nov. 13 2013:

...ENHANCED RISK OF WILDFIRE SPREAD THROUGH EARLY EVENING...
LOW RELATIVE HUMIDITY LEVELS, GUSTY WINDS AND DRY FINE FUELS WILL
CONTINUE AN ELEVATED RISK FOR THE SPREAD OF WILDFIRES THROUGH
EARLY EVENING. MINIMUM RELATIVE HUMIDITY VALUES IN THE LOW 30S
WITH WIND GUSTS OF 20 TO 25 MPH ARE EXPECTED BEFORE WIND DECREASES BY
EARLY EVENING.

According to the New Jersey State Forest Fire Service's (NJFFS) website, Division A (northern NJ) and Division C (southern NJ) are experiencing moderate wildfire risk today with Division B (central NJ) experiencing a high risk of wildfire danger. The NJFFS does have a webpage where they report wildfire danger levels, permits, and restrictions that may be found here. This page is updated as conditions change so depending on when you are reading this article the information that you see will be different, but you'll get an idea about current fire danger current fire statistics, and current fire danger. You will see a map showing the counties that make up each of the three NJFFS Divisions (A,B, and C).

I wrote a few days ago about the dry weather that I've been experiencing in my little corner of NJ, along with linking to some media reports about some wildfire activity or concerns in the eastern region of the US. 

Before I get to wildfire activity that I know about in NJ and other states in the east, I want to continue with the dry weather we've been experiencing. In the image below, you can see that northern and portions of central New Jersey were abnormally dry on November 5, 2013. 

direct link to map

And here is the same map for the United States.

direct link to map

Todd B. Bates, the EnviroGuy from the Asbury Park Press, wrote an article yesterday on the dry conditions in New Jersey and the related wildfire danger yesterday. He has a few good maps from NOAA in his article.  Todd's article may be found here. Thanks to my friends at the NJFFS SectionB10 website for providing me with the link to this article.

Moving on to recent wildfire activity in New Jersey:

An 80 acre wildfire in a remote area of Atlantic County NJ is now contained, go here and here to read about the fire and see some short video clips. The fire is now contained.

In addition to reporting on the Atlantic County wildfire, my friends from the NJFFS SectionB10 website reported on these wildfires in their current wildfire activity area (information may be different depending on when you access their site):

two wildfires totaling two or three acres in Monroe Township (Middlesex County; 

a 2.5 acre wildfire in Allaire State Park in Howell Township (Monmouth County), 

and a 13-acre wildfire in Lakewood NJ (Ocean County) not far from the Garden State Parkway.

Today's Morning Briefing from the intelligence division of the Eastern Area Coordinating Center

lists only one large fire, the Smoke Hole that started on Nov. 10, 2013 in the Monongahela National Forest in West Virginia (WV-MIF-130010) that has burned 1,400 acres to date and is 20 percent contained. According to today's morning briefing:

The fire is burning in hardwood litter and blow-down. Crews are cutting hand-line. A Type-3 helicopter is doing bucket work. A major gas pipeline is threatened and secondary residences are threatened. Steep difficult terrain is impeding containment efforts.

According to an article dated November 12, 2013 from Your4State crews from five states are assisting West Virginia crews in fighting the fire.

There may be other smaller wildfires in other areas of the eastern region that I do not know about that either are burning or are now contained.

Rim Fire - Burned Area Emergency Response (2 of 2)

direct link to video

This video from the Tuolumne River Trust shows aerial footage shot in 2008 of the area burned in the Rim Fire in the first two minutes of the video. In the final two minutes you will see some footage shot on the ground in early September 2013 of some of the burn area. I believe that the river you see in the footage is the Tuolumne River which runs through the area burned by the Rim Fire, go here to see a map of the Rim Fire burn area on inciweb (it might take a couple of minutes to load).

I found the video when I read a nice article from a KQED report on the Rim Fire BAER. I also found a Sept. 8, 2013 article from the Huff Post Green (with photos) on the team of scientists involved in the Rim Fire BAER.

I was interested in some pictures of the Rim Fire Burned Area Emergency Response that are posted on this flickr page. In addition there are some more photos, some of them seem to be identical or similar to the ones posted on flickr that I found on Inciweb's Rim -- BAER photo page, with captions so you know exactly what you are looking at. There are over 60 photos on this page, I was interested in the damage to the soil and how the area has recovered in the weeks immediately following the fire, so I am highlighting these photos here:

soil damage

soil stabilization

water repellency

recovery 1

recovery 2

recovery 3

recovery 4

Revised on November 19, 2015 to correct URLs to Rim Fire - BAER on Inciweb. I am never quite certain how long such links remain active.

Super Typhoon Haiyan

direct link to video on youtube

I am taking a time out from writing about the Rim Fire Burned Area Emergency Response to remember all those impacted by Super Typhoon Haiyan that hit the Phillipines early on Nov. 8, 2013. I found the video that I embedded above from this article from NASA - Goddard. Winds around the eye could be as much as 195 mph. Here are some radar images of Haiyan and a link to an animated (gif) satellite image.

Various media outlets are covering the Typhoon, here is a report from NBC News, and a report from the National Geographic.

Added at 5:21 EST on 11/8/13: 
visible satellite landfall loop from the Korean COMS-1 satellite courtesy of Scott Bachmeier of the University of Wisconsin CIMSS group I found this link on Dr. Jeff Masters blog on wunderground for Nov. 8, 2013.

My thoughts and prayers are with all those affected by Haiyan.

Rim Fire - Burned Area Emergency Response (1 of 2)

Some wildfires cause damage that if unchecked could jeopardize the ecosystem, watersheds, and even human populations (see U.S. Forest Service on Burned Area Emergency Response). Where there is post fire damage Burned Area Emergency Response (BAER) kicks in, the USFS has a webpage with some background information on BAER that may be found here.

It has been a couple of years since I have written about BAER, and when I saw a couple of references on the internet about the Rim Fire BAER, I thought I'd write an article or two about BAER. Recall that the Rim Fire burned 257,314 acres or 402 square miles late last summer and was not fully contained until Oct. 24th.

There are three main stages of rehabilitation after a wildfire (see the Rim Fire - BAER page on inciweb for more information, 

1. fire suppression repair

2. emergency stabilization - BAER

3. long-term recovery and restoration

The latest progress report (Oct 30th, 2013) available to me as I write this on 6 November of BAER accomplishments at the Stanislaus National Forest where the Rim Fire burned may be found on this inciweb page. Among other things, one focus of BAER in the aftermath of the Rim Fire is to prepare for rain.

Stay tuned for more on the Rim Fire BAER in my next article.

Revised on November 19, 2015 to correct URLs to Rim Fire - BAER on Inciweb. I am never quite certain how long such links remain active.

Wildfires in New South Wales Australia in pictures

I suspect that many of you saw news of the wildfires that burned in New South Wales, Australia recently. The NSW Rural Fire Service has a webpage chock full of information and maps where you may go for current information.

I came across a slide show showing images from the State Mine Bushfire that burned near Lithgow in NSW from ABC Central West NSW (on Oct. 30, 2013). Along with the slide show is an audio report from Clarence resident, Matthew Millet talking about his experiences with the State Mine Fire.

Fall Fire Season in the East???

I wrote yesterday about my weather observations for the National Weather Service and recording daily rainfall totals from my rain gauge located in northwest New Jersey. I had recorded less then one-tenth of an inch rainfall from Oct. 13 through Oct. 30, and knowing that wildfire danger often picks up in the fall I got curious about the fall fire season here in the east.

I had noted some media reports of smaller wildfires in MA and NH, see for example this report about dry and windy conditions in NH reported on Oct. 30 and small wildfires in MA. At the same time there had been some concern expressed in an October 30 article that dry conditions in NJ could increase wildfire danger, go  here to read the article on NJ.com. Finally there was a 110 acre fire in Rockland County, NY dubbed the Mt. Eve Fire according to the RecordOnline. I also saw a  reference to the Mt. Eve Fire in todays morning briefing from the Eastern Area Coordinating Center (EACC), being the only large fire activity in the East.

However and more importantly, I have also noted that while there has been some smaller wildfires in the East and one large fire reported in todays EACC morning report (over 100 acres, the Mt. Eve Fire), it seems that the fall fire season here in the eastern U.S. has not yet materialized. Bill Gabbert of Wildfire Today offered this observation in an article he posted on October 29:

The eastern and southern fire season that follows leaf fall and the first severe frost seems to be still waiting in the wings (Bill Gabbert).

Gabbert also referred to a National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC) report on the fall fire season in the U.S. in an October 29 post on their Facebook Page:

The normal transition of fire season back to the southern and eastern U.S. in the fall associated with leaf drop also did not occur as would be expected (NIFC).

All I can say on the afternoon before we may get some needed rain in my little corner of New Jersey is that I hope that fall fire season continues to not occur as NIFC expects.

Weather Observer

For the last eleven  months I have had a CoCoRaHS rain gauge that I got from the WeatherYourWay Store. No I do not make observations for CoCoRaHS though I do read and rely on their reports that I get either through my local office of the National Weather Service on their daily CoCoRaHS Precipitation Summary Page or from the CoCoRaHS page for my State. But I do volunteer work for the Mt Holly Office of the National Weather Service (NWS) as a skywarn spotter. I took my basic skywarn spotter training six days before Superstorm Sandy hit, and I made my first spotter report to the Mt. Holly office of the NWS the morning after Sandy.

As a skywarn spotter I call my local NWS to report severe weather eventss: tornado or funnel cloud, hail of any size, winds of 50 mph or stronger, wind damage (trees, wires down, damage to structures, snow accumulation, ice accumulation, and flash or river flooding. I monitor rainfall and it is useful information to have when I call the NWS with a spotter report. For example, when I made my first spotter report after SS Sandy the meteorologist asked me how much rain we had. I could not give an accurate answer because I did not have my gauge up, but I gave her an estimate. Another time, I was reporting small stream flooding along with the possibility that a River was rising quickly and might reach the point where she might spill her banks. They asked me how much rain I recorded and I told them. 

I enjoy making my observations for the NWS, I'm hardly an expert on meteorology, but I did learn something about weather when I was studying for the FAA private pilot written exam over three years ago. Remember I am not a licensed pilot, but I go on scenic flights with supportive pilots when I can. Anyway, making observations for the NWS seemed like a good fit because of my interests in aviation.

So, I have my sheet where I have been recording rainfall from my rain gauge and have noticed the dry weather in September and October. Yes, and I have cloud chart in my kitchen. So since I have been recording daily rainfall for the past eleven months, I am more sensitive to rainfall extremes. And it has been a tad dry here. The dry weather that I've observed here got me wondering about wildfire activity in the northeast and mid-atlantic regions of the U.S., and I'll be writing about that in my next post.

SS Storm Sandy's impact on the Delaware Bayshore

As many of you know, one year ago tomorrow, SS Sandy hit New Jersey. I was lucky, we only lost power, one tree down, damage to a couple of outdoor light fixtures, and a couple shingles off of my roof. Others were not as fortunate. I knew about the damage that the New Jersey shore (aka the east shore) saw. I am embarrassed to say that it was only yesterday that I found out about the damage to the Delaware Bayshore of NJ (or the western shore), thanks to an article I saw in the print edition of the Sunday Star Ledger, that may be found here on NJ.com. Please take the time to read the article. The title of the article and the headline in Sunday's Star Ledger is "The Forgotten Shore." After reading the article and spending time on NJ.com looking at the interactive map, videos and photos, I knew that I had to tell you about the Delaware Bayshore.

For those of you are interested in maps and seeing where the Delaware Bayshore region of NJ is, there is an interactive map featuring stories, videos and photos of those featured in the article. There is a nice photo gallery of pictures of the damage to the Delaware Bayshore and her people here (also found on the interactive map). There were a few videos that I liked, I picked out one to embed here for you on damage to dikes in Greenwich, NJ.

direct link to video

RIP David Black and Peter Brereton

I was saddened to read about the deaths of two pilots who died in two separate crashes in New South Wales, Australia within a day of each other. Both were flying in support of wildland firefighters fighting the wildland fires in New South Wales.

David Black, owner and chief pilot of Rebel Ag, died on Thursday Oct. 24 when his PZL M18A Dromader aircraft crashed while he was performing aerial wildland firefighting operations on a wildland fire in a remote and rugged section of New South Wales. He leaves a wife, Julie and three children. A press release issued on behalf of Rebel Ag may be found on this webpage of the NSW Rural Fire Service.

Peter Brereton, a pilot,  had just retired from a 40-year career with the CFA firefighting agency in Australia. However, when his help was needed to support the wildland firefighters in New South Wales, he was there. He was flying a Cessna 182 on Wednesday morning Oct. 23 after dropping off some spare parts for a helo that was being used in aerial operations on the bush fires in New South Wales. When he failed to return to the airport on Wednesday morning, a search ensued and the wreckage was found Thursday morning in rugged terrain. For more on Peter Brereton, read this article from The Age (out of Victoria AU. Brereton, 60, is survived by his wife, Lyn and five children.

My thoughts and prayers are with the family, friends, colleagues and all who love Peter and David. May Peter and David always fly in favorable tail winds.

A-26 Tanker's service in Canada still to come

Some of you know that I have written a couple of series about the Douglas A-26, first was a series about her military service last March, and then a second series about her service as a tanker in late July/early August 2013. To read both series, go here and stop from the bottom as the latest article is at the top and will include this one.

When I finished up writing about the Douglas A-26's service as a tanker in the U.S. on August 12, 2013, I wrote that I wanted to write about A-26 tankers in Canada. As sometimes happens, I had an idea for this series that has not yet quite panned out. I am still hopeful that I'll be able to return that idea in the future and write a series of articles on A-26 tankers in Canada. That being said, there are some things that I have learned about A-26 tankers in Canada. I will be working on this over the next couple of weeks and hope to post some articles about the A-26 in Canada before the American Thanksgiving Holiday. 

Remembering the Cedar Fire ten years later

direct link to video

Shortly after I began writing about wildland fires five years ago, I heard about the Cedar Fire which burned something like 280,000 acres +/- near San Diego. I believe that it still is the largest fire in California history. October, 2013 marks ten years since this fire. Fifteen people died and over 2,200 homes were destroyed in this Santa Anna wind driven fire. To read more about this fire see this article from the Ramona Patch (and another link to the video that I embedded above).

direct link to video

Added on Oct. 22, 2013:

CAL FIRE incident info on Cedar Fire (last updated Nov. 5 2003
The 2003 San Diego County Fire Siege: Fire Safety Review (pdf file)
Wikipedia article on Cedar Fire
2003 San Diego Fire Facts from San Diego State University (with links)

Air Tractor 802 Fireboss in action in Portugal

direct link to video

I am always on the lookout for interesting videos of tankers and helos in action. I don't believe that I've that many videos of the Air Tractor Fire Bosses fighting wildland fires. So when this video came to my attention recently I knew that I had to share it with out. Great footage, some of it shot from the cockpit, of two Firebosses from Portugal. Included are shots of the Fireboss' scooping water from a Lake as well as shots of drops over wildfires.

The commentary for this video (by Eder Navacerrada) is in Portuguese (about this video on youtube). I neither speak or read Portuguese, but I did find a translate utility from google which I used to get a rough translation of the about this video information:

Air Tractor 802 aircraft Fireboss for firefighting in the summer 2013In memory of bomberos who lost their lives in fighting fire. No staff on the ground, the work of air assets would be much less effective, thanks for the help

So it would seem from this translation that Eder posted the video in memory of firebomber pilots who lost their lives.

Aero Flite T-160

direct link to video

Conair is converting two BAe Avro RJ85 passenger jets into air tankers for Aero Flite. Recall that Aero Flite has a Next Generation contract with the US Forest Service for two RJ85's. The RJ85 is a later model in the BAe-146 series of mid-sized jet airliners with improved engines. BAe Systems has an article summarizing North American companies that are using the BAe-146 jets as air tankers.

Bill Gabbert of Fire Aviation reported in an article he wrote last summer that Conair is flight testing one RJ85 tanker designated as T-160. A friend of mine sent me a link to the short video that I embedded here showing T-160 making a test drop because he thought that you might be interested in seeing her make a test drop.

Campfire safety

direct link to video

In the almost five years since I have devoted this blog to aerial wildland firefighting and other issues about wildland firefighting and safety, I know that a certain number of wildfires are started from campfires. This short video will remind all of us about campfire safety. 

Wildfire in Zimbabwe

I was catching up with wildfire related news early today when I stumbled on a post in the international fire news forum about a wildfire in Zimbabwe, Africa leading me to a short article by the Associated Press posted by FoxNews on the Zimbabwe wildfires (dated Oct. 7, 2013). According to the article a 2.4 million acre wildfire (1 million hectares) killed 2 people in a remote section in the Zimbabwe bush east of Harare. If my conversion is correct, 2.4 million acres is about 3,750 sq. miles or according to a listing of U.S. States by size in square miles larger than the state of Delaware.

I spent two weeks in Malawi in the early summer of 2007, and wrote about my time there during and after my trip. Malawi is to the east of Zimbabwe and like Zimbabwe is landlocked. Anyway, in reading about this wildfire, I found myself thinking back to my time in Malawi. I am not writing this article to offer any insights or links to fighting wildfires in that area of Africa. Rather I write because two weeks in Malawi is a time that I will never forget.

Today, I am reminded of images of charred, burned out areas visible from the plane as we were descending to the international airport outside Lilongwe, Malawi. As our driver, Luzu, drove us from the airport to our lodging in Lilongwe I recall seeing areas of charred landscape along the road, some with tree stumps. As Luzu drove us around Malawi over the next two weeks, I would continue to notice charred landscapes from time to time. Sometime in my second week in Malawi I asked Luzu about these burned areas, why were they burned. He gave two reason, one was to clear areas for crops, and the other was to drive out rodents, which were later eaten.


By the way, about Luzu. I think of him often. We were in good hands. Nothing happened, the van was ok, we lost a rear bumper but that was it. No busted fuel line, no dragging tail pipe. We never ran out of gas, though it was a little dicey one day. We drove to a very remote area of Malawi not far from the Mozambique border on a rainy day. This was during the dry season when rain is sparse, and we got out of there but Luzu was a bit concerned about the rain. You see, during the rainy season the streams near the dirt road we were on in the rain will flood making those villages inaccessible by car. He thought he lost the keys to the van one day, but later found them. He took care of us.

Note: I corrected my faulty conversion of acres to sq. miles in an earlier version of this article. There are 640 acres in a square mile. 2,400,000 acres divided by 640 yields 3,750 sq. miles. I had over stated the sq.miles burned by a factor of 100. Opps. . .

MInden's Next Generation "Fireliner" BAe-146

link to video

It's been awhile since I wrote about the status of the Next Generation Tankers. I know that Coulson's C-130Q made her first drop on a fire on Sept. 20, 2013 (article from Fire Aviation). Recall that a DC-10 tanker has been flying under the Next Generation Tanker Contract since early summer. See my hopefully up to date status of the Next Generation Tankers on my Airtankers 101 page for more information on the Next Generation Tanker Contracts.

I don't think that the tankers from Minden, Aero Air, and Aero Flite are flying on contract yet. However, I recently came upon this video of Minden's Next Generation Tanker taking off on a flight test (also linked to on my Airtankers 101 page). The flight test shown on the video was done in early June 2013. Minden has dubbed this BAe-146 tanker the Fireliner, and you may go the Fireliner page on Minden's site to find out more about her including information on her specifications and performance.

Keeping your home and property safe in the wildland-urban interface (pt 2 of 2)

direct link to video on Home Improvements: A Firewire Approach

I learned about this video on Firewise home improvements from this video page on Firewise.

Keeping your home and property safe in the wildland-urban interface (pt 1 of 2)

I am not naive enough to think that a wildland fire  won't affect be because I don't believe I live in or near the wildland-urban interface. Perhaps because of NJ's recently changing weather (wet to dry and perhaps back to wet again), I found myself thinking about what homeowners can do to keep their homes safe. To continue due diligence regarding wildfire danger no matter what the weather is or is not doing.
I struggled yesterday to find something to share on this topic when I found these two videos last night on videos for the general public found on Firewise dot org . By the way, Firewise dot org has a lot of information on their website about what homeowners and communities can do to be firewise. 
I learned a lot from these videos. For example, over the last few years I had heard that homeowners should keep a 100 foot zone around their homes clear of trees and debris to ward off wildfires. But I never where that 100 foot figure came from. Now I do. Watch these two videos and you'll find out where the 100 foot figure came from. In a couple of days, I'll share another video from the same website with more information on how to make your home itself firesafe.



At the time I posted this on 10/5/13 at about 1:30 PM, I found that the audio was muted when using the Chrome Browser on my Mac. If you should have a problem, a workaround that worked for me is moving the slide next to the speaker icon, this got the audio working for me. Safari and Firefox on my Mac did not appear to have this problem. I don't have a PC, so I can't speak to what happens to Internet Explorer or other PC browsers.

Air Attack Over a Fire

One of the things that I am interested in are the roles of aircraft known as Lead Planes and Aerial Supervision Modules (ASM) that fly over many (but not all) fires here in the U.S. And what do the various personnel in these aircraft do. For example, what does the Air Tactical Group Supervisor (airborne firefighter) do? I recently found a short (10 to 11 minute video) from the National Interagency Fire Center called Firefighting Airspace, a part of their 2012 Annual Wildland Fire Refresher training. I certainly learned a lot from this video, and I hope that you will as well. The next time I read about or hear of a fire with a Lead Plane and/or an ASM over the fire I will have a better idea of the roles of these aircraft. Enjoy.



direct link to video from the BLMNIFC on youtube

Updated July 21, 2014: I share a lot of videos on this blog, sometimes I forget that I have already shared a video and I share the video a second time. That is what happened here. I originally shared this same video on Dec. 1, 2012.

Pausing and remembering the Yarnell Hill 19

direct link to video from Envenomator1 on youtube

For reasons that I don't need to go into, I found myself reflecting this past weekend on the tragic loss of the 19 Granite Mountain Hotshots. So, I post this short video in memory of the 19 members of the Prescott Granite Mountain Hotshots who died fighting the Yarnell Hills Fire on June 30, 2013.

RIP - I will never forget you

Tanker action near Kamloops, British Columbia

I saw this video on youtube earlier in today of Canadian airtankers fighting a fire, probably earlier this summer, near Kamloops, British Columbia. I believe that I have seen tankers from Air Spray and Conair along with some helos. Allow just over 14 minutes to watch the video.



direct link to video

Two Dougs taking off to fight fires (one retired, one still flying)

Conair DC-6 T-50 taking off from Dawson City. I believe that the last season that Conair flew DC-6 air tankers was in 1998. (To read a little about the history of Conair, including the DC-6 tankers they flew from the 1970s into the late 1990s see History of Aviation in the BC Forest Service, Part 2 Air Tanker Operations. The reference for 1998 being the last year that Conair flew the DC-6 on contract for the B.C. Forest Service is found on p. 24).  All three parts of the History of Aviation in the BC Forest Service may be found on this webpage of the BC Forest Service Centenary.

direct link to video

DC-7 T-60 taking off to fight a fire near Hood River, OR when she was owned by Butler Aircraft. As you may recall Aero Air bought Butler in December 2012 (see this article on Fire Aviation for more information).

direct link to video

History - 1910 wildfires

Continuing with videos of notable historic wildfires, here is a video from Fed Flix on the 1910 wildfires, allow about 30 minutes to watch the video.



direct link to video page on Fed Flix

Description of video from Fed Flix: National Interagency Fire Center, Century of Fire - Part 11 - The Fires of 1910, 2010 Fireline Safety Refresher Training. Producer: National Interagency Fire Center.

Added on June 15, 2016: I don't think that either the link or the embedded video on this article is working. Over the next several days, I'll try to take some time to get new links for you. Please be patient.