The Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan has been

The Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan has been prepared by, reviewed and/or approved by the following signatories: Prepared by: Bruce Suenram, Fire Logistics, Inc. Chair, Board of County Commissioners Chouteau County Fire Warden President, Chouteau County Fire Council BLM – Lewistown Field Office Lewis & Clark National Forest Northeastern Land Office, MT Dept. of Natural Resources & Conservation CHOUTEAU COUNTY COMMUNITY WILDFIRE PROTECTION PLAN 1. Executive Summary 1.1. Problem Overview Chouteau County is located in North Central Montana, about 100 miles south of the Canadian border. Chouteau County is a relatively large county covering an area of 3,936 square miles. Under the current conditions, Chouteau County has a high degree of potential for extended fire seasons ranging from March through October or November. Chouteau County has fire departments located in Big Sandy, Loma, Fort Benton, Carter, Highwood, and Geraldine, and County Coop engines located in the Knees area and in the Elim areas. Chouteau County has the potential to interact with not only DNRC, but also the Bureau of Land Management, Lewistown Field Office, the Lewis and Clark NF, the Rocky Boy Indian ReservationBureau of Indian Affairs, thus providing a high degree of interagency complexity. As with numerous counties in Montana, there is an increasing development of wildland-urban interface areas, especially in the southern portion of the county adjacent to Cascade County, with potential access problems and a general lack of understanding of the need for an asset protection zone to protect the improvements. As a general matter, Chouteau County Fire Department has to deal with multiple ignitions throughout the county from lightning storms. 1.2. Process Overview The Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan -- hereafter known as “CWPP,” has been developed to assist Chouteau County, Chouteau County’s Fire Departments and the federal, state, tribal wildland agencies in the identification of private and public lands at risk of severe wildland fires and to explore strategies for the prevention and suppression of such fires. The CWPP is intended to outline the Chouteau County’s plans and activities targeted at reducing the risk of a catastrophic wildland and/or wildland-urban interface (WUI) fire event in Chouteau County. The intent of this planning document will ensure that the health, safety and welfare of Chouteau County’s citizens remain secure from the threats of structural and wildland fires in the county. 1.3. Overall Goals The CWPP will improve planning and fire suppression tools for county and the county fire department alike, which will result in Chouteau County providing its citizens with tools to live more safely in a fire prone ecosystem. The CWPP fosters the preservation of the economy of Chouteau County by maintaining and improving the efficiency of fire protection in the County. 1.4. Methodology Fire Logistics, Inc. uses Geographic Information System (GIS) based analysis approach to development of the fire hazard assessment for Chouteau County. This enables personnel from Fire Logistics to look at specific areas of high risk in the county such as wildland-urban interface or subdivision areas and focus on issues that should be included in the wildland fire mitigation plan as recommended projects. Personnel from Fire Logistics, Inc. spent 3 days in Chouteau County in October of 2005 gathering data and touring around the county gathering intelligence for the CWPP. Additional information was gathered Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 3 from the County during visits in March, May, and June of 2006. Fire Logistics staff developed a draft of our approach to the Chouteau County CWPP between October and March of 2007. In March, the rough draft was posted on the Chouteau County web site for review and comment by the citizens of Chouteau County. In April 2007, comments from the responding collaborators where incorporated into the final version of the Chouteau County CWPP. 1.5. Mitigation Strategy – The Action Plan Summary of the specific action is provided, which were developed in the mitigation plan of Chapter 7 to include mitigation goals such as evaluate upgrade and maintain emergency wildfire protection responsibilities, decrease fuels, etc. The assumptions for planning priorities of the community fire plan are: protect human health and life, protect critical community infrastructure, protect private property, and protect natural resources. The existing mitigation efforts are described, which include asset protection zones, neighborhood preparedness and fire protection response, and the coordination of prevention programs, protection projects and response plans. Several recommended projects and programs are included as part of the mitigation effort for Chouteau County. Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 4 2. Introduction 2.1. Background and History The Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP) has been developed to assist Chouteau County, Chouteau County’s Fire Departments and the federal and state wildland agencies in the identification of private and public lands at risk of severe wildland fires and to explore strategies for the prevention and suppression of such fires. The CWPP is intended to outline the Chouteau County Fire’s plans and activities targeted at reducing the risk of a catastrophic wildland or a wildland-urban interface (WUI) fire event in Chouteau County. The intent of this planning document will ensure that the health, safety and welfare of Chouteau County citizens remains secure from the threats of structural and wildland fires in the county. The CWPP will improve planning tools for county and the fire departments alike, which will result in better building and development codes and regulations, as they relate to the development of the WUI and urban development. The CWPP fosters the preservation of the economy of Chouteau County by maintaining and improving the fire protection capability of the County. The Chouteau County Conservation District retained the services of Fire Logistics, Inc. to: 1. Development of a countywide Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP) that meets NFP, HFRA and FEMA standards for each of the three counties: Cascade, Chouteau, and Meagher. The CWPP must be a stand alone plan. The process must follow the guidance specified in Preparing a Community Wildfire Protection Plan - A Handbook for Wildland-Urban Interface Communities. This document is a collaboration of a number of organizations, and can be found at the website for the Society of American Foresters http://www.safnet.org/policyandpress/cwpphandbook.pdf This guidebook is incorporated by reference into this RFP. All the elements listed in the “Summary and Checklist” of this planning guide must be covered in the CWPP; the term “forest areas” should be understood to include all vegetation types that may be subject to wildfire. Mapped components must be provided in both hard copy and GIS layers. 2. Development of a county Pre-Disaster Mitigation Plan (PDM) that meets FEMA standards for each of the three counties: Cascade, Chouteau, and Meagher. Finished plans will conform to the Federal Disaster Mitigation Act of 2000, 44CFR Parts 201 and 206; Interim Final Rule. The CWPP will cover the wildland fire hazard for each county and as such should be incorporated into the PDM plan. Guidance for FEMA compliance should be taken from FEMA’s Multi-Hazard Mitigation Planning Guidance, available at FEMA’s website http://www.fema.gov/fima/resources.shtm This guidance is incorporated by reference into this RFP. Mapped components must be provided in both hard copy and GIS layers. 3. Prepare GIS layers including: Evacuation Routes, Fuels, Floodplain, Wildland-Urban-Rural Interface Boundary, Past Fire Occurrence, Fire Prone Landscapes (interpretation of fuels, topography, fire history etc.), Critical Infrastructure, etc. Fire occurrence data should include federal, state and county records. Working with local dispatch and rural fire districts will be necessary to insure completeness of the county fire records. See Attachment A for a list of currently existing GIS layers for each county. Additional existing GIS layers are available through state, BLM and USFS sources. 4. Coordinate meetings with local committees, fire district personnel, local governments, state and federal agencies and keep them informed of activities of the countywide fire and all-hazard planning processes. Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 5 5. Establish and maintain effective working relationships with federal, state, local governments, local fire districts and councils, corporate, and private landowners that will assist in the planning project. 6. Prepare materials and make presentations, both orally and in writing, to individuals or groups about the fire and all-hazard mitigation plans. 7. Prepare news releases, articles, and public service announcements for use by media to enhance public relations, inform the public of the fire mitigation plans. 8. Conduct assessments of individual communities and develop a prioritized list (high, medium, low) of recommended mitigation projects including both private and public lands. 9. Analyze and review the information collected and develop strategies to address fire and other hazards in each county. The hazards to be analyzed in detail (in addition to wildland fire) for each county are: • Cascade County: flood-dam failure; severe weather, hazardous materials spill • Chouteau County: flood-dam failure; severe weather, hazardous materials spill • Meagher County: flood-dam failure; severe weather, earthquake. 10. Provide separate budgets for the CWPP’s (all counties combined) and the additional increment for the PDM plans (all counties combined). Quarterly reports detailing the planning, assessment, educational or outreach activities and accomplishments as well as dollars spent in the current period and to date for CWPP’s and PDM plans separately. 11. Each county will appoint a local contact person to work with the contractor and facilitate setting up public meetings. Locations for public meetings will be determined in consultation with the counties. Public meetings are expected to be required in 3-4 locations for Cascade and Chouteau counties; one or two locations for Meagher may be adequate as long as joint meetings occur in some locations for Cascade and Meagher (e.g., Monarch, Neihart or King’s Hill). 2.2. Mission The mission of the Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan is: “To preserve Chouteau County's natural, agricultural and manmade resources by mobilizing all citizens of Chouteau County to make their homes, neighborhoods and communities safe from fire.” 2.3. Current Relevant Fire Policies A brief discussion of the relevant fire policies is provided to educate the community. 2.3.1 Federal Policies “Homeland Security is Fire Safety” We have briefly described the relevant policies at the national level, which affect fire planning on the local level. 2.3.1.1 National Fire Plan “The National Fire Plan (NFP) is a long-term investment that will help protect communities and natural resources, and most importantly, the lives of fire fighters and the public. It is a long term commitment based on cooperation and communication among federal agencies, states, local governments, tribes and Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 6 interested publics.” It mandates community participation in its implementation. 1 The NFP also mandates that local governments develop and adopt local land use plans and ordinances that provide for the maintenance of defensible space and fuel management on municipal and private property. 2 2.3.1.2 Western Governor’s Association, 10-Year Comprehensive Strategy for Reducing Wildland Fire Risks 3 and A Collaborative Approach for Reducing Wildland Fire Risks to Communities and the Environment—Implementation Plan The goals of the 10-Year Comprehensive Strategy are to: Improve Prevention and Suppression Reduce Hazardous Fuels Restore Fire Adapted Ecosystems Promote Community Assistance. This is done through a “Framework for Collaboration… Local Level—Successful implementation will include stakeholder groups with broad representation including Federal, State, and local agencies, tribes and the public, collaborating with local line officers on decision making to 4establish priorities, cooperation on activities, and increase public awareness and participation to reduce the risks to communities and environments.” 5 2.3.1.3 Healthy Forests Restoration Act The Healthy Forests Restoration Act (HFRA) represents the legislative component of the Healthy Forests Initiative, introduced by President Bush in January 2003. Title I of the HFRA authorizes the Secretaries of Agriculture and Interior to expedite the development and implementation of hazardous fuel reduction projects on federal land managed by the US Forest Service or Bureau of Land Management when certain conditions are met. Priority areas for use of expedited authorities include the wildland-urban interface, municipal watersheds, areas impacted by wind throw or insect and disease epidemics, and critical wildlife habitat that would be negatively impacted by catastrophic wildfire. The HFRA emphasizes the need for federal agencies to work collaboratively with communities in developing hazardous fuel reduction projects and places priority on treatment areas identified by the communities themselves in a CWPP. 2.3.1.4 Disaster Mitigation Act 2000 Disaster Mitigation Act 2000 (DMA 2000) sets policies for “disaster mitigation plans”—plans designed to avoid disasters such as fires and floods. DMA 2000 requires 4 elements in these plans: 1. A planning process. 2. An assessment of risks. 3. A mitigation strategy (action plan) and, 4. A plan maintenance and updating process. See www.fireplan.gov. See www.westgov.org/wga/initiatives/fire/implem_plan.pdf 3 www.westgov.org/wga/initiatives/fire/final_fire_rpt.pdf 4 The full text of the Act is available at http://thomas.loc.gov/. Type HR 1904 in the Bill Number box and then select the enrolled bill from the list of options. 5 www.westgov.org/wga/initiatives/fire/implem_plan.pdf 2 1 Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 7 Disaster Mitigation Plans must be approved by 11/04 to receive HMGP funds after that date. 6 2.3.1.5 Local Implementation of Federal Fire Policies Fire protection objectives on the state and private lands in Chouteau County are addressed indirectly in the Cooperative Fire Management Agreement between USDI’s Bureau of Land Management, National Park Service – Intermountain Region, Bureau of Indian Affairs – Portland and Billings Area, US Fish and Wildlife Service – Rocky Mountain Region; USDA’s Forest Service – Northern Region; and the State of Montana – Department of Natural Resources and Conservation. This agreement requires that Annual Operating Plans be developed and approved by May 1 of each year specifying how the terms of the agreement will be carried out between the cooperating agencies and the state. Cooperation with local county governments is encouraged and additional agreements are executed with Chouteau County. These agreements are to validate the arrangements desired between the county and a federal agency or the state in respect to assistance with their fire management programs. As a minimum, those procedures for obtaining state and federal assistance for large wildland fire needs to be included in any agreements prepared at the local level. They should include an articulation of the suppression standards that need to be employed by federal or state agencies working on a fire on state and private land. The reverse is also true for county resources working on federal or state lands. In the former case the objective will most likely be to suppress the fire at the smallest size possible utilizing the full range of suppression resources available. In the latter case, however, certain land management objectives may preclude this approach, i.e., mechanical equipment in a Area of Critical Environmental Concern. There may be circumstances where a fire is human caused and assistance in an investigation is needed. The skill to be a fire investigator can either be developed within the county or it can be brought in from another agency on an as needed basis. Whichever route is chosen, there should be no delay in utilizing a fire investigator when the situation is warranted. 2.3.2 State Policies Currently there are no State policies that require a rural fire district or county fire organization to develop a community fire plan. Indirectly, it is a requirement to access federal funds for fuel reduction. It is the policy of the State to complete pre-disaster mitigation plans in compliance with the Federal direction noted above. 2.3.3 Local Policies Fort Benton-Chouteau County established a Fort Benton Planning Area Growth Policy in 2003 that includes the City of Fort Benton plus 4.5 miles beyond the corporate city limits. Chouteau County adopted the Chouteau County Growth Policy in 2004. In 1999, the Montana Legislature revised this community development and planning tool and renamed it the Growth Management Policy. The requirements of a Growth Management Policy are detailed in 76-1-601, Montana Code Annotated. The Fort Benton Area Growth Policy and the Chouteau County Growth Policy provide guidance as the community grows and develops. Special attention is given to specific land uses and the need for infrastructure to support those identified uses. Preparing a growth policy includes describing the historical base, establishing key indicators and monitoring the growth trends, and developing policies to accommodate the potential growth and changes in the community. 6 www.fema.gov/pdf/fima/howto1.pdf Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 8 In the Fort Benton Area Growth Policy, the Public Safety Goal is: “Ensure that all fire service entities are providing adequate fire fighting and emergency response services, apparatus, equipment, personnel, training and facilities.” Further the Growth Policy establishes four policy statements: 1. Encourage the fire department to clearly define the level and types of services they provide and move toward development and adoption of a fire protection master plan for their service area. 2. Facilitate the completion of the fire protection facilities portion of the Fort Benton Capital Improvement Program. 3. Provide appreciation, support, and assistance to ensure there are adequate volunteer personnel providing essential emergency services to the area. 4. Encourage the Fort Benton Volunteer Fire Department to consider multi-agency partnerships to provide specialized emergency services such as hazardous materials response, high and low angle rescue and confined space rescue. Chouteau County’s Growth Policy has a Public Safety Goal, which says: “Provide adequate and timely emergency services to all County residents.” The County’s Growth Policy has several policy statements which provide some overall direction to this CWPP, the most significant are: 1. Economy & Population – Encourage business retention and expansion by blending new technology and innovative practices with traditional economic base industry. 2. Economy & Population – Preserve natural resources, including historic and scenic, for the enjoyment and benefit of all. 3. Local Services – Coordinate between rural fire departments and with agencies with fire fighting responsibility on public lands. 4. New development should have adequate water supply for fire fighting and incorporate fire protection measures in their design. 5. Discourage development where services can not be provided in a timely manner. 6. Design standards for roads should include provisions for adequate emergency vehicle access. 7. Coordinate with fire fighting agencies to promote programs for homeowners that will assist with wildfire issues. Subdivision regulations are normally developed after completion and adoption of the Growth Policy. The existing Subdivision Regulations have not been up-dated since the adoption of Chouteau County’s Growth Policy. In Planning for Wildfires, three strategies are offered for dealing with development in the wildland-urban interface, they include: 1. Conduct Wildfire Planning in a comprehensive planning context. This CWPP accomplishes this strategy. 2. Conduct a program of regulation and enforcement that stresses continuous individual responsibility by homeowners and property owners including: a. Subdivision regulations. b. Zoning regulations, such as a wildland-urban interface overlay. c. Building and fire codes 3. Conduct an effective ongoing program of education and outreach to affected residents and 7 property owners. 7 Planning for Wildfires; American Planning Association; 2005 Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 9 The County’s Development Regulation has been recently up-dated, but needs revision to include requirements for asset protection zones in wildland-urban interface areas. A Pre-Disaster Mitigation Plan (PDM), developed by Fire Logistics, Inc., is another tool developed to provide Chouteau County with insight into the potential events, which might impact the County. Wildland fire was ranked in the top 5 natural hazards in Chouteau County. As a result, Chouteau County’s PDM has the following goals which apply to this CWPP: • • • • • • • • • Prevent personal injury, loss of life and damage to property and the environment from natural and technological hazards. Document hazards, risk assessments, and vulnerabilities and rate those hazards based on probability and potential impact to the County. Encourage public participation in preparedness and mitigation activities, by promoting public awareness and an understanding of natural and technological hazards; as well as the risk those hazards potentially present to quality of life and economic vitality. Form partnerships with private and public sector agencies, businesses and organizations to further comprehensive planning and implementation of mitigation measures. Establish a framework for reducing future losses from technological and natural disasters. Prepare for, mitigate, avoid, reduce and minimize the disruption, damage and losses that occur from a disaster and facilitate post-disaster funding. Sustain existing public safety programs by assessing current emergency services capabilities and identifying future needs. Enhance public safety, by improving the capabilities of emergency services to respond to and recover from the effects of hazards on people, property and the environment. Define a strategy with goals and objectives for long-term and comprehensive mitigation measures and activities. 2.4. Planning Area Boundaries The Chouteau County CWPP covers Chouteau County in its entirety. The county was further subdivided into sub-planning areas by the 5th Code Watershed. The purpose of the 5th Code Watershed is to provide a uniquely identified and uniformed method of subdividing large drainage areas. These smaller 5th Code Watershed units are approximately 40,000 acres to 250,000 acres and are useful for fire planning purposes as well as other programs by the Natural Resources and Conservation Service and other agencies. Figure 1 2.5. Community Legal Structure, Jurisdictional Boundaries There is a mixture of fire protection organizations providing fire services to Chouteau County. These include Fort Benton Fire Department (MCA 7-33-4101-4133), Fort Benton Rural Fire District (RFD), Big Sandy RFD, Geraldine RFD and Highwood RFD (MCA 7-33-2101-2129), Loma, Knees, Elim and Carter Volunteer Fire Companies (MCA 7-33-2311-2316), Chouteau County Fire Department (MCA 7-33-22012211), MT Department of Natural Resources and Conservation – County Cooperative Program, Rocky Boy Indian Reservation, Bureau of Indian Affairs, Lewis and Clark National Forest and Bureau of Land Management (See Figure 1 and Jurisdictional Areas Map in Map Section 10.5). Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 10 There is a county-wide mutual aid agreement under which resources can be requested to provide assistance to another fire entity. The Bureau of Land Management is the responsible land management agency for BLM lands and assists the local agencies as needed. The Lewis and Clark NF is the land management agency responsible for the National Forest Lands in Chouteau County and assists the County as needed. The Rocky Boy Indian Reservation provides fire protection to the reservation and provides assistance to the County as requested. Chouteau County assists the Tribal Governments and federal agencies with fire protection assistance as requested. The Department of Natural Resources and Conservation – County Cooperative Program provides fire support to counties when the county’s capability has been exceeded and assistance is requested. 2.6. Acknowledgements Fire Logistics, Inc. would like to thank the Chouteau County Fire Warden; Chouteau County DES, especially Linda Williams and Glenda Tonne; Big Sandy VFD – Fire Chief Larry Ophus; Loma VFD – Fire Chief Gar Wood; Fort Benton VFD – Fire Chief Pat Hutlin; Carter VFD – Fire Chief Darin Arganbright; Elim VFD – Fire Chief Christina Taylor; Geraldine VFD – Fire Chief Rob Ebeling; Highwood VFD – Fire Chief Rich Hartman; The Knees VFD – Fire Chief Dan Piccard; Bureau of Land Management, especially Shannon Downey and Gary Kirpach; Lewis and Clark National Forest, especially Lee Clark Forest FMO and Jim Homison, Stanford District FMO; Chouteau County Planning Board; Chouteau County Conservation District; the Chouteau County Local Emergency Planning Committee; the Chouteau County Fire Council and Chouteau County Board of County Commissioners for their contributions to this plan. Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 11 3. Planning Process 3.1. Stakeholders The following stakeholders are affected by wildland fire and have a stake in a successfully implemented CWPP: Fort Benton VFD Big Sandy VFD Loma VFD The Knees VFD Elim VFD Carter VFD Highwood VFD Geraldine VFD Chouteau County Fire Warden MT Dept. of Natural Resources and Conservation Bureau of Land Management Lewis & Clark NF Rocky Boy Indian Reservation County Assistance Team (CAT) City of Fort Benton Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad Chouteau County Local Emergency Planning Committee Chouteau County Road Department Chouteau County DES Board of County Commissioners – Chouteau County Residents of Chouteau County 3.2. Current Process and Plan Development In the summer of 2005, the Chouteau County Conservation District awarded a contract to Fire Logistics, Inc. to complete a comprehensive risk assessment of Chouteau County and to develop a mitigation plan which provides recommendations for improvements to the county’s fire protection system, mitigation measures for treating the fuels and providing protection to structures. The Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP) is the result of that effort. 3.2.1 Avenues of Community and Public Input – Collaboration Public meetings of the Chouteau County Planning Board, Chouteau County LEPC and the Chouteau County Rural Fire Council were held on October 4, 2005, November 11, 2005, May 8, 2006, June 5, 2006 to discuss the CWPP. The following were discussed in these public meetings: • Mission of the CWPP • Goals of the CWPP • Project identification • Designation of wildland-urban interface areas • Review draft of the CWPP In addition, a draft of the CWPP was placed on Chouteau County’s web site and a press release was placed in the River Press to notify county residents of the ability to review the document and provide comments on the draft CWPP. Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 12 Comments were incorporated into the final version of the Chouteau County CWPP. 3.3. Review of Existing Plans, Studies, Reports, Technical Documents The following documents have been reviewed for data, which may need to be referenced and incorporated in the Chouteau County CWPP: • • • • • • • • • • • • • Wildland Fire Hazard Assessment and Mitigation Plan for the Rocky Boy Indian Reservation; March 2004. Chouteau County Cooperative Fire Management Agreement Chouteau County Growth Policy Plan; 2004. Fort Benton Planning Area Growth Policy; 2004. Public Protection Classification Results – Loma FD; 2004. Public Protection Classification Results – Fort Benton; 1993 Memorandum of Understanding between USFWS – Benton Lake National Wildlife Refuge and Chouteau County Mutual Aid Agreement between Chouteau County, Pondera County, Teton County, Toole County, Liberty County, Glacier County, Judith Basin County and Fergus County. Chouteau County Fire Council Mutual Aid Response Plan; 1993. FY 2005 Annual Operating Plan between the USFS Lewis & Clark NF – Judith Ranger District and Chouteau County Fire Districts; 2005. Advancing Wildland Fire Training for Fire Departments – Implementation Plan; 2006. Subdivision Regulations of Chouteau County; 1997. Chouteau County Development Regulations; 2005. 3.4. Local Jurisdictional Involvement, Approval, Adoption Once the Chouteau County CWPP is reviewed and approved by the Board of County Commissioners, it should be adopted as the fire component of Chouteau County’s Pre-Disaster Mitigation Plan. Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 13 4. Community Description 4.1. General Environmental Conditions Chouteau County is located in north central Montana. It covers just over 3,973 square miles and has a population of about 5,970 people. The county also crosses seven distinct watersheds. Most lands in the county are used for some type of agriculture and as a result, agriculture is the county’s number one industry. The majority of the terrain is relatively flat when compared with the western part of the state and the elevations in the County range from 7,680 feet in the Highwood Mountains to less than 2,300 where the Missouri River exits the County. The county receives approximately 13 inches of rainfall a year in Big Sandy to a high of 29 inches a year in the Highwood Mountains and the adapted ecosystems contain vegetative types and quantities commensurate with soil productivity and available moisture. The Missouri River Break areas of the county are subject to intense lightning storms during the summer months. 4.1.1. Topography, Slope, Aspect, Elevation The main drainages are Missouri River flowing west to east, Teton River flowing from the west to the east, and Marias River flowing northwest to the southeast. Streams of secondary importance are Highwood, Shonkin, Big Sandy and Arrow Creek. The northern portion of the county drains south into the Marias and Missouri Rivers, and the western portion of the county drains into the Teton River, while the southern half of the county drains to the north into the Missouri River. This area north of the Missouri River contains rolling topography with some scattered steep slopes and knobs located in the area of the Rocky Boy Indian Reservation. These are most common in the vicinity of the Centennial Mountain and Bailey Peak. The elevation change north of the Missouri River is about 2500 feet and may contribute to winds associated with wildland fires at night in the County north of the Missouri River. South and west of the Missouri River the terrain is made up of rolling upland plateaus and benches, with moderate deep canyons. The eastern portion of the county is primarily badlands and breaks. Elevation changes are more pronounced and approach 5,000 feet toward the southern boundary of the county in the Highwood Mountains. Along the conifer covered ridges, the slopes fluctuate widely, with some steep pitches approaching 60% plus. Aspect is the direction toward which a slope faces. Because of the topographic nature of Chouteau County, the area north of the Missouri River has a higher representation of southern aspects, whereas south of the Missouri River the terrain is more conducive to all aspects being more or less equally represented. Figure 2 shows the topography of Chouteau County and it is evident that there is some correlation between slope, elevation and vegetative cover types. The pine forest is generally located on higher ground in distinct bands where soil and moisture conditions are conducive to its survival. The ponderosa pine type is usually denser on north and east aspects where the soils can retain moisture somewhat longer then they can on south and west aspects. The tillable lands that can be irrigated are used for hay; grain and root crops while the remaining Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 14 Figure 2 lands are left in a natural state or are in the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP). These CRP lands are source of great concern to government officials in Chouteau County due to their extremely flammable nature and potential for large fire growth. 4.1.2. Meteorology, Climate, Precipitation and Fire Weather Weather directly affects fire behavior, with wind and low humidity values being the major influencing factors due to their ability to rapidly dry fuels and allow fires to grow rapidly. Generally, steering winds at the surface and aloft over central Montana in the spring and summer prevail out of the south to west and are moderate to strong across open areas with lighter winds over hilly or mountain areas. Surface winds vary depending on the method used for developing the winds, elevation, aspect and openness of the local terrain. Southwest and west facing slopes are more exposed to the prevailing winds and have drier fuels, which relates to increased fire behavior activity. Fires generally spread from southwest to northeast. Wind speeds are of great concern for fire fighters and strongly influence all fire activity. Winds are generally caused by one of five methods. The first method is pressure gradient winds. These winds are caused by winds trying to equalize pressure between high and low pressure systems. An example of this is a cold frontal passage accompanied by gusty winds. These winds are typical of open grassy areas found across large portions of northern Chouteau County. A second method for generating winds is by diurnal heating and cooling of the land. These winds are typically found in mountain or hilly areas where daytime upslope and nighttime down slope winds occur. These winds are usually lighter than pressure gradient winds but can be over-ridden by strong pressure gradient winds. The third method of producing wind is by outflow from thunderstorm activity. These winds can be very erratic as well as very gusty and can challenge all wildland fire suppression efforts and lead to fire fighter safety concerns as well as the potential for large wildland fire growth. The fourth method is primarily a winter phenomena with strong to very strong lee slope winds. The fifth method is winds created by elevation cooling of the air mass between the Bears Paw Mountains and the Missouri River creates winds up to 40 miles hours through the night time hours. The normal summer weather pattern for central Montana can best be understood by looking at the larger weather pattern for the entire western United States. The Bermuda High located in the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico makes its way across Texas and New Mexico by July and cuts off a supply of low-level moisture from the Gulf of Mexico to the plains of North America. This cause’s general thunderstorm activity to decrease across central Montana as the low level moisture diminishes. This allows the lower atmosphere to dry with a corresponding lowering of humidity values. This is timed with the development of a high-pressure system that sets up across Montana with subsidence within the high-pressure system that dries the atmosphere. This subsidence does two things; it brings very warm temperatures (95-110) to the area and it significantly lowers the relative humidity values. During this time overnight humidity recovery becomes poor allowing the drying of fuels of all size classes (1 hour, 10 hour, 100 hour, and 1000 hour plus time lag fuels). The 1-100 hours time lag fuels will show evidence of drying within 3-5 days. The 1000 hours fuels will take significantly longer to dry, usually in the 3-5 weeks range. The typical fire season in central Montana is from early spring into the fall or early winter or from March through November. Spring, before green-up, can be a time of large fire growth as dry residual winter cured fuels combined with gusty winds pose a threat of large fires. Moisture in the spring provides for fuel growth and is a time for prescribed fire activity. As the season turns to summer, the amount of moisture from thunderstorms taper off while grasses and shrubs begin to lose their live fuel moisture, down fuels begin to dry, and fire conditions normally peak by late August. As autumn approaches, conditions generally begin to cool and killing frost begins to affect fuels. Dry cold frontal passages become common and can promote conditions of extreme fire behavior especially when accompanied by very strong winds. Late fall conditions in late October and November mark the transition into winter, but again, dry cold frontal passages at this time of year and the lack of snow pack can lead to conditions of rapid fire growth and high intensity fire behavior during wind events. Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 15 Climatic seasonal changes can influence fire behavior as well. Winter months of December through February are generally non-fire months, but snow pack accumulations can be a key factor in potential fire activity for any given fire season. In the last half of the 20th century, spring seasons (April through June) were generally moist months with low fire frequencies. The ignitions that did occur resulted in mostly low intensity fires. Since 1988, the weather patterns have been changing to a warmer and dryer cycle resulting in extended fire seasons; spring months no longer can be counted on as a low fire period of the year. Long-term drought conditions have increased the fire complexity in central Montana and Chouteau County and it is not unusual for significant pre green-up fires to occur in the early spring. Moisture regimes in the spring and summer can be defined in terms of storm tracks, which typically move across the county from southwest to east. The storm track affecting the analysis area starts along the western or southern edges of Chouteau County and tracks northeastward across the county before moving out onto the eastern plains of Montana. Significant moisture associated with these storm tracks will be higher in April and May and will trend downward in June with mainly dry thunderstorms expected in July and August. Thunderstorm activity is possible in September and early October but at a muchreduced rate compared to early spring. Winters have been mild for the past few years with a pronounced drought that affected large portions of the Northern Rockies. Winter and spring snow events have been fewer with less snow accumulating over the mountains with streams and rivers flowing at or near record low levels. In addition, subsurface moisture continued to be short helping to stress vegetation of all types. Bug kill has spread across large portions of the Northern Rockies and forested areas of Chouteau County over the past few drought years providing standing dead fuels for potential large fires. The winter of 2005-2006 continued this trend with warmer than normal conditions along with drier than normal moisture however several spring storm systems in March and April 2006 have provided much needed widespread moisture across large portions of Montana. While this moisture has helped the agriculture community and helped replenish surface and subsurface moisture with near normal streams and reservoirs, the long-term drought continues to pose potential large fire problems in the larger fuel types. The higher elevations in the Highwood Mountains of southern Chouteau County provide the orographic lifting that results in more moisture to this forested area with a corresponding increase in thunderstorm activity. Heavy lightning activity associated with these storms contributes to a significant number of fire starts along the storm’s path especially in late July and August. Dry lightning events increase during this period with these thunderstorms often producing strong down draft winds with little if any rain. These storms can be several miles wide at their bases with lightning expected anywhere within a 40-50 mile radius of the storms. A review of the fire history for Chouteau County for the years 1991-2005 showed the following: 1. Average maximum temperature warmest in July and August. 2. Average wind speed was strongest in winter, early spring and late fall. During the summer winds are light to moderate with the higher winds over open ground and from a westerly direction. Wind gusts during the summer were strongest from thunderstorm outflow winds. 3. August is consistently the driest month with weather records showing poor nighttime relative humidity recovery. During the day light hours the relative humidity begins to drop substantially beginning at 0900 and remains low until 2100. These lows bottom at the lower teens around 1700-1800. In reviewing the weather history, there are also days in August where relative humidity values remained low for multiple twenty-four hour periods. 4. Moisture events did occur in August, but were limited in location, content and duration. The remnants of these events kept the maximum relative humidity high in that particular area for a period of seven days after initiation. 5. Continued drought conditions have begun to modify but have stressed large fuels. 6. Drought stressed conifer stands contributed to large fire spread, where high fire intensities did not allow for aggressive initial attack or fire suppression with ground forces due to safety concerns. Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 16 7. Lightning occurrence usually begins in April with the heaviest occurrence in May and June. Dry Lightning is most prevalent July and August. Tabular conditions of temperature, humidity, precipitation and winds are listed below. Caution should be used with the November data as the sample period is limited. These conditions are more typical of mountain locations while warmer temperatures, lower humidity values and stronger winds can be expected over open areas. Chouteau County Temp Max Avg Min RH Max Avg Min Pcpn Max Avg Min Wind Max Avg Min Mar 57.3 48.6 31 Mar 54.6 37.6 27.1 Mar 1.84 0.44 0.04 Mar 9.2 8 6.6 Years Apr 65.5 58 51.6 Apr 42.9 33 25.5 Apr 3.1 1.2 0.16 Apr 10.4 8.6 7.2 1991-2005 May 74.3 68 59.1 May 58.1 33 15.7 May 4.68 2.1 0.31 May 11.1 9 7.5 Jun 79 76.1 70.4 Jun 43.9 35.2 28 Jun 4.45 2.82 0.58 Jun 10 8.4 7.1 Jul 94 86.3 71.4 Jul 51.4 27.6 13.2 Jul 4.46 1.55 0.03 Jul 8.9 7.6 6.7 Aug 93.8 86.5 76.7 Aug 40 23.8 15.9 Aug 2.99 1.08 0 Aug 9.2 7.8 7.1 Sep 82.4 75.5 68.6 Sep 35.9 27.4 19.7 Sep 1.19 0.63 0.18 Sep 8.9 8 6.8 Oct 69.2 59.7 22.3 Oct 58.7 35.6 24.7 Oct 1.87 0.79 0.45 Oct 9.8 7.8 6.3 Nov 53.5 45.2 29.4 Nov 57.2 44 31.3 Nov 0.97 0.36 0 Nov 9.7 7.3 5.7 4.2. Population, Demographics Population and demographics information was derived from the 2000 Census. The population for Chouteau County was 5,970. The population of Fort Benton is 1,594. In the county the population was spread out with 28.80% under the age of 18, 6.50% from 18 to 24, 24.10% from 25 to 44, 23.10% from 45 to 64, and 17.50% who were 65 years of age or older. While these demographics don’t indicate the population is aging, the demographics of Geraldine and Highwood indicate that the population over the age of 65 is a significant concern. Because of the aging population and the fact that the majority of the county’s younger residents must move away to find work, there is a significant problem in recruiting and retaining volunteer fire fighters for the county fire departments. 4.3. Infrastructure: Roads, Driveways, Utilities, Communication, and Water Supply Highway 87 traverses Chouteau County from the southwest to the northeast. Montana Route 80 is a primary highway that extends southeast from Fort Benton to Stanford. Secondary Highways include Montana 228 that runs south to Highwood, and Montana 223 running to the northwest to Chester. Chouteau County maintains an extensive network of graveled roads that can be utilized to provide access for fire suppression activities. There are access problems along the river corridors, where there is no access or access is limited to ferry crossings or significant travel times are required due to poor direct access routes. Another significant Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 17 problem that fire suppression activities would face with access during the wildfire season is the gumbo road conditions following a rain or thunderstorm event and the subsequent heavy rains. Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad tracks generally follow Highway 87 through the county to Fort Benton and have a significant amount of rail traffic which has the potential to start wildland fires. Large propane tanks are located throughout Chouteau County at ranch and home sites. Electric transmission lines and distribution power lines along with telephone lines and railroad signal lines are concentrated along Highway 87 and local distribution lines to some populated areas. Northwestern Energy, Sun River and Hill County Electric Cooperatives provide electrical power to the county. Qwest, Central Montana Communications, and Triangle Telephone Cooperative provide telephone service to Chouteau County. Cellular phone service is generally available; however, there are areas within the county that do not have cellular phone service. Cellular phone service is provided Verizon, Altel, and Chinook Wireless. There are municipal water systems serving the Towns of Fort Benton, Highwood, Geraldine, Loma and Big Sandy for fire protection purposes. In the County, there is no developed water supply and water tenders must transport fire protection water to the fire scene. Stock ponds and creeks are available at times for a water supply point, but during this extended drought, water is a premium to ranchers. Radio communication for Chouteau County Fire Departments is generally very good except for along the Missouri River Corridor. 4.4. Emergency Services Emergency services within Chouteau County include fire protection, emergency medical services including ambulance transportation, law enforcement, and emergency preparedness. 4.4.1. Fire Protection The Fort Benton Fire Department, Fort Benton Rural Fire District, Geraldine Rural Fire District, Highwood Rural Fire District, Big Sandy Rural Fire District, Carter Fire Department, Knees VFC and the Loma Fire Department provide community structural fire suppression and protection. Wildland fire protection is provided by all of the above fire entities plus the Elim VFC under the direction of the county fire warden with various fire suppression resources throughout the County under the Chouteau County Co-Op plan. The wildland fire apparatus is located strategically throughout the county (See Figure 3 and Fire Station Location Map in Map Section 10.5). Figure 3 Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 18 Big Sandy Fire Department Location Big Sandy Fire Station Engine 111 – Type 1 (1980) Engine 112 – Type 1 (1977) Tanker 1T1 (1981) Engine 161 – Type 6 (1989) Engine 162 – Type 6 (1993) Engine 163 – Type 6 (1974) Engine 164 – Type 6 (1981) Engine 165 – Type 6 (1967) Engine 1491 – Type 6 (1983) Engine 1590 – Type 6 Heavy w/Foam (1990) Ambulance (1998) Ambulance (2003) Rescue – Super Vac (1977) Suburban – Command Vehicle Apparatus Big Sandy Fire Station Big Sandy FD Ambulance Big Sandy Engine 1590 Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 19 Carter Fire Department Location Carter Fire Station 211 – Type 1 Engine 231 – Brush/Tanker 261 – Type 6 Engine Apparatus Carter FD Type 1 Engine Carter FD Water Tender Elim VFC Location Taylor Tadejs 361 – Type 6 Engine 362 -- Type 6 Engine Apparatus Elim VFC Engine 361 Elim VFC Engine 362 Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 20 Knees VFC Location Knees Fire Station 611 – Type 2 Engine 662 – Type 6 Engine DSL Trailer Mounted Pump Apparatus Knees VFD Engine 611 Knees VFD Engine 662 Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 21 Fort Benton Fire Department Location Fort Benton Fire Station Engine 411 – Type 1 Engine 421 – Type 2 Engine 431 – Type 3 Engine 451 – Type 5 Engine 461 – Type 6 DSL 191 – Type 3 Engine with foam Apparatus Fort Benton Rural FD Engine 431 Fort Benton FD Engine 411 DSL 191 – Type 3 Engine with foam Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 22 Geraldine Rural Fire District Location Geraldine Fire Station 521 – City Engine – Type 2 533 – Engine Type 3 562 – Engine Type 6 564 – DNRC Engine Type 6 Ambulance Apparatus Geraldine RFD Engine 533 Geraldine RFD Engine 562 Geraldine RFD Engine 521 DNRC Engine 564 Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 23 Highwood Rural Fire District Location Highwood Fire Station 811 – Type 2 Engine 812 – Water tender 3200 gallons 861 – Type 6 Engine 862 – Type 6 Engine Command & Supply Vehicle Apparatus Highwood RFD Water Tender 812 Highwood RFD Engine 811 Highwood RFD Engine 862 Highwood RFD Command & Supply Vehicle Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 24 Loma VFC Location Loma Fire Station Engine 711 – Type 1 Water Tender 733 – Type 3 Engine 7-1102 – Type 6 Engine 764 – Type 6 Apparatus Loma VFD Engine 711 Loma VFD Engine 7-1102 As a “Coop County,” Chouteau County is required to make a significant commitment to a wildland fire before requesting assistance from Montana DNRC. As part of the county equipment, Chouteau County furnishes water tenders, dozers and motor graders from the County Road & Bridge Department for wildland fire suppression efforts in the county. Chouteau County is within the Northeastern Land Office (NELO) of Montana DNRC’s geographic area. When State assistance is requested the NELO provides additional resources such as air tankers, helicopters, single engine air tankers and crews and overhead. During the fire season these resources may be committed to other incidents and may not be available. Chouteau County Disaster Emergency Services has mutual aid agreements with surrounding counties and these have recently been updated. 4.4.1.1. Fire Engine Pump/Draft Source Sites Water supply sources for wildland fire protection and structural fire protection throughout Chouteau County are relatively scarce. They include rivers, creeks, stock ponds and reservoirs. Due to the longterm drought in Chouteau County, most ranchers would not authorize fire protection entities to utilize their scarce water resources for fire protection. As a result during this extended drought period, water supply sources need to be delivered to the fire, through fire apparatus such as water tenders. There is no map of the water sources in the county. Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 25 4.4.1.2. Training, Certification, and Qualification All incidents require different skill levels of incident management personnel. To assist in assigning appropriate incident commanders to wildland fire incidents, an incident analysis can be used as a guide to identify and mitigate certain complexity and safety issues by selecting a different strategy, tactic, or higher qualifications of incident command personnel. Certain assumptions are made in this analysis: As an incident becomes more complex, the need for more competent incident management personnel, an incident management team or organization increases. To facilitate assembling an efficient and effective organization, key managers should be involved during the early stages of the complexity analysis; this should include federal, state, and local partners. The incident analysis is not a cure-all for the decision process; local fire history, current fire conditions, and management experience must be considered. All wildland fires, regardless of size, must have an assigned Incident Commander (IC). The training, certification and qualifications of the Incident Commander (IC) vary by the type, size and complexity of fire. General guidance is: Type 5 Incident Resources required typically vary from two to six fire fighters The incident is generally contained within the first burning period and often within a few hours after resources arrive on scene. Type 4 Incident Command staff and general staff functions are not activated. Resources vary from a single resource to several resources. The incident is usually limited to one operational period in the control phase. No written incident action plan (IAP) is required. However a documented operational briefing will be completed for all incoming resources (See Briefing Checklist – Incident Response Pocket Guide). Type 3 Incident In-briefings and out-briefings are more formal. Some or all of the command and general staff positions may be activated, usually at the division/group supervisor and/or unit leader level. Type 3 organizations manage initial attack fires with a significant number of resources, an extended attack fire until containment/control is achieved, or an escaped fire until a Type 1 or Type 2 team assumes command. Resources vary from several resources to several task forces or strike teams. The incident may be divided into divisions. The incident may involve multiple operational periods prior to control, which may require a written IAP. A documented operational briefing will be completed for all incoming resources and before each operational period. See Briefing Checklist in Resources Section. Staging areas or an incident base may be used. By completing an Incident Complexity Analysis, a county fire warden can assess the hazards and complexities of an incident and determine the specific incident management positions needed (See Northern Rockies Incident Organizer in Resources Section 10.6). Required training, experience and prerequisites for various wildland fire management positions are contained in PMS 310-1 (Wildland and Prescribed Fire Qualification System Guide). PMS 310-1 has been Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 26 adopted by the Northern Rockies Coordinating Group (NRCG) and, consequently, applies to all wildland fire fighting personnel in the state of Montana and Chouteau County for mobilization outside of the county. Within the County, local standards would apply. Members of the Chouteau County Fire Departments have extensive training and on the ground experience in the wildland fire arena. Over the years, many members of Chouteau County fire organizations have advanced their qualifications to the point where members of the fire organizations are on the MT DNRC County Assistance Team (CAT). This training and experience allows Chouteau County fire organizations to safely and efficiently manage wildland and wildland-urban interface fires for the county. Their experience on the CAT allows representatives of Chouteau County fire organizations to effectively deal with incoming IMT’s when they are deployed in Chouteau County. The level of training of Chouteau County fire organizations allows the Chouteau County fire departments to assist the BLM and the USFS with initial attack efforts on BLM and USFS lands due to occasional shortages of initial attack resources. The County is signatory to an Annual Operating Plan with the Lewis & Clark NF – Judith Ranger District which requires county personnel to meet the PMS 310-1 level of training to fight wildland fire outside their jurisdictions. The United States Fire Administration and the National Fire Protection Association conducted a needs assessment of the fire service in the United States; one of the findings was that only 26% of the fire departments in the US can handle a wildland-urban interface fire affecting 500 acres with local trained personnel. 8 The Chouteau County fire departments are in those very few fire departments in Montana that can manage such an incident. 4.4.2. Law Enforcement The Chouteau County Sheriff’s Department and Fort Benton Police Department provide law enforcement and evacuation services to the city and county. Due to limited resources in the Sheriff’s Department, a significant evacuation during a wildland-urban interface fire will be a challenge. 4.4.3. Emergency Management County emergency preparedness comes under the office of the Chouteau County Disaster and Emergency Services. The Chouteau County DES Coordinator has been and continues to be significantly involved in responding to and mitigating wildland fires in the county. 4.5. Insurance Ratings The insurance premiums that residential and commercial customers pay are based on a rating system established by the Insurance Services Office (ISO). In its evaluation of a community, ISO considers the water system and the fire protection provided by the fire department. The relative weight of the components is: Water Supply 50 Fire Department 40 Fire Dispatch 10 The ISO rating system produces ten different Public Protection Classifications, with Class 1 receiving the most insurance rate recognition and Class 10 receiving no recognition. 9 A split rating such as Class 6/9 & 10 means that a department is rated as a Class 6 within 1,000 feet of a fire hydrant or certified water point, a Class 9 when over a 1,000 feet from a hydrant and within 5 miles of a fire station, and a Class 10 rating applies when the insured is more than 5 road miles from a fire station. 8 8 A Needs Assessment of the U.S. Fire Service, USFS & NFPA, 2002 Fire Protection Handbook, NFPA 1997 Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 27 The majority of Chouteau County currently has an ISO rating of Class 10. However, the county’s fire departments have worked to lower their ISO ratings. Individual fire departments ratings are listed in the following table: Insurance Services Office Ratings of Fire Departments Department Big Sandy Rural Fire District Carter VFC Elim VFC Knees VFC Fort Benton FD Fort Benton RFD Geraldine RFD Highwood RFD Loma FD Rating Class 6/9 Class 9 Class 10 Class 10 Class 6 Class 10 Class 8 Class 7/9 Class 6/9 Improvements to the water delivery system, dispatch and the fire departments could improve the ISO rating for the individual fire protection agencies. This would result in potential annual insurance premium savings to the fire department’s customers, e.g., home and business owners. It is important to note that some insurance companies will not insure structures that are outside of 5 road miles from a fire station. 4.6. Land Use/Development Trends The majority of land use in Chouteau County is agricultural based (See Figure 4 and Land Cover Map in Map Section 10.5). Currently new land development is at a slow pace, however, subdivision development is occurring in Cascade County immediately adjacent to Chouteau County. Early in 2007, a couple of new subdivision’s are proposed in Chouteau County near Highwood. 4.7. Air Quality The State of Montana’s air quality is managed by the Montana State Figure 4 Airshed Group through the Department of Environmental Quality. Chouteau County is located in Airshed 9 (See Figure 5). Generally, open burning is permitted year around in the eastern Montana opening burning zone (Airshed 9 and 10), during December, Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 28 January, and February the DEQ needs to be notified by telephone of agricultural or prescribed wildland open burning. In most cases this approval can be obtained for any proposed open burning in the eastern Montana zone because of good smoke dispersal and the lack of significant air quality issues such as the valley inversions experienced in western Montana. 4.8 Summary The impacts of the elements of the community have on the wildland fire program and the delivery of wildland fire fighting services in Chouteau County is summarized in Table 4.8.1. Figure 5 Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 29 Table 4.8.1 Element Topography, Slope, Aspect, Elevation Meteorology, Climate, Precipitation and Fire Weather Summary of Impact on Chouteau County’s Wildland Fire Program Accessibility Increased rates of spread Accessibility of water Increased number of high fire danger days Increased flammability of fuels Population, Demographics Reduced availability of volunteers Reduced availability of skills and experience Need for increased recruitment and training Need for fire protection planning Infrastructure Fire Protection Reduced accessibility Lack of fire protection Implementation of local government fire protection services Increased damage from structure fires High cost wildland-urban interface fires Fire Engine Pump/Draft Source Sites Training, Certification, and Qualification Accessibility of water Availability of personnel Financial Constraints Mitigate potential liability Law Enforcement Insurance Ratings Land Use/Development Trends Air Quality Capacity to deliver evacuation services, security Operational Cooperation Predictor of service capability Increase or decrease in insurance premiums paid Changing fire protection risk profiles Ability to conduct prescribed burns Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 30 5. Current Fire Environment The following narratives describe the current fire environment in Chouteau County. These perspectives are a result of an on the ground tour conducted by Chouteau County Fire Warden and Fire Logistics, Inc. personnel in October of 2005. 5.1. Wildfire Problem Definition The Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) land and with the change of agricultural practices, i.e. no-till farming, have created a significant wildland fire problem in the vast majority of the county. As stated in Chapter 4, Chouteau County does have areas of forested land. Ponderosa pine and scattered juniper is the dominant conifer through the largest portion of the forested land in the county. However, the areas within the Highwood Mountains contain continuous stands of multi-storied Douglas fir, Lodgepole pine and sub-alpine fir. As will be discussed in the next section, these conifer species is a fire prone ecosystem is subject to repeated wildland fires. The impacts of those frequent fires can be quite variable depending on the values at risk (See Figure 6). Currently, Chouteau County fire departments are responsible for wildland protection on the state and private lands within Chouteau County. The Bureau of Land Management and the United States Forest Service are responsible for providing wildland fire protection on federal lands within Chouteau County. The Rocky Boy Indian Reservation is responsible for wildland fire suppression within the reservation boundaries. Figure 6 An analysis of the placement of wildland engines through out Chouteau County indicates that there are wildland engines generally located throughout the areas of the county where fire occurrence is the highest and where there is a willing host (typically a rancher or resident) who will make a commitment to attending required training and respond to wildland fires in the areas and throughout the county. 5.2. Wildland Urban Interface During the past several fire seasons of 2000 through 2003 it has become evident that wildlandurban interface fire losses have increased throughout the Western United States (See Figure 7). The expectation under the Federal Fire Policy is “that losses will increase in the future.” 10 The wildland-urban interface is defined as the line, area, or zone where structures and other human development meet or intermingle with undeveloped Figure 7 10 Federal Fire Policy, 2001 Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 31 wildland or vegetative fuels. 11 Similar terms are wildland/residential interface and wildland-urban intermix. For the purposes of this CWPP, “the wildland-urban interface is defined as a group of homes and other structures with basic infrastructure and services within or adjacent to Federal land; in which conditions are conducive to a large scale wildfire event; and for which a significant threat to human life or property exists as a result of a wildland fire disturbance event.” 12 From a fire fighter’s perspective there are nine Wildland-Urban Interface "Watchout" Situations that are significant to the safety of wildland fire fighters: Wooden construction and wood shake roofs Poor access and narrow congested one-way roads Inadequate water supply Natural fuels closer than 30 feet to structures Extreme fire behavior Strong winds Need to evacuate the public Structures located in chimneys, box or narrow canyons, or on steep slopes in flashy fuels Inadequate bridge load limits Chouteau County communities that are listed in the Federal Register as “Communities at Risk” from wildland fire include: Geraldine Square Butte Duck Creek Drainage Boxelder Creek There are several additional areas of wildlandurban interface within the county, which have been identified during this planning process (See Figure 8 and Wildland-Urban Interface Area Map in Map Section 10.5). Additional areas of wildland-urban interface in Chouteau County include: Highwood, the Highwood Mountains and associated areas Carter* Fort Benton* Loma* Big Sandy* *At risk from a rangeland or CRP fire. The potential development of portions of southwest Chouteau County into residential lots of varying sizes will contribute to the wildland-urban interface fire problem for the fire protection agencies in the county. This leads to several complex problems, which need to be addressed in the CWPP: Access Asset Protection Zones Water Supply Building Construction Requirements Fuel Reduction On All Ownerships 11 12 Figure 8 Ibid. Healthy Forest Restoration Act Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 32 High costs of wildland fires when the structure protection resources need to be acquired from other areas of the state. Kinds And Types Of Fire Apparatus Required For Fire Protection 5.3. Structure Fire Problem Definition Currently, Fort Benton Fire Department, Geraldine RFD, and Big Sandy RFD have fire protection responsibilities for all structure protection within the incorporated city limits. These departments plus the Highwood RFD, Loma FD, Elim, Knees and Carter VFC’s provide structure protection for structures within the county. Essentially the entire county is covered for structural fire protection and only Elim VFC does not have any structural fire apparatus. The best way to quantify the structure fire problem in the Chouteau County outside of the city limits is to conduct an occupancy risk assessment, which evaluates the severity of a specific structure in relation to the fire districts ability to handle the types and severity of emergencies with that structure. 13 Risk categories used in the Self-Assessment Manual developed by the International Commission on Fire Accreditation are: 14 13 14 Fire and Emergency Service Self-Assessment Manual, Commission on Fire Accreditation International, 6 ed. Ibid th Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 33 Category Description Occupancies classified as maximum risk will be of substantial size and contain a concentration of properties, which present a very high risk of life loss, loss of economic value to the community or large loss damage to property in the event of a fire. These risks impact the need for the fire department to have multiple alarm capability and have an adequate assessment of their ability to concentrate resources. Built-up areas of substantial size with a concentration of property presenting a substantial risk of life loss, severe financial impact on the community or unusual potential damage to property in the event of fire. Built up areas of average size, where the risk of life loss or damage to the property in the event of a fire in a single occupancy is usually limited to the occupants. In certain areas, such as small apartment complexes, the risk of death or injury may be relatively high. The moderate/typical risks are often the greatest factor in determining fire station locations and staffing due to the frequency of emergencies in this category. To assure an equitable response and to provide adequate initial attack/rescue capability to the majority of incidents, the typical risk is often used in determining needed resources. Maximum/Worst Risk High Hazard/Key Risk Moderate/Typical Risk Maximum/Worst Risk Chouteau County fire agencies have similar risks located throughout the county. As demonstrated by the grain elevator fire in Geraldine in 2001, a heavy commitment of mutual aid resources and long duration incidents are required for incidents in these maximum/worst risks. High/Key Risk Moderate/Typical Risk Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 34 The Commission on Fire Accreditation International, Fire and Emergency Service Self-Assessment Manual outlines the needed staffing levels for incidents occurring in the different types of risk occupancies, which are detailed in the following table. 15 Staffing Resources for Risk Type Occupancies. Task Attack Line Search and Rescue Ventilation Back-up-Line Pump Operator Water Supply Utilities Support Command/Safety Forcible Entry Accountability Salvage Overhaul Communication Chief’s Aid Operations Officer Administration Logistics Planning Staging Rehabilitation Sector Officers High-Rise Evacuation Stairwell Support Relief Investigation Maximum/ Worst Risk 4 (16-18*) 4 4 2 1 1 1 2 * 1 * * 1* 1 1 1 * 1 1-4* 10-30* 10* * * High Risk 4 2 2 3 1 1 1 2 Moderate Risk 2 2 2 3 1 1 1 1 Low Risk 2 1 1# 1 1* 1* TOTALS 25-65* 17 13 3-4 # Can often be handled by the first due officer. * At maximum and high-risk fires, additional fire fighting personnel are needed Structural fire suppression whether in a rural environment or in one of our cities requires the accomplishment of the above listed tasks, many of which must occur almost simultaneously to ensure effective and safe operations at the incident scene. To ensure an effective fire fighting force on the scene of significant fires in these kinds of risks, current staffing levels need to be augmented with paid-call fire fighters, volunteers and mutual aid from other fire departments. A principal difference between rural fire departments and their municipal counterparts is that the rural departments must typically solve water supply issues, in addition to fighting the fire. Typical rural departments incorporate water tenders, portable tanks, draft points, etc. into their fire protection strategies for rural areas of Chouteau County. To be minimally effective in controlling a structure fire, the initial responding apparatus should reach the scene of the structural fire before “flashover” occurs. 16 The time from ignition to flashover varies based on the materials involved in the fire, but generally occurs somewhere between 4 and 10 minutes. The following chart illustrates the relationship between the response time or reflex time and flashover and/or 15 16 Fire and Emergency Service Self-Assessment Manual, Commission on Fire Accreditation International, 6 ed. Evaluation & Planning of Public Fire Protection, John Granito th Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 35 critical brain damage in an EMS incident. The Significance of Flashover Pre-Flashover Limited to one room Requires smaller attack streams Search & Rescue is easier Initial assignment can handle Post-Flashover May spread beyond the room of origin Requires more larger attack lines Search and Rescue is difficult Requires additional fire companies For municipal departments in small and medium sized cities, all of the first alarm apparatus will not arrive at the fire scene simultaneously. For the departments in Chouteau County, the typical scenario requires the volunteer fire fighters to be paged, the fire fighters either respond to the station or directly to the incident, if they respond to the station, then they don their personal protective equipment, board the apparatus and respond to the scene of the incident. There is currently a written mutual aid agreement between all of the fire agencies in Chouteau County. In Chouteau County, as in many areas of the country, fire services agencies are now transcending the traditional fire service hierarchy and geopolitical boundaries to meet increased service demands and Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 36 reduce expenditures. 17 5.4. Local Fire Ecology The fire ecology of the forest and grassland habitat types is an integral part of the changing dynamics of the fuel conditions. By understanding fire’s role within these plant communities coupled with the knowledge of the extent of the conservation reserve program (CRP) and potential subdivision development, one can further understand the present day risks. A method of placing various forest and grassland habitats type into fire groups is commonly used to determine response of vegetation to fire and the path certain species take during succession. Fire groups describe the natural role of fire following a sequence from low to high elevation vegetative categories (Fisher, et. al. 1983). They paint an average picture of fire intensities and frequencies, and describe the natural role of fire prior to active fire suppression efforts. Fire groups correlate directly to Pfister’s Habitat Types of Montana (1977), in how they respond to fire disturbance, and are grouped in this analysis based on vegetation similarities. FORESTED ECOLOGY There are a number of conifer species that have adapted to the ecology of Chouteau County, with the most prevalent timber type being ponderosa pine. Douglas fir and lodge pole pine are present in the county, but located predominately in the Highwood Mountains and some scattered northern aspects. The ponderosa pine type is a fire adapted tree species that has developed natural mechanisms to cope with frequent fire. It has a thick corky bark that insulates the tree’s cambium from heat generated by wildland fires. The cambium is the living layer of cells between the bark and the woody portion of the tree stem and is responsible for the growth of both new wood and new bark. Ponderosa pine can be found on isolated dry sites such as those found in Chouteau County. Because of the frequency of lightning storms in the county, it is estimated that fire burned in and under most of the natural pine stands at a 10-20 year interval and less than that in some areas. Because of this frequency fuel loadings were traditionally low in the stands as dead branch wood and needle litter were consumed during these fire events. The fires also tended to thin out patches of heavy regeneration that resulted from good cone crop years and favorable moisture conditions. The fires kept the density of trees lower by selectively killing some of the thinly barked seedlings and smaller individual trees. The trees that did survive had a greater supply of nutrients and water to nourish them and were stronger and healthier. In the absence of the heavy fuel loadings, periodic low intensity fires would have had no significant impacts on the older trees that remained. Since the advent of fire protection, however, the situation has changed considerably. The natural litter occurring from the trees in these stands has accumulated for decades. In most areas there are many more trees per acre then there would have been historically. There are also more situations where continuous fuel exists from the ground to the crowns of mature trees (ladder fuels). This results when too many seedlings survive and, because of intense competition for water and nutrients, form overcrowded pockets of spindly trees. These trees will survive to intermediate heights with many of them bent or broken by snow loads. Today, when a wildland fire occurs it is much more likely to have greater negative consequence. The higher fire intensity caused by a greater amount of fuel, results in an increased amount of heat. This increased heat can have adverse effects on the soil and, subsequently, the productivity of the site. Higher intensity fires are also more difficult to keep away from improvements landowners and fire fighters wish to protect. Most importantly, they increase the risk to fire fighters. 17 Klamath County Fire District No. 1 Deployment Process, 2000 Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 37 Four timber fire groups are represented in Chouteau County: Dry ponderosa pine, Cool Dry Douglas fir, Moist Douglas fir and cool habitats dominated by lodgepole pine. The following will describe the fire ecology of each type and how fire plays a role. Warm, Dry Ponderosa Pine This Group consists of ponderosa pine stands with predominantly grass undergrowth. Dense ponderosa pine understories often develop beneath scattered overstory trees on some Group Two sites. Fires that start in such stands often burn vigorously in the crowns of the understory trees. Consequently, fast spreading, severe fires result despite relatively light down and dead fuel loadings (See Figure 8). Numerous fire history studies conducted in the ponderosa pine forest types throughout the western states have shown fire to have been a frequent event, occurring at intervals from 5 to 25 years in most locations. These low intensity surface fires maintained a more open stand of trees and removed much of the understory helping to prevent the development of a stand destroying crown fire. Successful fire control during the 20th century has undoubtedly affected some Group Two stands. A primary effect is the increased presence of two-storied stands on some sites where the understory is a dense stand of pole-sized or larger trees. When fire control eventually fails in such stands, large, severe fires often result. Figure 9 Cool Dry Douglas fir This group exists on dry sites that are generally too dry for lodgepole pine and too cold for ponderosa pine. Rocky Mountain Juniper, limber pine, and sub-alpine fir can be found as minor species within these stands. This fire group includes big sagebrush, common juniper, wax currant, russet buffaloberry, white spirea, and mountain snowberry (See Figure 10). Downed dead fuel loads for this group average 10 tons/acre. While downed, dead woody fuel loading can, at times, be significant, live fuels are less of a problem, due to the harsh site conditions. This factor plus the usual open nature of these stands results in a low probability of a crown fire. Individual trees will often have branches close to the ground and if sufficient ground fuels are available, torching can occur. The role of fire in this fire group is not well defined. Fire probably occurred less frequently than in the warmer Douglas fir habitat types. Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Figure 10 Page 38 The relatively light fuel load, sparse undergrowth, and generally open nature of the stands would appear to favor a long fire-free interval. However, fire history studies have estimated a fire interval of 35 to 40 years (Arno and Gruell, 1983). Fire plays an important role in favoring ponderosa pine within this group. Without fire, Douglas fir would slowly replace ponderosa pine. Fire’s role in seedbed preparation on most of these fire group sites is confounded by the difficulty of regeneration beyond the seedling stage on these droughty sites because of undergrowth and overstory competition. Where dense regeneration does occur, fire probably played a role as a thinning agent in sapling and pole-sized stands. Ground fire probably maintains many mature stands in an open, park like condition. Many pre-settlement stands were actually scattered groves. Modern fire suppression has allowed these groves to become more dense forest stands. Opportunities for wildland fire use may be limited in some stands in this group, due to the normally sparse fuels. Where sufficient surface fuels exist, prescribed fire can be used to accomplish timber, range and wildlife management objectives. Fire can be used following timber harvest activities to prepare the seedbed and to reduce wildland fire hazards from the harvest related slash. Care needs to be taken in managing the fire intensity when prescribed burning in partial-cut stands. The hazard reduction objective in these situations should be only to remove the fine fuels. Burning under moist conditions is recommended. Moist Douglas fir This group exists at elevations ranging from 4,800 ft. to 7,200 ft. Douglas fir is both the indicated climax species and a vigorous member of seral communities. It is not uncommon for Douglas fir to dominate all stages of succession on these sites. Lodgepole pine is a major seral component in many stands. Whitebark pine is usually well represented at higher elevations (See Figure 11). Shrubs and moist forbs dominate the undergrowth along with pine grass, bear grass, and elk sedge. Common shrubs include ninebark, snowberry, white spirea, oceanspray, blue huckleberry, grouse whortleberry, kinnikinnick, twinflower, and common juniper. Downed dead fuel loads average 13 tons/acre, but can often be much heavier. Fuel conditions will vary according to stand density and species composition. The most hazardous fuel conditions occur in well-stocked stands with dense Douglas fir understories. These stands are usually characterized by relatively large amounts of downed twigs and small branch wood less than 3 inches in diameter beneath partially fallen and standing dead sapling and small pole-sized stems. The absence of a dense understory results in a reduced fire hazard. However, the density of overstory trees and the presence of dead branches near ground level, create ladder fuels leading to crown fire potential under severe burning conditions. Page 39 Figure 11 Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Fuel conditions in stands dominated by lodge pole pine tend to be less hazardous than in stands dominated by Douglas fir. Ladder fuels are much less prevalent, so the probability of fire going from the forest floor to the crown is not as great. The tendency toward overstocking and the subsequent development of dense understories is the main reason for high-hazard fuel conditions in many of these stands. Fuel accumulation due to fire suppression, natural mortality, snow breakage, blow down and insect and disease mortality are at a high level in many stands. Relatively deep duff develops and contains a lot of rotten logs. Fires may often sit and smolder undetected in the duff until burning conditions become favorable for fire spread, resulting in a large acreage being burned. Historically, fire was important as a thinning agent and as a stand replacement agent. Low to moderate severity fires converted dense pole-sized or larger stands to a fairly open condition. Subsequent light burning maintained stands in park like conditions. Severe fires probably occurred in dense, fuel-heavy stands and resulted in stand replacement. Fire’s role as a seedbed-preparing agent is less important in this group than in dry Douglas fir. Fire has a demonstrable effect on wildlife habitat through its effect on food plants. The combination of opening up stands by killing overstory trees, reducing competition by removing understories, and rejuvenation of sprouting plants through top kill, can significantly increase the availability of palatable browse and forage. Fire’s role as a stand replacement agent becomes more pronounced when the natural fire-free interval is increased through fire suppression, unless corresponding fuel reduction occurs. Stands within this group are quite variable depending on site conditions, stand history, and successional stages. Fire management considerations must, therefore, be attuned to this variation. Protection from unwanted fire may be a major fire management consideration in those stands where combinations of live and dead fuels result in severe fire behavior potential. It may be difficult and impractical to abate the fire hazard in such stands except in conjunction with a timber harvest operation. Pre-attack planning coupled with rapid detection and initial attack may be the only reasonable means to deal with this situation until such time as harvest operations can be scheduled. Cool Habitat Types/Lodgepole Pine Fire group 7 contains two groups of habitat types. The first consists of lodgepole pine climax series habitat types that support essentially pure stands of lodgepole pine (See Figure12). The second group consists of those Douglas fir, spruce, and subalpine fir habitat types that, regardless of potential climax species, are usually found in nature supporting lodgepole pine dominated stands. These stands seldom reach a near climax condition. Periodic wildfires seem to recycle the stand before a substantial amount of mature lodgepole pine dies out. Subalpine fir, spruce, Douglas fir and whitebark pine occur in varying amounts with Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Figure 12 Page 40 lodgepole pine in most of these habitat types. Undergrowth in this group often consists of dense mats or layers of grasses or shrubs. The most common graminoid species are pinegrass, bluejoint, and elk sedge. Common shrubs include grouse whortleberry, blue huckleberry, dwarf huckleberry, myrtle whortleberry, twinflower, kinnikinnick, white spirea, bunchberry dogwood, snowberry, common juniper, bitterbrush, buffaloberry, and Oregon grape. The average downed dead woody fuel load in this group is 15 tons/acre, but maximum loads may greatly exceed this value. This group’s fuel load is characterized by relatively large amounts of material 3 inches and larger. Live fuels in this group can be a problem. The primary live fuel consideration is related to the occurrence of dense patches or entire stands of young lodgepole pine with intermingled crowns and lower branches extending down to the surface fuels. When ignited under favorable burning conditions, such stands are can be destroyed in a few minutes. Densely stocked, clean-boled trees characterize many mature stands with large amounts of deadfall on the forest floor. An immediate source of deadfall in a young lodgepole pine stand is the snags created by a previous fire. The role of fire in the seral lodgepole pine forest is almost exclusively as the agent that perpetuates or renews lodgepole pine. Without periodic disturbance, the shade-tolerant species replaces the lodgepole pine because it does not regenerate well on duff or under shaded conditions. Fire interrupts the course of succession and increases the proportion of lodgepole with each burn. Within 50 to 100 years following a severe fire, a lodgepole pine forest will exist even though shrubs and herbaceous cover may become dominant immediately following the burn. Large stand replacement fires play a definite role in the ecology of lodgepole pine forests. The natural range of fire in seral lodgepole pine stands runs from less than 100 years to about 500 years. The interval between any two fires in one area might be only a few years. Recurring cool fires may thin a stand or otherwise rejuvenate it without doing serious damage. Stands greater than 60 to 80 years old, however, become increasingly flammable due to overcrowding. Eventually an ignition sets off a major conflagration. In certain areas such a stand replacement fire can cover thousands of acres. Vast tracts of lodgepole can develop in this way as the serotinous cones open and shower the burn with seeds. The exclusive dominance of lodgepole pine in the lodgepole community types is attributed in a large part to fire for the following reasons: 1. Historic repeated wildfires over large areas may eliminate seed sources of potential shadetolerant competitors. 2. Light ground fires may remove invading shade-tolerant competitors from the understory. 3. Dense stands may prevent regeneration of all conifers for up to 200 years in the absence of disturbance or stand deterioration. 4. Sites may be unfavorable for the establishment of other conifers. The primary fire management consideration in this group’s habitat types is protection from unwanted fire during extended periods of drought and during severe fire weather conditions. Stand replacement fires at such times often crown and become catastrophic, resulting in complete stand mortality. Opportunities for use of prescribed fire are limited in natural stands because of the low heat resistance of lodgepole pine, spruce and subalpine fir. The other problem is that burning during conditions that would allow for low fire intensities, make it difficult to sustain a prescribed fire in these stands. Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 41 RANGELAND ECOLOGY Rangeland and the ecology of the plant species that occupy these sites have their own relationship to wildland fire. The grass species can be a contributor to fire behavior, but can easily be modified through agricultural practices, such as grazing (Bunting, Kilgore, Bushey, 1987). The sagebrush grass range is fairly extensive within the county. Silver Sagebrush is the predominate species. Silvertip Sagebrush dominates areas within the county. It is a noted sprouter but apparently can be controlled by fire in some areas of its range. Other authors refer to Silvertip Sagebrush as an occasional re-sprouter following fire. In some instances it re-sprouts vigorously following spring burns, but fall burns result in greater mortality and low vigor of sprouts. Many species of nature grasses abound within the county. With proper range management practice these grasses provide outstanding grazing opportunities for range animals and wildlife. Areas of grasses that are absent from grazing find that over time they become rank and provide little for forage and present a significant danger from wildfire. 5.5. Hazardous Fuels As displayed in Figure 13 (See Land Cover Map in Map Section 10.5) the continuity of heavy fuels, i.e. Douglas fir, ponderosa pine, subalpine, and lodge pole pine is concentrated in the Highwood Mountains. Scattered stands of ponderosa pine and juniper dominate the wooded coulees interspersed between the agricultural tracts in Chouteau County. There are areas of continuous coniferous fuels covering several thousand acres in size and these are the areas that have the greatest potential for supporting large intense fires. Fires may be terrain driven, plume dominated, or wind driven in this fuel type. Areas of sage and brush species also have potential for large intense fires but they are less likely except under wind driven conditions. There are many thousands of acres of this fuel type in the county. The most common fuel type in Chouteau County is grassland which includes a significant amount of CRP. Some of the CRP land has been enrolled in the program for approximately 20 years. Fires in the grassland type will exhibit significant fire behavior which includes high intensity fire behavior that are not easily controlled. Figure 13 5.5.1. Fire Regime Condition Class To best understand hazardous fuels ranking, a definition system called “vegetative condition class” is one approach to define and interpret the importance of fire frequency in the ecosystem. Current “Condition Class” is defined in realms of departure from the historic fire regime, as determined by the number of missed fire return intervals. Fire has always been a part of the wildland, changing and shaping the structure and composition of vegetation in the area. The five natural (historical) fire regimes are classified based on average number of years between fires (fire frequency) combined with the severity (amount of replacement) of the fire on the dominant overstory vegetation. These five regimes are: I – 0-35 year frequency and low (surface fires most common) to mixed severity (less than 75% of the Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 42 dominant overstory vegetation replaced); II – 0-35 year frequency and high (stand replacement) severity (greater than 75% of the dominant overstory vegetation replaced); III – 35-100+ year frequency and mixed severity (less than 75% of the dominant overstory vegetation replaced); IV – 35-100+ year frequency and high (stand replacement) severity (greater than 75% of the dominant overstory vegetation replaced); V – 200+ year frequency and high (stand replacement) severity. All of the wildland-urban interface areas in the Chouteau County were historically maintained by fire. Because of the predominance of fire dependent tree species on these sites, fire helped maintain them. Low intensity surface fires burned, keeping ground vegetation from becoming ladder fuels. As fire became less of a factor (fire suppression) in maintaining the vegetation in these areas, the vegetation changed. As a result, there are more vegetation and ladder and ground fuels (litter mat and down woody material) that contribute to higher intensity fires than occurred historically. This has increased the risk, hazards and threats to people and human resource values within the wildland-urban interface. Current “Condition Class” is defined in realms of departure from the historic fire regime, as determined by the number of missed fire return intervals. There are three “Condition Classes” that have been developed to categorize the current condition with respect to each of the historic fire regime groups. The following table describes each Condition Class: Fire Regime Condition Class Condition Class 1 Description Within the natural (historical) range of variability of vegetation characteristics; fuel composition; fire frequency, severity and pattern; and other associated disturbances Potential Risks Fire behavior, effects, and other associated disturbances are similar to those that occurred prior to fire exclusion (suppression) and other types of management that do not mimic the natural fire regime and associated vegetation and fuel characteristics. Composition and structure of vegetation and fuels are similar to the natural (historical) regime. Risk of loss of key ecosystem components (e.g. native species, large trees, and soil) are low Condition Class 2 Moderate departure from the natural (historical) regime of vegetation characteristics; fuel composition; fire frequency, severity and pattern; and other associated disturbances High departure from the natural (historical) regime of vegetation characteristics; fuel composition; fire frequency, severity and pattern; and other associated disturbances Fire behavior, effects, and other associated disturbances are moderately departed (more or less severe). Composition and structure of vegetation and fuel are moderately altered. Uncharacteristic conditions range from low to moderate; Risk of loss of key ecosystem components are moderate Fire behavior, effects, and other associated disturbances are highly departed (more or less severe). Composition and structure of vegetation and fuel are highly altered. Uncharacteristic conditions range from moderate to high. Risk of loss of key ecosystem components are high Condition Class 3 The timbered portions of the county can be considered to fall into Condition Classes 2 and 3. Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 43 The areas of grass and brush that are managed for agricultural purposes can be considered class 1. Those areas that are not managed or are held within the CRP programs fall well outside the natural regime for the natural fire cycle and could be considered to fall into Condition Class 2. 5.5.2. Natural Fire Breaks Other than the county’s transportation system, irrigated agricultural uses, and the Missouri River, the Teton River, and the Marias River, there are few breaks in the fuels in Chouteau County. Grazing is probably one of the best fuel management tools available for rancher and in many cases provides an anchor point to initiate wildland fire suppression activities. 5.6. Fire History The fire history for Chouteau County began long before European settlement advanced into Montana. Data from the Tenderfoot D area, as well as some from the greater Yellowstone ecosystem (Barrett 1973, Fire History of Tenderfoot Creek Experimental Forest) indicate that large fires occurred during severe droughts in the early to mid-1600’s. Some of the worst droughts and severe fire years in the Pacific Northwest occurred between the late 1800s and the 1930s. However, fire scar and fire atlas data for the Lewis and Clark National Forest indicate a general decline in large wildland fires beginning as early as the late 1800’s. Fire scar samples suggest that these large fires occurred on an average of every 2 or 3 decades during the pre-European settlement era. Since European settlement began in the county during the late 1800’s, large fire occurrence has been significantly decreased. These changes were the direct result of homesteading and grazing from sheep and cattle modified the fuel complexes to the extent that the sizes of the fires in this ecosystem were reduced significantly. Beginning in the late 1980’s and continuing through 2006, Chouteau County has been under a long-term drought. Due primarily to the drought impact on fuels, the county has experienced a number of significant large wildland fire events. Years of significant fire activity were: 1988, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2002 and 2003. 5.7. Expected Fire Behavior Fire behavior describes the way fires ignite and spread. Topography, fuel conditions, and weather all influence fire behavior and how wildland fires burn in Chouteau County. Fuel is the only factor influencing fire behavior that we have the ability to manage. The following fire behavior assessment shows fire intensities and fire spread rates in different fuel types/models that are found in Chouteau County. It is important to understand this information to determine what areas contribute to the fire problem in the county (See Figure 14 and Behave Fire Model Map in 10.5). The following fuel types/models were used for analyzing potential fire behavior: Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Figure 14 Page 44 Fuel Model 1: Grass that dominated by short grass where very little shrubs or timber is present over less than ⅓rd of the area. The fine, porous, and continuous fuels that have cured or are nearly cured govern fire spread. Fuel Model 2: Grass with open timber overstory that cover ⅓rd to ⅔rd of the area. This model represents the open grass and ponderosa pine and harvested areas where an overstory of timber remains. Fire spread is primarily by a surface fire through the curing or dead grasses with the litter and dead down wood from the open shrub or timber overstory contributing to fire intensity. This fuel model also includes scattered sagebrush within grasslands without ponderosa pine overstory. Fuel Model #4: (This fuel model has more nearly represented the dense, continuous stands of ponderosa pine and Douglas-fir regeneration in this area). Fire intensity and fast-spreading fires involve the foliage and live and dead fine woody material in the crowns of a nearly continuous understory of ponderosa pine and/or Douglas-fir regeneration. Besides flammable foliage, dead woody material in the stands significantly contributes to the fire intensity. A deep litter layer may also hamper suppression efforts. Fuel Model #6: This model represents the area around the Bears Paw Mountains. Fires are carried through the shrub layer where foliage is more flammable than fuel model 5, but requires a wind greater than 8 mph. Fire will fall to the ground without a wind and the shrubs are not as tall as described in fuel model #4. Fuel Model #9: (This fuel model can represent some stands of dense ponderosa pine overstory in our area). Fires run through the surface litter faster than model 8 and have longer flame heights (due to the sometimes dense layer of ponderosa pine needles). Concentrations of dead-down woody material will contribute to possible torching out of trees, spotting, and crowning. Fire behavior calculations for these fuel models were made using the fuels, weather, and topographic conditions prevalent for Chouteau County. One is for normal August fire season conditions, called Average, and one for extreme August fire season conditions, called Extreme. The extreme case also takes into consideration severe drought conditions. These conditions would be present in August and September when all the vegetation has cured and dried. WEATHER The weather that led to the extreme burning conditions in 1988 and 2000 started with drought conditions the previous fall. A low snowpack combined with warm, dry springs and hot, dry summers, led to very low fuel moistures and severe fire seasons during these years. The 1990 fire season was characterized by an extended dry fall. High wind associated with the passage of dry frontal systems added to the spread of the large catastrophic fires of 1988, 1990, and 2000. A repeat of these conditions can and will be experienced when similar weather conditions exist. The following weather parameters were used representing severe August burning conditions in this area. Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 45 Time of Day 1400 – 1700 hours Air Temperature Humidity 20 foot wind speed 80-89 10 – 14% 30 mph* 1700 – 2200 hours 70-79 15 – 19% 20 mph* 2200 – 0200 hours 50-59 20 – 24% 20 mph* 6 mph Mid-flame wind speed 9 mph 6 mph *Wind reduction factor of .3 for partially sheltered stands is used. Critical level fuel moisture inputs for surface fuel models are: One hour time lag dead fuel <1/4 inch diameter Ten hour time lag dead fuel 1/4 to 1 inch dia. One hundred hour dead fuel 1 in. to 3 in. dia. Typical Fuel Moisture Inputs for Critical Fire Weather 1400 – 1700 hours One Hour Fuels Ten Hour Fuels Hundred Hour Fuels Live Woody Fuel Moisture Other inputs are Fuel Model 1 = 0-15 % slope Fuel Model 2 & 4 = 15-30% slope Fuel Model 9 = 30% slope Fuel Shading = 0% Fuel Shading = 45% Fuel Shading = 85% 4% 6% 8% 70% 1700 – 2200 hours 6% 6% 8% 70% 2200 – 0200 hours 6% 7% 8% 70% Fire behavior calculations were made using the BEHAVE Fire Modeling System, Andrews and Chase, USFS, General Technical Report INT-194, for surface fires, and Predicting Behavior and size of Crown Fires in the Northern Rocky Mountains, Rothermel, USFS, General Technical Report INT-438. For Crown Fire Calculations, Rothermel’s models for Drought Summer and Severe Drought-Late Summer were used. These conditions would be present normally after early August during periods of drought when all the vegetation had cured and dried and was available to be consumed by fire. Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 46 FIRE BEHAVIOR PROJECTIONS FOR CRITICAL AUGUST FIRE WEATHER Fuel Model 1 1400 – 1700 Flame Length Fire line Intensity 1700 – 2200 Flame Length Fireline Intensity 2200 – 0200 Flame Length Fireline Intensity 345 chains/hr 4.3 mph 8.6 feet 607 136 chains/hr 1.7 mph 5.4 feet 225 117 chains/hr 1.5 mph 4.9 feet 179 Fuel Model 2 149 chains/hr 1.9 mph 12.8 feet 1,444 66 chains/hr 0.8 mph 8.5 feet 600 60 chains/hr 0.75 mph 8.1 feet 536 Fuel Model 4 245 chains/hr 3.1 mph 35.4 feet 13,241 131 chains/hr 1.6 mph 25.7 feet 6,660 122 chains/hr 1.5 mph 24.4 feet 5,877 Fuel Model 9 29 chains/hr .4 mph 5.4 feet 219 13 chains/hr 0.2 mph 3.5 feet 87 11 chains/hr 0.1 mph 3.2 feet 70 Rate of Spread * Critical fireline intensity and minimum flame length has been estimated for initiation of crown combustion dependent upon height to live crown. Typical height to the live crown base in the area of concern is approximately 5 to 20 feet. Conditions favorable for initiation of a crown fire are estimated at 59 BTU/ft/s fireline intensity and 2.9 foot flame lengths for a height to live crown of 5 feet. For a 20 foot height to live crown, 174 BTU/ft/s fireline intensity and 7.7 foot flame lengths would be required. This would indicate that crown fires could be initiated in all the timbered Fuel Models under the weather conditions described. Once a crown fire is initiated potential fire behavior can be estimated utilizing Rothermel's crown fire models. When spotting is possible, the Probability of Ignition where the firebrand lands must also be considered. Using the air temperature of 80 - 89 F. and a fine fuel moisture of 4%, the Probability of Ignition in Fuel Model 2 is 75%. This means that there is a 75% chance that a firebrand will start a spot fire if it lands in a receptive fuel bed. In most case wildland fires ignite and burn under conditions that are not critical in natural and can be suppressed by wildland fire suppression forces. The following charts provide information that relates to fires burning under “normal” circumstances. Normal means the average or typical August climatic and fuel moistures. These charts are just one of a number of scenarios that can be developed thru the BEHAVE fire behavior modeling process and should only be used as a reference. The following weather parameters were used representing typical August burning conditions in this area. Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 47 Time of Day 1400 – 1700 hours Air Temperature Humidity 20 foot wind speed Mid-flame wind speed 70 – 79 25 – 29% 5 mph* 1.5 mph 1700 – 2200 hours 70-79 25 – 29% 5 mph* 1.5 mph 2200 – 0200 hours 50 -69 30 – 34% Calm Calm *Wind reduction factor of .3 for partially sheltered stands is used. Live Fuel Moisture Inputs for Typical Fire Weather 1400 – 1700 hours One Hour Fuels Ten Hour Fuels Hundred Hour Fuels Live Woody Fuel Moisture 6% 8% 10% 100% 1700 – 2200 hours 8% 8% 10% 100% 2200 – 0200 hours 10% 9% 10% 100% The same slope and fuel shading is used as in the critical fire weather simulation. FIRE BEHAVIOR PROJECTIONS FOR TYPICAL AUGUST FIRE WEATHER Fuel Model 1 1400 – 1700 Flame Length Fire line Intensity 1700 – 2200 Flame Length Fireline Intensity 2200 – 0200 Flame Length Fireline Intensity 12 chains/hr 0.15 mph 1.8 feet 19 3 chains/hr 0.12 mph 1.6 feet 16 3 chains/hr 0.04 mph 0.7 feet 3 Fuel Model 2 11 chains/hr 0.14 mph 3.7 feet 96 5 chains/hr 0.12 mph 3.5 feet 86 5 chains/hr 0.06 mph 2.5 feet 40 Fuel Model 4 22 chains/hr 0.28 mph 11 feet 1,035 8 chains/hr 0.25 mph 10.5 feet 944 8 chains/hr 0.10 mph 6.7 feet 358 Fuel Model 9 3 chains/hr 0.04 mph 1.8 feet 21 2 chains/hr 0.04 mph 1.6 feet 17 2 chains/hr 0.02 mph 1.3 feet 10 Page 48 Rate of Spread Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Normal fire behavior under typical conditions for this area will usually result in wildland fires of low to moderate intensities that can be successfully suppressed. Some of these fires may exhibit torching, short crown fire runs, and spotting during the afternoon burning period. However, large, high-intensity fires exhibit some common characteristics. They normally occur during drought conditions when fuels are cured and very dry and there is continuous source of forest fuels. The prevailing wind usually pushes these fires in a northeasterly direction. These winds are associated with frontal passages. They can be quite strong and are from the south, southwest, and west. This direction of primary spread is very evident with all major fires in the Northwest. High intensity crown fires typically cause long range spotting, burn rapidly both up and down slopes, at times both day and night, and are essentially "uncontrollable". It is this kind of fire that is of most concern to residents and fire fighters in the wildland-urban interface. The following table is the fire behavior interpretations that should be used for the fire behavior outputs. Fire Suppression Interpretations from Flame Length Flame Length < 4 feet Fireline Intensity < 100 BTU/ft/sec Interpretations Fires can generally be attacked at the head or flanks by fire fighters using hand tools. Handline should hold fire. Fires are too intense for direct attack on the head with hand tools. Handline cannot be relied upon to hold the fire. Bulldozers, engines, and retardant drops can be effective. Fires may present serious control problems: torching crowning, and spotting. Control efforts at the head will probably be ineffective. Crowning, spotting and major fire runs are probable. Control efforts at the head of the fire are ineffective. 4 – 8 feet 100 – 500 BTU/ft/sec 8 – 11 feet 500 – 1000 BTU/ft/sec > 11 feet > 1000 BTU/ft/sec Fires are classified according to the fuels they are burning in; ground fires, surface fires, and crown fires. Each burns with different intensities and spread rates depending on fuel, wind, and topography. The transition from a fire burning in the surface fuels on the forest floor to a fire that burns in the crowns of the trees is determined by the amount of available fuel, the fire intensity or flame length, the presence of ladder fuels to carry the fire into the standing trees, and the wind. A fire may start out torching a single tree or small group of trees. When a fire becomes established in the tree crowns, the wind will usually carry the fire in the crowns creating fire intensities that cannot be dealt with by fire suppression forces. Crown fires are normally driven by the wind but the dryness of the fuels and tree crowns can cause what is known as a plume dominated crown fire. Crown fires of this type occur because of dry, explosive, and cumulative drought conditions present in the forest. A plume dominated crown fire does not necessarily need wind to keep it sustained. Because of successful fire suppression efforts for the last 100 years, the increased fuel complex in many areas increases the potential for a plume dominated wildland fire. Spot fires are caused by burning embers carried aloft by the wind and smoke column and dropped ahead of the main fire front. Spot fires need a dry fuel bed to ignite and it is not uncommon for these fires to start ¼ to ¾ of a mile ahead of the main fire front. These spot fires create serious problems for fire suppression Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 49 forces trying to protect lives and property well ahead of an advancing fire front. As spot fires start and gain intensity, they can become as active as the main fire front. This was experienced during the Blaine County Fire in 1991. Some fires travel so quickly through a combination of crowning and spotting that there is absolutely no way for fire suppression forces to gain control. Some of the timber stands in the Highwood’s and on the Rocky Boy Indian Reservation would support a crown fire because of the presence of ladder fuels and heavy, down woody debris on the forest floor of the timber stands. This type of stand replacement fire behavior would need to be associated with an extended drought and an ignition moved by extremely high winds. 5.8 FIRE BEHAVIOR MODELING Three locations were selected for fire behavior modeling. One is located in the eastern side of the county within a portion of CRP (Conservation Reserve Program), the second in the northern portion of the county in the area near the border of the Rocky Boy Indian Reservation and the Bears Paw Mountains and the third involving the Highwood Mountains. Fires were simulated using the topography on site, typical fuel models present, and the most probable weather under these severe burning conditions. Slopes immediately downwind range from 0% to 30%. The values predicted are only approximations, but never the less provide a valuable estimate of fire behavior under comparable conditions. The calculated fire size at 1 hour assumes a continuous fuel bed with constant conditions. Chouteau County has three distinct fire behavior models (a grass model, a brush model and a timber model, each of which can burn at different time of any calendar year. The factors that are similar between the three is a potential to threaten structures and jeopardize the lives of the resident of the county. CRP Fire The first fire behavior run is modeled after the grasses that are grown within the conservation reserve program (CRP) enrolled lands. This fire behavior run will display a fire that is initiated within the agricultural base of the county. Although the fire can occur over a large portion of the county, for this exercise, the fire is located west of Fort Benton near the western boundary of the county. A fire starting on a parcel of CRP ground can potentially burn from the time that the grasses cure and dry until they move out of dormancy in the spring. The main source of fuel for the fire will be those grasses on the CRP parcel. The prevalent winds are southwest. Winds speeds of 20-40 mph are not unusual and can continue for long period of time. Chouteau County can be very dry, so even with fairly low temperatures the relative humidity remains very low. In the grass model this is the second critical factor. With high winds and low relative humilities the CRP fire will quickly move from the southwest to the northeast. Long and short distance spotting will make this fire extremely difficult to control and potentially lethal to those things that lie in its path. Although the elliptical shape of this fire shown on the map seems quite uniform, this fire will be a irregular pattern due to the available fuels (CRP) and scattered parcels of agricultural lands that are being tilled. The fire that will be described in this fuel model will not be the worst case weather scenario, but one that could easily happen during periods of less critical fire weather, but one that will still have significant potential. Assuming a fire starts on a late fall day at approximately 1400 with southwest winds of 30 mph and a using the critical fuel moistures from page 44. A six hour burning period will be used for the fire behavior Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 50 projection and final fire size. A six hour window is used, since the fire behavior will be slowed once the area loses its energy provided by the sun. In most cases, but not all, once the relative humidity rises above 40%, the ability to use direct fire suppression tactics may be employed. Using a 30 mph wind with the critical fuel moistures, this fire potentially could move at a rate of over 200 chains per hour (13,200 feet per hour) and reach a size of 3,506 acres at the end of two hours, 14,033 acres at four hours and 31,576 acres at the end of six hours. These rates of spread typical, but in real life, the broken topography, the scattered parcels of till agricultural lands and potential long distance spotting will have significant affect on the total size of this fire. For these exercise, the elliptical shape of the fire is based on the rates of spread described (See Figure 15 and Behave Fire Modeling Map in Section 10.5). Those structures in front of this fire would certainly be in jeopardy without an adequate asset protection zone (defensible space) and most likely could not be protected due to the size and scope of this event. An evacuation would be started by the Chouteau County Sheriff’s Department. Highwood Fire The Highwood Mountain Range is located in the southeastern side of the county. This mountain range juts up from the prairie surrounding it and is predominantly Douglas fir and lodgepole pine habitat types. th In the late 19 century this mountain range burned completely and regenerated to the mixed conifer stands that exist today. The natural fuel loading within the range is quite slight except where some limited burning has been completed by the Forest Service. The prescribed fires conducted by the Forest Service killed a variety of age class and size class trees. Some and eventually all of these trees will come down and contribute to the natural fuel loading within these project areas. Since these prescribed burn projects areas do not encompass large tracts of ground, their influence on sustained fire behavior will be limited. From forest health perspective, the timber stands are in good shape and these stands will remain healthy until they reach an older age class. Figure 15 The fire that will be modeled will be one that will burn only during periods of sustained drought. This will limit the longer burning window that was described in the CRP Fire example. During period of sustained drought, a fire beginning along the southwestern side of the Highwood Mountains at a lower elevation and pushed by winds of 30 to 40 mph can move a fire off the ground and into a crown fire. The conditions that need to exist that can cause a fire of this nature are: • • • • • • Long term drought that will reduce live fuel moisture to the extent that was displayed during the 1988, 2000 and 2003 fire season. High sustained winds speeds Critical fire weather (single digit relative humidity’s and high temperatures) An ignition located downwind and on a steep slope. A day of very high probability of ignitions Very low humidity recovery Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 51 A fire starting under these conditions would easily transition from a ground fire to a crown fire. A crown fire initiating along the southwestern side of the Highwood’s would move upslope to the northeast. Long distance spotting would cause the fire to move across the entire mountain range. If the critical fire weather continued for a number of days and free burning condition exist, the entire range could be threatened. This could be very similar to the fire that burned most of the range in the late 19th century. If this occurred, this fire would transition from a wind dominated fire to a plume dominated fire that could burn until those conditions cease to exist or the fire runs out of available fuel. Using a 30 mph wind, the rate of spread will be 29 chains/hour (1,914 feet/hour), at 40 mph wind the rate of spread will be 46 chains/hour (3,036 feet/hour), and at 50 mph the rate of spread will be 67 chains/hour (4,422 feet/hour). A fire, starting under critical fuel moisture condition and driven by a 30-50 miles per hour wind, could move across the Highwood Mountains and onto the prairie. A fire burning under these conditions potentially can reach a size of 11,856 acres in a six hour burning window, with sustained winds. This will not be an easy fire to suppress and one that potentially will threaten lives and structures within its path. The Highwood Mountains do have some natural fuel breaks that will modify this fire’s spread, but as th occurred in the late 19 century, they were of little value. The opportunity for fuel and climatic conditions to exist that have the potential for this type of event, are limited, but have occurred three times in the past fifteen years. As time passes and the stands age and reach maturity, the risk of this fire event occurring is greater. Rocky Boy Fire In the east and northeastern corner of Chouteau County is a substantial portion of mixed conifer and sage intermixed with a variety of grasses. The topography in this area of the county is broken terrain with mountainous features. The grass and sage are generally located on the southern high energy exposures. The timber component is scattered along the southern exposures, but dominant on the northern exposures. Grazing has modified the fuel bed and resulting fire behavior. The climatic conditions of the area, are similar to those in the other parts of the county, but the area does include an wind anomaly that can affect night time burning conditions. This fire will begin along the bottom third of a southern exposure and will move to the northeast driven by both the wind and topographical features. The wind will be the primary driver moving the fire into a wind dominant plume. Long distance spotting can be expected into all aspects of the topography. Once the wind subsides, high day time temperatures and low relative humidities may cause those heavy stands of conifers located along the northern aspects to become involved in a stand replacement fire. The Rocky Boy Fire was modeled using fire model 6, since fuel model 4 tends to over predict in this area. Using a 30 mph wind, the rate of spread will be 248 chains/hour (16,368 feet/hour). A fire burning under these conditions can reach a size of 29,509 acres in a six hour burning window, with sustained winds. Summary The fire events described above are not atypical and should be expected and should be used for planning purposes. The overall complexity of any ignition that escapes initial attack or a set of weather and fuel conditions, which indicate the potential for large fire growth, could adversely affect public health and safety, property and resources values requires a coordinated public safety effort in Chouteau County. Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 52 Chouteau County has the potential to experience and has experienced large wildland-urban fires similar to that as illustrated by the BEHAVE run. As a result, the County needs to ensure that a coordinated planning, warning, communication and evacuation system is in place. In addition, the Chouteau County Fire Department staff needs the knowledge, skill and ability to manage a large and complex wildland fire management workload. 5.9. Fire Effects Assessment Wildland fires generally have three possible outcomes on forested areas. They can be lethal, non-lethal or mixed. These outcomes are alluded to in 5.1 Fire Regime Condition Class. A broad definition of each follows: Lethal – Fire is of high enough intensity and long enough duration to cause mortality in all or most of the trees and shrubs in the burned area. This result is likely in a hardwood ecosystem but the exception in a healthy ponderosa pine ecosystem. It can result, however, from severe burning conditions and/or unnaturally high fuel accumulations in the forest. When a lethal fire occurs it will be evident for decades that the area has been burned. Non-lethal – Fire is not of high enough intensity or long enough duration to kill the trees in the burned area. This is a more normal result in a healthy ponderosa pine ecosystem since the trees have adapted to fire by producing a thick bark. This bark protects the tree’s cambium from heat. Within two years of a non-lethal burn almost all evidence of the fire has disappeared. Mixed – Fire will create significant areas of both lethal and non-lethal effects within the burned area. Unless a lethal or mixed fire is experienced, any wildland fire burning in Chouteau County has a much higher probability of negatively impacting human improvements, livestock and forage then it does creating any long term damage to natural resources. While a wind driven, high intensity fire can certainly occur in the county, most fires are expected to be non-lethal or mixed. They may kill pockets of trees in places like draws and steep slopes but many trees will survive. A ponderosa pine can have over 60% of its crown scorched and it can still produce new needles the following year. The most significant natural resource loss from a non-lethal fire may be the short-term loss of forage for livestock. Landowners can reduce the exposure of their buildings, structures and themselves to a spreading fire. Asset protection and fuel modification zones, which may include grazed areas, should be in place around sites needing protection (See Figure 16 and the Wildland-Urban Interface Areas Map in Section 10.5). This is particularly effective on the south and west sides or down slope from such areas since most fires will progress to the north and east or upslope. Exceptions to this general rule can occur when a thunderstorm is in the vicinity of the fire and downdrafts from it cause the fire to spread erratically. Figure 16 It is imperative that any new start be controlled as soon as possible. If a fire goes unattended it will continue to spread making eventual control more labor intensive and probably more difficult as it gets into new fuel sources. It also increases the Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 53 chances of the fire being exposed to some type of severe weather event that can create a dangerous situation for life and property including those of the fire fighters. 5.10. County Fire Complexities Chouteau County has several distinct issues that not only make the wildland fire program complex, but requires very highly skilled fire managers to provide fire leadership and maintain success. The fire issues revolve around the semi arid landscape and poor moisture regime that due to the lack of moisture during any of the four seasons can place the county into a fire season throughout a large share of the year. Many counties in Montana go through periods of long term drought, but few have the extremely arid landscape that even on a good year goes for long period without significant precipitation. The second issue is the significance of wind that is generated from the Rocky Mountain Front Range, which is a part of living in the county, but one that can turn an ignition into a large wildland fire in a very short period of time. The third issue is the size and scale of the county and the scattered numbers of outlying fire stations. Tied with this issue is the significant reduction in number in the population of this rural county and age class of available fire fighting personnel. The fourth issue is the fuel complex that includes fire behavior grass models, brush models, and timber models. The grass and brush models cover the largest part of Chouteau County and are the fuel types that result in the highest number of ignitions. In the grass models, the most challenging fire problem results from the Conservation Reserve Program. This program is an excellent wildlife and soil conservation program, but provides for challenging wildland fire suppression efforts if lands that are enrolled in the CRP program are ignited. These parcels of CRP land are scattered around the county, easily ignited, and could result in extreme fire behavior, especially under windy conditions. Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 54 6. Risk Assessment A fundamental part of any fire plan is identifying what you might lose in a wildland fire, known as assets or values at risk. 6.1. Values at Risk The primary intent of fire protection is to protect the values at risk and maintain healthy forest and grassland ecosystems. The purpose of a successful fire management program is to reduce the risks associated with values that are important to the county, its citizens, and natural resources. Values at risk will be used to assist fire protection agencies in prioritizing mitigation projects. Some of the values at risk in Chouteau County are: Health & Safety – Public & Fire fighters Property, Improvements & Facilities – Private & Public Recreation/Community Impacts – Economic & Social Forest/Ecosystem Health Timber, Grazing, Hay and Grain Crops Cultural and Historic Resources Aesthetics/Scenery 6.1.2. Health and Safety Fire fighter safety should never be compromised. Chouteau County needs to maintain the safety of their fire fighters. Thorough situational awareness on the part of the firefighter and strong incident management by the fire department leadership is critical to the safety of personnel. Wildland fires are capable of moving over significant distances in a short period of time. It is possible that firefighting resources could become trapped during one of these events if they do not maintain a constant situational awareness. Chouteau County has the potential to have a series of multiple wildland fire situations during any fire season. A fire season of this nature could conceivably last for several months. The county fire agencies should work toward expanding their leadership capability so they can deal with simultaneous complex ignitions. In 1997, the “TriData Study: Wildland Firefighter Safety Awareness Study” was commissioned to find ways to improve firefighter safety. Of the 114 recommendations, the #1 recommendation was to “Implement a large-scale, long-range fuel management program.” Fire protection agencies, county officials, and the public must insist on hazardous fuel reduction efforts on a landscape-basis if they are truly serious about improving safety of not only fire fighters but the public in general. 6.1.3. Property, Improvements & Facilities Few wildland fires burn where there is not some threat to homes, ranch out buildings or other structures, fences, power lines, communication sites, or some other type of infrastructure. Since 1990 the National Association of Home Builders estimates that 60% of the new homes built where located in the wildland urban interface. 18 Fuel treatments (asset protection zones) in the immediate area around structures, designed to reduce wildland fire intensity, can dramatically improve their probability of survival. However, 18 Dan Bailey, ICC, personal conversation Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 55 restricting treatments to these areas does little to protect other values-at-risk, some of which may be equally or more important from a neighborhood and/or a community standpoint. One of the largest problems facing wildland protection agencies in Chouteau County is the unwillingness of residents to realistically look at the fire environment in which they live and their failure to correct hazardous fuel situations around their homes and other structures. In lieu of county residents undertaking any kind of hazard abatement actions that would mitigate fire behavior potential, the protection organizations have no choice but to take only such actions that will facilitate orderly evacuation of occupants and will insure the safety of their fire fighters. This will mean writing off some structures where the Incident Commander cannot reasonably expect the apparatus or the fire fighters to safely withstand an oncoming fire front. 6.1.4. Recreation Opportunities to enjoy outdoor recreation activities can also be severely hampered by wildland fire and fires can have an adverse effect on the economy of Chouteau County. Areas can be closed to the public for extended periods of time during high fire danger. Often these closures and restrictions occur in early fall during upland bird and big game hunting seasons when many non-county residents have plans to travel to the area. Recreational activities contribute significantly to the economy of the county, but at the same time unattended campfires in the campgrounds cause impacts to the fire protection system (See Figure 17). 6.1.5. Forest/Ecosystem Health See Section 5.4 Local Fire Ecology. Figure 17 6.1.6. Timber, Grazing Hay and Grain Crops Agriculture and grazing are two of the primary uses on the private lands in Chouteau County. Haying and hay storage, grain fields and croplands are at risk during large wildland fire. During the Blaine County Fire, ranchers affected by the fire were more concerned about the losses to their grazing and hay storage than they were about their homes and improvements on their ranches. The Bureau of Land Management, Fish and Wildlife Service and State of Montana has scattered land holdings within the county and are tasked with providing rangeland and recreation use on those lands. There is some limited potential for timber harvest within the county with some harvests occurring on private ranches. 6.1.7. Cultural and Historic Resources There are cultural and historic resource sites located throughout Chouteau County that need to be protected during fire suppression and fuel reduction activities. 6.1.8. Aesthetics/Scenery Picturesque long-distance vistas especially in the Missouri and Marias River Corridors are a very important Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Figure 18 Page 56 component of the landscape. Wildfires impact the aesthetics of an area, which can further impact the economy of the county by impacting tourism (See Figure 18). 6.2. Risk Estimation As with the federal agencies, the county’s first priority is protection of human life and secondly, personal property. In order to identify the problem areas in Chouteau County a process was developed by Fire Logistics to look at hazard, risk and values in a collective manner (See Figure 19 and Fuel Hazard Model, Risk Model, Values at Risk and Fire Hazard Assessment Model Maps in Map Section 10.5). Fire hazard is the interaction of fuels (vegetation, buildings, and other flammables), topography (fires will burn more intensely on south and west slopes, up slopes, in narrow draws, and on upper slopes), and weather (temperature, wind speed and direction, and humidity). The interaction of these factors affects the rate of spread and the intensity of a wildland fire. Fire risk is the chance that a fire will start in a particular area. Although lightning is an important and leading cause of wildland fires, person caused wildland fire starts are a common source of ignition. The greatest number of human activities with fire starting potential is found close to a home. Common causes of wildland fires include children experimenting with fire, chain saws, grass mowers, debris burning, improper disposal of barbecue coals and ashes, and smoking. Structure fires have the potential to spread into the wildlands. Power lines, agriculture activities, hiking trails, campgrounds, recreational activities and harvesting are other activities or uses that are of high fire risk. Values at risk include life (fire fighters and the public), communities, property, infrastructure, industrial facilities, timber, grazing and natural resources. The first step was to develop a vegetative layer that placed the prevalent cover types into a high, moderate, low or inflammable category. This was overlain with a map of the historical fire occurrence for the county for the past 11 years. This created a good representation of where fires traditionally occur and what their potential for growth would be. The third factor incorporated was the location of structures by parcel. This helped identify where the priorities, in terms of life and property, for protection existed. This composite map gave Fire Logistics a basis for their recommendations to Chouteau County for focusing prevention, protection and fuels modification efforts in the areas where they would be of most benefit. Figure 19 6.2.1. Discussion of Risk Most working ranches have adequate clearing around them to hypothetically protect them from crown fire or a running surface fire. A problem can occur if there is too much clutter or untended vegetation around their structures however, that would allow for a simple surface fire to ignite those structures. Subdivision structures are inherently more vulnerable. People who own them often fail to recognize the relationship between the amount of vegetation around their structures and the threat to that structure from a wildfire. Some are even obstinate about that point and they refuse to remove any vegetation even though its continued presence reduces the probability that their home will survive a wildfire to almost Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 57 zero. Fire fighters must be very careful to look out for their own welfare first when asked to protect a structure where the owner has refused to do any work to enhance that structure’s probability of surviving a wildland fire (See Figure 20). The following list represents current priorities for fire protection within Chouteau County. Ranches, out buildings and town sites threatened from a fast moving CRP fire The Highwood Mountains and associated areas Geraldine Square Butte Duck Creek Drainage Boxelder Creek Bears Paw Figure 20 In looking at the GIS layered map of Chouteau County and the modeled fires, it is apparent why these priorities have been established. These areas are particularly challenging from a protection standpoint because of the lack of some basic amenities such as access, telephone service and a water supply. The response times are also lengthy for wildland fire fighters because of the remoteness of these areas. History has proven the possibility for large wildland fires in this part of the state when enough continuous fuels are available and when certain weather conditions are present. During one of these events, the actions that have been taken beforehand will generally prove to be much more effective than any actions taken during the event. When conditions of extreme fire behavior exist little can be accomplished aside from evacuating people from harms way and keeping fire fighters in safe positions. Any fuel modification efforts that have been completed prior to the event will greatly enhance the firefighter’s efforts to protect property during the event. Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 58 7. Mitigation Strategy -- The Action Plan This Chapter provides the steps that are being taken or should be taken in Chouteau County to reduce the wildland and structure fire threats to public, fire fighters and other values at risk. 7.1. Mitigation Goals An overarching principle of this Community Wildfire Protection Plan is that fire fighter and public safety is the highest priority! The mitigation goals of this Community Wildland Protection Plan are to: • • Identify, designate and map areas of wildland-urban interface in the county. Evaluate, upgrade and/or maintain community wildland and structural fire preparation and response facilities, water supplies, and equipment to suppress and mitigate wildland fire risks with financial assistance through competitive grant program administered by the MT DNRC. Prevent threats to and destruction of property from wildland fire by adopting subdivision regulations, which include access, water supply, asset protection zones, and fire stations. Develop and maintain regulations to ensure asset protection zones are created and maintained around structures and improvements in the county. Educate community members to prepare for and respond to wildland fire and to mitigate wildland fire damage. Improve training and qualifications of fire personnel to more efficiently manage incidents and to effectively interface with incoming Incident Management Teams deployed in the county. Work as a partner to identify, coordinate and implement fuels reduction projects between private landowners, the Lewistown Field Office of the Bureau of Land Management, the Lewis & Clark NF, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, and the Rocky Boy Indian Reservation. Position fire protection agencies, county leaders, rural communities, residents, and forest owners and managers to be better prepared to protect the County’s residents and its natural resources from the potentially devastating impacts of wildland and wildland-urban interface fires. To identify economic development opportunities for fuel reduction enterprises. Decrease the chances of a wildland fire spreading from federal lands onto private lands while, correspondingly, decreasing the risk of a wildland fire spreading from private lands onto federal lands within the county. Reduce wildland fuel loads in and around our neighborhoods and communites, create fuel breaks in appropriate locations in Conservation Reserve Program lands and promote healthy forest and rangeland ecosystems by reduction of hazardous fuels. Implement the Chouteau County CWPP with ongoing monitoring and evaluation • • • • • • • • • • Planning priorities of the CWPP in order of importance are: Protect human health and life Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 59 Protect critical community infrastructure Protect private property Protect natural resources 7.2. Existing Mitigation Efforts The following sections describe the existing mitigation measures that are being utilized in Chouteau County to decrease the risks from wildland or wildland-urban interface fires. Chouteau County and Chouteau County fire agencies should ensure that these efforts are supported and continued. 7.2.1. Fire Protection Response Long travel distances for fire suppression resources are the norm in Chouteau County. The Chouteau County Fire Departments have located the engines and water tenders as strategically as they can throughout the county within the opportunities that exist. Each engine must be hosted, maintained and operated by a willing volunteer, i.e., a rancher. When a fire is reported the Chouteau County fire personnel are notified and they respond on a closest forces concept. They also respond to new ignitions reported on BLM and USFS administered lands. The federal agencies have developed strict requirements for wildland fire fighters including an annual physical fitness-testing requirement. These are the result of a myriad of reviews and investigations of serious incidents that have occurred in wildland firefighting over the years. All Chouteau County FD personnel who are dispatched out of their jurisdiction must meet the same standards as their federal counterparts. 7.3. Coordinated Prevention, Protection Projects, and Response Plan Future efforts in planning and implementation of prevention, mitigation and response projects should be closely coordinated between Chouteau County and their cooperating partners, i.e., BLM, USFS, and the State of Montana. It is likely that some projects would be more effective if implemented on the lands of two or more jurisdictions rather than by a single entity. Cooperation and coordination will also result in avoiding duplicating efforts or overlooking opportunities to protect values at risk. In an effort to reduce new fire starts during periods of very high or extreme fire danger, there is a statewide process for instituting fire restrictions and closures by zone in the Northern Rockies Geographic area (See Figure 21). Chouteau County and its cooperators are coordinated in this process through the Great Falls Division – Central Montana Zone, to ensure close communications and common actions occur during critical periods of fire danger. Figure 21 7.4. Prioritization Process Recommended projects have been prioritized based on the risk estimation in Section 6.2. See 7.6 Prioritized Actions. Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 60 7.5. Recommended Projects and Programs This area describes recommended projects and actions that address the mitigation goals of the Chouteau County CWPP. The funding mechanism for both the State of Montana and BLM is directed toward projects that show collaboration between private, counties, tribes, state and federal partners. 7.5.1 Wildland-Urban Interface Areas Recommended Project 7.5.1.1 – The Chouteau County Board of County Commissioners should esignate the following as wildland-urban interface areas in Chouteau County: Town sites of Big Sandy, Loma, Virgelle, Fort Benton, Carter Highwood, and the Highwood Mountains and associated areas Geraldine Square Butte Duck Creek Drainage Boxelder Creek Project Coordinator – Chouteau County DES Coordinator 7.5.2. Fuel Modification Projects This section addresses specific actions to reduce fuel loads, whether in forests, brush, or grasslands. Recommended Project 7.5.2.1 – Form a collaborative planning group (Fire Safe Council) with the BLM, ranchers, Chouteau County fire agencies, Chouteau County Disaster & Emergency Services, Board of County Commissioners, power companies, BNSF and other cooperators to plan fuel reduction projects on a landscape basis. Project Coordinator – Chouteau County Fire Warden 7.5.2.1. Vegetation Management Sivilcultural treatment of fuels is a technique used to eliminate a portion of the fuels in forested areas. Some of the smaller trees are cut and removed to create more growing space between the larger trees. This basic forestry practice of thinning will usually increase timber values for the landowner by concentrating annual growth in a few larger trees rather than many small trees. Limbing is another technique accomplished by removing the lower branches of trees and like thinning it reduces the ladder fuels that allow a fire to climb from the ground up into the forest canopy. General litter cleanup is the removal of dead and downed woody debris on the forest floor that can contribute significantly to fire behavior, as these fuels tend to be very dry and readily combustible. Recommended Project 7.5.2.1.1 – Reduce the vegetation in those areas within the Highwood Interface Area where the continued presence of the fuels represents a clear potential to generate high fire intensities. Wildland fires burning under high intensities will pose the greatest threat to structures, their inhabitants or fire fighters. The county could start in those areas where fuel modification projects would have the most potential to positively impact the greatest number of people or structures (Farmers Union Camp and adjacent owners). Changing crown density and interrupting the ladder fuel continuity should be highest priority. Fuel modification areas need to be a minimum of 50 feet wide and closer to 100 feet whenever possible. Look for areas of active tree or shrub encroachment where the absence of periodic natural fires has allowed vegetation, like juniper or heavy ponderosa pine regeneration, to survive. Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 61 Eliminating these plants while they are young is relatively inexpensive and over time it will significantly reduce the resistance to control factor for fire fighters when fighting a fire in that area. Project Coordinator – Chouteau County Fire Warden, USFS and BLM Recommended Project 7.5.2.1.2 – Once the fuels in an area have been reduced to an acceptable level it is critical that they not be allowed to return to the condition they were in prior to treatment. Treated areas should be inspected at 5-10 year intervals to determine if they would still be effective during a wildland fire. Most likely they will need some type of follow up maintenance, at that point in time, but this work should require less effort and at a reduced cost from the original treatment. If it is not accomplished periodically the full treatment costs will be required again in 20-30 years. Project Coordinator – Chouteau County Fire Warden, USFS and BLM Recommended Project 7.5.2.1.3 – Develop additional fuel reduction projects around the Highwood Mountains and Square Butte. Project Coordinator – Chouteau County Fire Warden, USFS, BLM, the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation Recommended Project 7.5.2.1.4 – Develop a fuels reduction program jointly with the Rocky Boy Indian Reservation to construct fuel breaks and asset protection zone (defensible space) around improvements on the Indian Reservation. Project Coordinator – Chouteau County Fire Warden, Rocky Boy, and BIA Recommended Project 7.5.2.1.5 – Develop a fuel reduction plan for Round Butte area. Project Coordinator – Chouteau County Fire Warden, USFS, BLM and Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation Recommended Project 7.5.2.1.6 – Identify strategic fuel break locations, throughout the county, along county roads that are either mail routes or school bus routes to break up the continuity of the CRP. The fuel breaks should be constructed as wide as possible along both sides of the county road to provide an opportunity to anchor or suppress a fire in the CRP. Project Coordinator – Chouteau County Fire Council and Chouteau County Fire Warden Recommended Project 7.5.2.1.7 – Develop an educational program to present to the residents of Big Sandy, Loma, Virgelle, Fort Benton, Carter, Highwood, Geraldine and Square Butte to inform them of the risks from a CRP fire and the need to construct asset protection zones (defensible space) around their communities. Project Coordinator – Chouteau County DES Coordinator Recommended Project – 7.5.2.1.8 – Involve the Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation and other interested conservation groups with the IX Ranch and other interested ranchers to implement stewardship fuels projects on their ranch lands. Project Coordinator – Chouteau County Fuels Coordinator Recommended Project – 7.5.2.1.9 – Work with owners of cottonwood river bottoms where an early spring or late fall fire in the river bottoms will threaten Loma or other communities to implement a fuel management prescription that would divide the cottonwood stands into 40 acres blocks separated by plowed lines that are at least 15 feet wide. Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 62 Project Coordinator – Chouteau County Fuels Coordinator 7.5.2.2. Prescribed Burning Prescribed burning—or controlled burning—is a relatively quick and inexpensive way to reduce fuel loads. However, in many situations, especially where there are structures nearby, preparatory work needs to be done to reduce the overall flammability of the site. The county may wish to explore the opportunities for using prescribed fire on private lands especially on the CRP lands within the county. There are some tangible benefits to local ranchers and when they use low to moderate intensity prescribed fire to increase the quantity and palatability of grass on pastures and CRP. It will also set back the encroachment of ponderosa pine unto grasslands where this is a problem. Forage levels have been increased two to four times the pre-burn levels on many sites in Montana and sage has been reduced to about 10 percent of pre-burn levels. One drawback to prescribed fire is that the area to be burned should not be grazed for one season prior to burning and one season after burning. The reasons are to insure enough fine fuels are present on the site to adequately carry the fire during burning and to allow the new and/or rejuvenated grass plants adequate time to develop healthy root systems the following growing season. Several research publications completed by the Intermountain Research Station discuss the types of results that can be expected. One of the greatest benefits to prescribed burning is the training opportunity it provides for the fire fighters. On a wildfire they are often forced to be reactive rather than to plan and execute actions in a more orderly fashion. When conducting a prescribed burn they will be able to observe fire behavior in a non-emergency setting. They will also learn how to effectively ignite the area to be burned and how to deploy the holding forces to make the best use of available skills and equipment. All of this can be accomplished while functioning in the serious but more controlled environment of a prescribed fire. Recommended Project 7.5.2.2.1 – Opportunities may arise from planning efforts to jointly conduct prescribed fire projects. Chouteau County fire agencies should participate in these burns when practical to improve their training, qualifications and experience in wildland fire management. Efforts such as these promote better interagency cooperation and working relationships. Project Coordinator – Chouteau County Fire Warden, USFS and BLM Recommended Project 7.5.2.2.2 – Work with the Chouteau County Weed Department to establish a wash requirement for contractors, local and government apparatus that conduct prescribed burns within the county. Project Coordinator – Chouteau County Weed Department Recommended Project 7.5.2.2.3 – Chouteau County fire agencies and Chouteau County Conservation District conduct a prescribed burning workshop for farmers and ranchers. Project Coordinator – Chouteau County DES & Chouteau County Conservation District 7.5.2.3. Grazing Chouteau County can expect the continued encroachment of fires off of timbered grounds, such as BLM and USFS lands, onto private ownership. Recommended Project 7.5.2.3.1 - Landowners should be encouraged to sustain grass ecosystems through grazing and to control tree encroachment in those areas, particularly where they are adjacent to Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 63 heavily timbered federal lands. Project Coordinator – Chouteau County Conservation District and Chouteau County Fire Warden 7.5.3. Industrial Resource Management Recommended Project 7.5.3.1 – Work with the gas and oil development companies to develop fuel reduction and fire protection measure to ensure that wildland fires do not impact the oil and gas facilities. Project Coordinator – Chouteau County DES Coordinator Recommended Project 7.5.3.2 – Ensure that railroads within the county control the fire hazard along their right-of-way according to Section 69-14-721 MCA. If a fire occurs as a result of an ignition along the railroad right-of-way, the Chouteau County Fire Departments should ensure that a fire investigation occurs to document that the cause and origin of the fire was the railroad and then bill the railroad for suppression costs for all railroad fires. Project Coordinator – Chouteau County Fire Warden 7.5.4. Biomass Utilization Recommended Project 7.5.4.1 – Explore any opportunities to dispose of biomass material on either a profit or break even basis. If there is no market for chips or hog fuel in the area and no possibility of utilization for posts or poles, look at designating a site or sites where material can be safely piled and burned during low fire danger periods. Project Coordinator – Chouteau County DES Coordinator Recommended Project 7.5.4.2 – Explore involving the local RC&D or other economic development agencies within north central Montana to develop companies which might utilize the biomass generated from the fuel reduction projects (See Figure 22). Project Coordinator – Economic Development Groups in Chouteau County 7.5.5. Safety Zones Location of safety zones within some of the Figure 22 subdivisions is probably the best approach to protecting human life during a fast moving fire, especially when residents are faced with the alternative of trying to navigate narrow roads under smoky conditions. Any required clearance work on these identified areas should be accomplished prior to fire season as labor and equipment become available. One important point is to insure that the development of procedures, such as when to occupy them and what should and should not be taken into them, are clearly understood by anyone who may need to use them. Recommended Project 7.5.5.1 – Review the Farmers Union Camp protocols or procedures to determine if safety zones may be necessary considering ingress and egress issues as well as the surrounding fuel type. Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 64 Project Coordinator – Chouteau County Fire Warden 7.5.6. Infrastructure Improvements Improvements to improve local infrastructure are discussed in this section. 7.5.6.1. Water Supply Although water supply is not a direct function of the Chouteau County fire agencies, water supply unquestionably impacts the structure fire suppression performance of the department. Water supply, or lack of water supply, indirectly affects the whole community through the insurance rates they pay. Recommended Project 7.5.6.1.1 – Prepare a strategic water source plan for the county, which shows the most efficient sources of water needed to support wildland firefighting efforts. It may be necessary to develop new sources in some isolated dry locations in order to reduce refill times to an acceptable level. Explore opportunities to use dry hydrants and stored water facilities. GPS the location of water supply points to develop a water supply map for Chouteau County. Project Coordinator – Chouteau County Fuels Coordinator Recommended Project 7.5.6.1.2 – Continue to encourage individuals to develop water sources that can be used by fire protection personnel. Project Coordinator – Chouteau County Fire Warden Recommended Project 7.5.6.1.3 – Work with the design engineers who are developing the Rocky Boy Water System to ensure that the water mains that are supplying water to towns in Chouteau County are engineered and sized to ensure adequate fire flows for the community over and above peak domestic water demand. Project Coordinator – Chouteau County DES Coordinator 7.5.6.2. Utilities Recommended Project 7.5.6.2.1 – The Chouteau County fire agencies should work with Northwest Energy, Hill County and Sun River Electric Cooperatives to ensure that the required clearances are maintained for all electrical transmission lines in the Chouteau County. Project Coordinator – Chouteau County Fire Warden Recommended Project 7.5.6.2.2 – Northwestern Energy and Hill County and Sun River Electric Cooperatives should provide power line safety demonstrations to the Chouteau County fire agencies and subdivision and homeowner associations on a biannual basis. Project Coordinator – Chouteau County Rural Fire Council and Power Company Managers 7.5.6.3. Emergency Response Emergency response to wildland, wildland-urban interface and structure fires includes the placement of stations, apparatus and personnel to meet the needs of the community. Recommended Project 7.5.6.3.1 – All the fire departments should develop a capital improvement plans to Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 65 up-grade fire apparatus and equipment, within Chouteau County Fire Department. Project Coordinators – Chouteau County Fire Warden, Fire Chiefs with assistance of the Board of County Commissioners. Recommended Project 7.5.6.3.2 – The Highwood RFD should immediately de-annex any lands within the rural fire district that are included in the Lewis & Clark NF due to the potential of having a cost-share agreement imposed on the rural fire district from a major wildland fire. Project Coordinator – Board of Trustees of the Highwood RFD Recommended Project 7.5.6.3.3 – Work with the county commissioners to add structural fire apparatus at the Elim VFC. Project Coordinator – Chouteau County Fire Warden, Elim VFC Fire Chief and Chouteau County Commissioners Recommended Project 7.5.6.3.4 – The Chouteau County fire agencies should continue to maintain and enhance the interagency cooperation between the fire departments and MT Department of Natural Resources and Conservation, Rocky Boy Indian Reservation, United States Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management. Project Coordinator – Chouteau County Fire Warden, DNRC Area Manager, L & C NF – Judith Ranger District Fire Management Officer and BLM Fire Management Officer Recommended Project 7.5.6.3.5 – Purchase satellite phones for the agencies that are responsible for emergency services along the Missouri River corridor to insure affirmative communications with the county dispatch center. Project Coordinator – Chouteau County DES Coordinator Recommended Project 7.5.6.3.6 – Develop and provide an educational program that communicates information about the levels of service of the county’s fire protection agencies to the public. Project Coordinator – Chouteau County DES Coordinator 7.5.6.3.1. Fire Stations Recommended Project 7.5.6.3.1.1 – All fire stations should have a well maintained asset protection zone constructed around the fire stations. Project Coordinator – Fire Department Fire Chiefs Recommended Project 7.5.6.3.1.2 -- As subdivisions encroach on the southwest corner of Chouteau County, Highwood RFD is going to have to consider adding an additional fire station to provide adequate fire service to any new developments. Project Coordinators – Highwood RFD, Chouteau County Planning Board, and Board of County Commissioners 7.5.6.3.2. Training, Certification, and Qualification Recommended Project 7.5.3.3.2.1 – Develop a training program which encompasses County Fire Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 66 Wardens, County Sheriff’s, Disaster and Emergency Service officials, Mayors, City Councils and Fire Chiefs, and other government officials, to maintain currency with their fire program to include their roles and responsibilities as government officials. This training would provide the skill level to determine the appropriate level of Incident Management Team (IMT) and the ability to write a delegation of authority to the IMT, which would include the management objectives of the local government for the emergency incident. Project Coordinator – Chouteau County Fire Warden in association with MT County Fire Wardens Association Recommended Project 7.5.3.3.2.2 – Consider adopting the National Wildfire Coordinating Group’s 310-1 or National Fire Protection Association Standard 1051 as the minimum training standard for Chouteau County Fire personnel as a tool to mitigate liability issues. Project Coordinator – Chouteau County Fire Warden and Chouteau County Board of County Commissioners. 7.5.6.3.3. Operational Procedures & Programs Recommended Project 7.5.6.3.3.1 – GPS the perimeters of all fires that are 100 acres or larger and develop a fire history database and maps for the county utilizing GIS. Upgrade GSP units so that they are capable of tracks allowing Chouteau County Fire personnel to map the perimeter of fires larger than 100 acres so that they interface with the county’s GIS program at the Chouteau County Disaster & Emergency Services. Project Coordinator – Chouteau County Fire Warden Recommended Project 7.5.6.3.3.2 – Chouteau County Fire Department should order the County Assistance Team (CAT) as early as possible during an emerging incident to avoid experiencing key overhead shortages and overloading Chouteau County personnel. Project Coordinator – Chouteau County Fire Warden Recommended Project 7.5.6.3.3.3 – The Chouteau County Weed Plan should be amended to require that fire suppression equipment be washed down prior to fire suppression activities to eliminate weed seeds and other noxious species moving into Chouteau County. Project Coordinator – Chouteau County Weed Department with support from the Chouteau County Fire Warden 7.5.6.3.4. Staffing Recommended Project 7.5.6.3.4.1 – Develop a recruiting and retention program for the Chouteau County Fire agencies. Project Coordinator – Chouteau County Rural Fire Council Recommended Project 7.5.6.3.4.2 – Hire a part time fuels/mitigation coordinator to manage the implementation of the mitigation and fuels projects recommended in this CWPP. Project Coordinator – Chouteau County DES Coordinator Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 67 7.5.6.4. Access Recommended Project 7.5.6.4.1 – As road signs are replaced throughout the county, they should be noncombustible reflective road signs that would withstand a wildland fire. Project Coordinator – Chouteau County Road Department and Chouteau County Commissioners Recommended Project 7.5.6.4.2 – Install road name signs that are non-combustible and reflective on all roads that currently do not have signs. Project Coordinator – Chouteau County Road Department 7.5.7. Asset Protection Zone (Defensible Space) One of the single most important mitigating factors to increase the chances for the home’s survival during a wildland-urban interface fire is the creation and maintenance of an asset protection zone (defensible space). An asset protection zone refers to an area around the home where the native vegetation has been modified to reduce the wildland-urban interface fire threat to the home and provides a safe area for fire fighters to work effectively and safely (See Figure 23). Slope and fuels affect the size of the asset protection zone. Homes near steep slopes and in heavy fuels will need to clear additional vegetation to mitigate the effects of the radiant and convective heat currents and flame lengths. The slopes should be planted to native vegetation that is fire resistant. Recommended Project 7.5.7.1 - The National Fire Plan also mandates that local governments develop and adopt local land use plans and ordinances that provide for the maintenance of defensible space and fuel management on 19 municipal and private property. The Chouteau County Commissioners have adopted the Chouteau County Development Regulations, which could be amended to include requirements for asset protection zones (defensible space) and fuel management in designate wildland-urban interface areas (See Asset Protection Zone Guidelines in Resources Section 10.6 of CWPP). Project Coordinator – Chouteau County Fire Warden Figure 23 Recommended Project 7.5.7.2 – The cities of Fort Benton, Big Sandy and Geraldine should ensure that residences adjacent to wildland areas in the communities of Fort Benton, Big Sandy, and Geraldine are provided with adequate asset protection zones. Project Coordinator – Fire Department Fire Chiefs Recommended Project – 7.5.7.3 – Work with the Chouteau County and Big Sandy Conservation Districts to develop an informational brochure to send to the members of the districts about implementing and maintaining asset protection zones (defensible space) around their homes and improvements. 19 See www.westgov.org/wga/initiatives/fire/implem_plan.pdf Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 68 Project Coordinator – Chouteau County Fuels Coordinator 7.5.8. Recommended Building Materials/Fire Wise Construction A home may be vulnerable to a wildland-urban interface fire because of its design, construction and/or location. There are steps a homeowner or developer can take to reduce the chance of home catching fire, or resist further damage if it does catch fire. Recommended Project 7.5.8.1 – Recommend the use of Firewise Construction, Design and Materials 20 and Firewise Construction Checklist 21 to developers and homebuilders. See Resources Section 10.6 of CWPP. Project Coordinator – Chouteau County DES Coordinator 7.5.9. Fire-Resistant Landscaping The landscaping plan of the homeowner is an integral component of the defensible space developed by the homeowner. Each lot should be thought of in terms of four zones, with each zone having a different purpose and emphasis in the overall defensible space concept for the property. Zone A consists of the area from immediately next to the home to a distance of approximately five feet. The primary purpose of this zone is to have the least flammable type of landscaping immediately adjacent to the home to prevent ignition from firebrands and direct flame contact. Zone B lies between five feet and at least 30 feet from the home. This zone provides the critical area where fire fighters can defend the home and where the fuels have been substantially reduced in height and volume. Zone C represents the lot from 30 feet to approximately 60 feet from the structure. This area lies outside the formal landscape area and should be modified as described in the asset zone guidelines, which are attached (See Asset Protection Zone Guidelines in Resources Section 10.6 of CWPP). Zone D is the property perimeter buffer which is 60 feet to the property line for lots 2 ½ acres or less or 60 feet to 200 feet around the perimeter of lots larger than 2.5 acres. This serves as a transition zone where you want to reduce the wildfire rate of spread and intensity, begin bringing the fire from a crown fire into a ground fire so that fire department resources can safely respond. Provisions should be made as each phase is submitted for review to ensure the landscaping plans are reviewed for their appropriateness as a component of the defensible space requirement for the property. Provisions also need to be made by the developer to ensure long-term continuing maintenance for the defensible space surrounding the homes and businesses in the project (See Asset Protection Zone Guidelines in Resources Section 10.6 of the CWPP). 22 Recommended Project 7.5.9.1 – Utilize the Firewise Landscaping Checklist and Fire and Your 23 Landscape, Fire Scaping Resources for Montana Homeowners (See Resources Section 10.6 of the CWPP). 20 21 Firewise Construction, Design and Materials, Stack, Colorado Forest Service www.firewise.org. 22 www.firewise.org 23 Montana Nursery & Landscape Assoc. 2003 Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 69 Project Coordinator – Chouteau County Fire Warden 7.5.10. Evacuation Plan Getting people out of harms way in a fire is critical. This section addresses specific projects designed to move people quickly, safely, and effectively. Recommended Project 7.5.10.1 – Annually update evacuation plans for Highwood Creek area and conduct a tabletop exercise biannually. Project Coordinator – Chouteau County Sheriff & County Disaster & Emergency Services Coordinator 7.5.11. Public Education Educating residents about wildland fire issues is one of the most effective ways to reduce fire hazards, whether that be in K-12 schools, or programs designed for adults. Recommended Project 7.5.11.1 – Sponsor a Firewise Community Program locally within the county for the public and conduct it biannually. Integrate weed and fire management into any public education that is conducted during the Firewise Community Program. Project Coordinator – Chouteau County DES Coordinator Recommended Project 7.5.11.2 – Utilize a program such as the “Living with Fire in Montana” developed by Missoula County Fire Protection Association to educate residents, realtors, fire and government officials about living in a wildland fire environment. Project Coordinator – Chouteau County Fuels Coordinator 7.5.12. Legal Requirements 7.5.12.1. Subdivision Regulations Recommended Project 7.5.12.1.1 – Adopt appropriate subdivision regulations which address the wildland-urban interface (See Model Subdivision Regulations in Resources Section 10.6 of CWPP). Project Coordinator – Chouteau County Board of County Commissioners Recommended Project 7.5.12.1.2 – The county fire warden and fire chiefs need to ensure that wildland fire concerns are addressed in the subdivision review process for any future planned subdivision. The purpose for this input is to avoid creation or perpetuation of any untenable situations, from a fire protection standpoint. Issues such as road systems, water supply, building materials, asset protection zone and covenants covering vegetation management are all of concern to the fire warden and the fire chiefs and they can directly affect his ability to be effective. Project Coordinator – Chouteau County Planning Board and Chouteau County Board of County Commissioners Recommended Project 7.5.12.1.3 – Develop a mechanism to track new development and structures, which are in the wildland-urban interface areas of the county to enable structure fire agencies and Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 70 Chouteau County Fire to pre-plan evacuations and fire attack. Project Coordinator – Chouteau County Fire Warden and Planning Board 7.5.12.2. Agreements, MOU’s & Operating Plans Recommended Project 7.5.12.2.1 – Review all agreements and memorandums of understanding with cooperators. Follow up on those that have not yet been up-dated and insure annual operating plans are completed when specified. Project Coordinator – Chouteau County Fire Warden Recommended Project 7.5.12.2.2 – Develop materials and training programs to ensure that a delegation of authority is properly executed between the appropriate “Authority Having Jurisdiction” and the Type III, II, or I Incident Commanders. Project Coordinator – Chouteau County Fire Warden 7.6. Prioritized Actions, Implementation Timeline Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 71 Recommended Project 7.5.1.1 7.5.2. 7.5.2.1.1 7.5.2.1.2 7.5.2.1.3 7.5.2.1.4 7.5.2.1.5 7.5.2.1.6 7.5.2.1.7 7.5.2.1.8 7.5.2.1.9 7.5.2.2.1 7.5.2.2.2 7.5.2.2.3 7.5.2.3.1 7.5.3.1 7.5.3.2 7.5.4.1 7.5.4.2 7.5.5.1 7.5.6.1.1 7.5.6.1.2 7.5.6.1.3 7.5.6.2.1 7.5.6.2.2 7.5.6.3.1 7.5.6.3.2 7.5.6.3.3 7.5.6.3.4 7.5.6.3.5 Short Term (< 1 Year) X X Medium Term (1-3 Years) Long Term (3+ Years) X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 72 Recommended Project Table (continued) Recommended Project 7.5.6.3.6 7.5.6.3.1.1 7.5.6.3.1.2 7.5.6.3.2.1 7.5.6.3.2.2 7.5.6.3.3.1 7.5.6.3.3.2 7.5.6.3.3.3 7.5.6.3.4.1 7.5.6.3.4.2 7.5.6.4.1 7.5.6.4.2 7.5.7.1 7.5.7.2 7.5.7.3 7.5.8.1 7.5.9.1 7.5.10.1 7.5.11.1 7.5.11.2 7.5.12.1.1 7.5.12.1.2 7.5.12.1.3 7.5.12.2.1 7.5.12.2.2 X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X X Short Term (< 1 Year) Medium Term (1-3 Years) X Long Term (3+ Years) Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 73 8. Plan Monitoring and Review: How to Keep this Plan Active and Up-to-Date 8.1. Timeline (5 years) DMA 2000 requires that plans be updated every five years. This does not mean you have to rewrite it or redo this entire process. Rather, you are required to review your mitigation plan. Recommended projects should be updated as the keeper of the plan becomes aware of new projects that might be implemented to mitigate a wildland fire problem. The prioritized project list should be revised every year based on new data and available dollars. The entire plan should be updated or reviewed on the same cycle as the pre-disaster mitigation plan. 8.2. Incorporation into Local Jurisdictional Plans This plan should be adopted by local Chouteau County and the recommendations be coordinated with planning mechanisms, such as a County Growth Policy and Pre-Disaster Mitigation Plan. Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 74 9. Summary and Conclusions 9.1. Analysis and Findings The complexity of the wildland fire program has significantly changed in Chouteau County over the last 15 years, due the development of wildland-urban interface, long term drought, and changes in the wildland ecosystems. The leadership and the level of fire preparedness within Chouteau County have been able to keep pace with this changing environment through the efforts of the County Fire Warden. The Chouteau County Board of Commissioners need to recognize this effort and also need to be supportive of future needs of the County’s fire forces to further respond to a changing fire environment and the associated public safety risks. In the recommended projects and programs section of this report, Section 7.5, significant changes are recommended. Funding for many of these suggested projects and programs can be obtained through the National Fire Plan and FEMA grant programs. The Chouteau County Board of Commissioners is strongly encouraged to utilize a grant writer to increase the wildland fire suppression, public education, training and qualifications capability of the Chouteau County and Chouteau County Fire Departments. Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 75 10. Appendices 10.1. Bibliography We relied heavily on the following in preparation of this document: Agee, James K. 1993. Fire Ecology of Pacific Northwest Forests, Island Press. Alachua County, FL, General Plan, 2002 Applegate Fire Plan (Balancing Act, Living with Fire in the Applegate), 2002. Big Sky Fire Planning Committee, Big Sky Fire Management Strategies. 2000. Bitterroot Valley Wildland Fire Risk Mitigation Plan. 2003 Bradford, George. 2001. Structure Protection in the I-Zone. Fire Engineering. California Community Fire Plan Workgroup, Community Fire Plan Template Outline. 2003 Colorado Springs Fire Department, Wildfire Mitigation Plan. 2001. Communities Committee, et.al. 2004. Preparing a Community Wildfire Protection Plan – A Handbook for Wildland-Urban Interface Communities. County of Marin: Fire Department – Fire Management Plan Dolores County, CO, Dolores County Community Fire Plan Dougherty, Page. Wildfire Mitigation. Building Safety Journal. March-April 2004. 4 pages. Federal Emergency Management Agency. 2004. At Home in the Woods – Lessons Learned in the Wildland/Urban Interface. Firewise Communities, et. al. 2003. Firewise in 5 Minutes. Fischer, William C. and Bruce D. Clayton. 1983. Fire ecology of Montana forest habitat types east of the Continental Divide. USDA Forest Service Gen. Tech. Rep. INT-141. Intermountain Forest and Range Experiment Station, Ogden, UT. 83 pages. Front Range Roundtable. 2006. Living with Fire: Protecting Communities and Restoring Forests. Grant County Wildland Urban Interface Fire Mitigation Plan, September, 2002. Gruell, George E,; Schmidt, Wyman C,; Aron, Stephen.; Reich, William J. Seventy years of vegetative change in a managed ponderosa pine forest in western Montana—implications for resource management. Gen. Tech. Rep. INT-130. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Intermountain Forest and Range Experiment Station; 1982. 42 pages. High Country News Special Report. Fire in the West. Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 76 International Association of Fire Chiefs; Western Fire Chiefs Association. 1996. Development Strategies in the Wildland/Urban Interface. International Associations of Fire Chiefs; National Association of State Foresters; and The Wilderness Society. 2005. Community Wildfire Protection Plans – Leaders Guide Supplement. International Code Council. 2006. International Wildland Urban Interface Code. Institute for Business & Home Safety. Is Your Home Protected from Wildfire Disaster? A Homeowner’s Guide to Wildfire Retrofit. Insurance Services Office, Inc. Fire Suppression Rating Schedule. 08-98 ed. Insurance Services Office, Inc. 1997. The Wildland/Urban Fire Hazard. ISO Insurance Issues Series. Lower Mattole Fire Plan, 2002 Moore, H. E. Protecting Residences from Wildfire: A Guide for Homeowners, Lawmakers, and Planners. USDA Forest Service General Technical Report PSW-50. 1981. Mutch, Robert W. 2006. The FACES: Victims of Southern California’s 2003 Fire Siege, Lives Lost – Lessons Learned. MT Dept. of Justice - Fire Prevention and Investigation Bureau; MT Dept. of State Lands - Fire Management Bureau. 1993. Fire Protection Guidelines for Wildland Residential Interface Development. MT Dept. of State Lands. 1993. Fire Risk Rating: For Existing and Planned Wildland Residential Interface Developments in Montana. National Association of Conservation Districts. 2002. Conservation Districts’ Role in Implementing the National Fire Plan. National Fire Protection Association. 1997. Fire Protection Handbook. National Wildland/Urban Interface Fire Protection Program. 1997. Firewise Construction. National Wildland/Urban Interface Fire Protection Program. 1997. Firewise Landscaping. National Wildland/Urban Interface Fire Protection Program. 1997. Wildland/Urban Interface Fire Hazard Assessment Methodology. Office of Community Services – Fort Lewis College. 2002. La Plata County Community Fire Plan Resource Concepts Inc. 2002. Virginia Highlands Fire Safe Plan. Resource Innovations. 2004. A Framework for Community Fire Plans. Institute for a Sustainable Environment. University of Oregon. Resource Innovations. 2005. A Guide to Coordinating a Neighborhood Fuels-Reduction Project. Institute for a Sustainable Environment. University of Oregon San Juan County, CO. Community Fire Plan Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 77 Schwab, James; Meck, Staurt; and Simone, Jamie. 2005. Planning for Wildfires. American Planning Association. Report Number 529-530. 124 p. Seeley-Swan Fire Plan, 2004 Smalley, James C. (ed.) 2005. Protecting Life and Property from Wildfire. National Fire Protection Association. Stack, Peter. Firewise Construction – Design and Materials. Colorado State Forest Service. The Anchor Point Group, 2002. Wildfire Hazard – Values at Risk Analysis. The Genesee Foundation. The following National Fire Protection Associations Standards: NFPA 1 – Uniform Fire Code. National Fire Protection Association, 2006. NFPA 1144 – Standard for Protection of Life and Property from Wildfire, National Fire Protection Association. 2002. NFPA 1141 – Standard for Fire Protection in Planned Building Groups, National Fire Protection Association. 2003. NFPA 1142 – Standard on Water Supplies for Suburban and Rural Fire Fighting, National Fire Protection Association. 2007. NFPA 1143 – Standard for Wildland Fire Management. National Fire Protection Association. 2003. NFPA 1720 – Standard for the Organization and Deployment of Fire Suppression Operations, Emergency Medical Operations, and Special Operations to the Public by Volunteer Fire Departments. National Fire Protection Association. 2004. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service. Good Fire, Bad Fire. Rocky Mountain Research Station, Fort Collins, CO. U.S. Department of Agriculture; United States Forest Service; Department of Interior; Bureau of Land Management. 2003. Interagency Standards for Fire and Fire Aviation Operations. Weaver, Harold. Fire and its relationship to ponderosa pine. Proc. Tall Timbers fire Ecology Conference. 7: 127-149; 1967 Weaver, Harold. Ecological changes in the ponderosa pine forest on the Warm Springs Indian Reservation in Oregon. J.For. 57: 15-20; 1959. www.co.chouteau.mt.us www.firewise.org www.fireplan.gov www.westgov.org/wga/initiatives/fire www.wikipedia.org Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 78 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 10.2. Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology PREFACE The glossary contains definitions of terms used in the Fire Logistics, Inc. applications. 6 MINUTES FOR SAFETY: A daily safety briefing for wildland fire that focuses on high-risk events found within a firefighter’s scope of work that are performed on an infrequent basis. -AABORT: Abort means to jettison a load of water or retardant from an aircraft. ABOVE GROUND LEVEL (AGL): A term frequently used in aviation operations, usually in connection with a stated attitude. ACCELERANT: Material (usually a flammable liquid) used to initiate or increase the spread of a fire. ACCEPTABLE FIRE RISK: The potential fire loss a community is willing to accept rather than to provide resources to reduce such losses. ACTIVE CROWN FIRE: A fire in which a solid flame develops in crowns of trees, but the surface of crown phases advance as a linked unit dependent on each other. ACTIVITY FUELS: Fuels resulting from, or altered by, forestry practices such as timber harvest or thinning, as opposed to naturally created fuels. AERIAL DETECTION: A system for, or the acting of discovering, locating, and reporting fires from aircraft. ACTION PLAN: (See Incident Action Plan.) AERIAL FUELS: Standing and supported live and dead combustibles not in direct contact with the ground and consisting mainly of foliage, twigs, branches, stems, cones, bark and vines. AERIAL IGNITION: Aerial Ignition is the process of dropping or dispensing incendiary devices or materials from an aircraft. Page 79 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 AERIAL OBSERVER: A person specifically assigned to discover, locate and report wildland fires from an aircraft and to observe and describe fire conditions at the scene. AERIAL RECONNAISSANCE: Use of aircraft for detecting fire behavior, values-at-risk, suppression activity, and other critical factors to facilitate command decisions on strategy and tactics needed for fire suppression. AFFIDAVIT SYSTEM: A system where private lands, which are not included in a Forest Fire Protection District, and which the landowner has agreed to pay a standard fee through the county tax basis system for wildland fire protection by the recognized protection agency. AFTER ACTION REVIEW (AAR): A professional discussion of an event focused on performance standards and enables Agency Administrators and firefighters to discover for themselves what happened, why it happened, and how to sustain strengths and improve on weaknesses. An After Action Review is a tool that incident command personnel and units can use to get maximum benefits from every incident. It provides a daily review of the day’s actions: Identify and discuss effective and non-effective performance. Candid insights into effective firefighter, leader and unit strengths and weaknesses from various perspectives. Feedback and insights to critical actions that were not standard operating procedures, or those that presented safety problems. Lessons learned and how to apply them in the future. AGENCY: An agency is a division of government (e.g., federal, state, or county) with a specific function, or a non-governmental organization (e.g., private contractor, business, etc.) that offers a particular kind of assistance. In ICS, agencies are defined as jurisdictional (having statutory responsibility for incident mitigation) or assisting and/or cooperating (providing resources and/or assistance). (See Assisting Agency, Cooperating Agency, and Multi-agency.) AGENCY DISPATCH: Agency Dispatch is the agency or jurisdictional facility from which resources are allocated to incidents. AGENCY EXECUTIVE OR ADMINISTRATOR: Line Officer (or designee) of the agency or jurisdiction that has responsibility for the incident. AGENCY REPRESENTATIVE: This ICS position serves as the point of contact for an assisting or cooperating agency, which has been delegated authority to make decisions on matters affecting that agency’s participation at the incident and reports to the Liaison Officer. Page 80 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 AIR AMBULANCE: A rotary winged aircraft configured, staffed and equipped to respond, care for and transport a patient(s) and approved/licensed by a state to do so. An air ambulance is sometimes referred to as a medevac. AIR ATTACK: The deployment of fixed-wing or rotary aircraft on a wildfire, to drop retardant or extinguishing agents, shuttle and deploy crews and supplies, or perform aerial reconnaissance of the overall fire situation. AIR OPERATIONS BRANCH DIRECTOR: The Air Operations Branch Director is primarily responsible for preparing and implementing the air operations portion of the Incident Action Plan. Also, the director is responsible for providing logistical support to helicopters operating on the incident. AIR TANKER: A fixed-wing aircraft equipped to drop fire retardants or suppressants. ALL RISK: Any incident or event, natural or human-caused that warrants action to protect life, property, environment, public health or safety and minimize disruption of government, social or economic activities. ALL TERRAIN VEHICLE (ATV): Any motorized vehicle designed for or capable of cross-country travel on or immediately over land, water, snow, ice, marsh, swampland, or other terrain. ALLEGATORING: Char patterns formed on paint or burned wood remains, usually in the shape of blisters. ALLOCATED RESOURCES: Resources dispatched to an incident. AMBIENT AIR: Air of the surrounding environment. ANCHOR POINT: The Anchor Point is an advantageous location, generally a fire barrier, from which to start constructing a fire line. An anchor point is used to minimize the chance of being out flanked by the fire while the line is being constructed. ANNUAL PLANT: A plant that lives for one growing season, starting from a seed each year. APPARATUS: A motor driven vehicle, or group of vehicles, designed and constructed for the purpose of fighting fires. May be of different types such as engines, water tenders, ladder trucks, etc. Page 81 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 APPROPRIATE MANAGEMENT RESPONSE (AMR): Any specific action suitable to meet Fire Management Unit (FMU) objectives. Typically the AMR ranges across a spectrum of tactical options (from monitoring to intensive management actions). The AMR is developed by using Fire Management Unit strategies and objectives identified in the Fire Management Plan. ARAMID: Aramid is the generic name for a high-strength, flame-resistant synthetic fabric, used in the shirts and jeans of firefighters. Nomex, a brand name for Aramid fabric, is the term commonly used by firefighters. AREA COMMAND: An organization established to: 1) oversee the management of multiple incidents that are each being handled by an Incident Command System organization; or 2) to oversee the management of a very large incident that has multiple Incident Management Teams assigned to it. Area Command has the responsibility to set overall strategy and priorities, allocate critical resources based on priorities, ensure that incidents are properly managed, and ensure that objectives are met and strategies followed. AREA COMMANDER: The ICS position responsible for the overall direction of the incident management teams assigned to the same incident or incidents in close proximity managed under Area Command. Position responsibilities include ensuring that conflicts are resolved, compatible incident objectives are established, and strategies are selected for the use of critical resources among assigned incident management teams. AREA IGNITION: Ignition of several individual fires throughout an area, either simultaneously or in rapid succession, and in so spaced that they add to and influence the main body of the fire to produce a hot, fast-spreading fire condition. Also called simultaneous ignition. ARSON: At common law, the malicious and willful burning of another’s dwelling, outhouse or parcel; by most modern statutes, the intentional and wrongful burning of someone else’s, or one’s own property. Frequently requires the proof of malicious or wrongful intent. ARSON FIRE: A wildfire willfully ignited by anyone to burn, or spread to, vegetation or property without consent of the owner or his/her agent. ASPECT: Aspect is the direction toward which a slope faces. ASSET PROTECTION ZONE: An area either natural or manmade where material capable of causing a fire to spread has been treated, cleared, reduced, or changed to act as a barrier between an advancing wildland fire and the loss to life, property, or resources, in practice, an “asset protection zone” is defined as an area a minimum of 30 feet around a structure that is cleared of flammable brush or vegetation. Page 82 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 ASSIGNED RESOURCES: Resources checked in and assigned work tasks on an incident. ASSIGNMENTS: Tasks given to resources to perform within a given operational period, based upon tactical objectives in the Incident Action Plan. ASSISTANT: Assistant is the title used for subordinates of the Command Staff positions. The title indicates a level of technical capability, qualifications, and responsibility subordinate to the primary positions. Assistants may also be used to supervise unit activities at camps. ASSISTING AGENCY: An Assisting agency is the agency directly contributing tactical or service resources to another agency. ATMOSPHERIC INVERSION: 1 Departure from the usual increase or decrease with altitude of the value of an atmospheric property (in fire management usage, nearly always refers to an increase in temperature with an increasing height). The layer through which this departure occurs (also called inversion layer). The lowest altitude at which the departure is found is called the base of the inversion. 2 ATMOSPHERIC STABILITIY: The degree to which vertical motion in the atmosphere is enhanced or suppressed. Vertical motions and pollution dispersion are enhanced in an unstable atmosphere. Thunderstorms and active fire conditions are common in unstable atmospheric conditions. Stability suppression vertical motion and limits pollution dispersion. ATTACK A FIRE: Limit the spread of fire by any appropriate means. AUTOMATIC AID: A plan developed between two or more fire departments for immediate joint response on first alarms, which includes a pre-determined response of personnel and equipment. AVAILABLE RESOURCES: Available Resources are the Incident-based resources, which are ready for deployment. AVERAGE ANNUAL PRECIPITATION: The expected amount of average rainfall. Average annual precipitation is an important component to determining the Keech-Bryam Drought Index (KBDI). Page 83 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 -BBACKBURN: Used in some localities to specify fire set to spread against the wind in prescribed burning. BACKFIRE: A tactic associated with indirect attack. Intentionally setting a fire along the inner edge of a fire line, to consume the fuel in the path of a wildfire and/or change the direction of force of the fire’s convection column. Most often used to contain a rapidly spreading fire. Backfiring provides a wide defense perimeter, and may be further employed to change the force of the convection column. Backfiring is a tactic, which makes possible a strategy of locating and control lines at places where the fire can be fought on the firefighter’s terms. Except for rare circumstances meeting specified criteria, backfiring is executed on a command decision mad through line channels of authority. See “Burning Out” for difference. BACKING FIRE: Fire spreading, or ignited to spread, into (against) the wind and/or down slope. A fire spreading on level ground in the absence of wind is a backing fire. That portion of the fire with slower rates of fire spread and lower intensity normally moving into the wind and/or down-slope. Also called: Heel Fire. BACKPACK PUMP: A portable sprayer with hand-pump, fed from a liquid-filled container fitted with straps, used mainly in fire and pest control. (See also “Bladder Bag”) BAMBI BUCKET: A collapsible bucket slung below a helicopter used to dip water form a variety of sources or fire suppression. BASE: The Base is the location at which primary logistics functions for an incident are coordinated and administered. There is only one Base per incident. (Incident name or other designator will be added to the term Base.) The Incident Command Post may be collocated with the Base. BEHAVE: A system of interactive computer programs for modeling fuel and fire behavior that consists of two systems: BURN and FUEL. BELT WEATHER KIT: Belt-mounted case with pockets fitted with anemometer, compass, sling psychrometer, slide rule, water bottle, pencils, and a book of weather report forms. Used to take weather observations to provide on-site conditions to the fire weather forecaster or fire behavior analyst. Observations include air temperature, wind speed and direction, and relative humidity. Page 84 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 BERM: In fire suppression, a backline denotes a condition where there is no unburned material between the line and the fire edge. BLACKLINE: In fire suppression, a backline denotes a condition where there is no unburned material between the line and the fire edge. BLADDER BAG: A collapsible backpack portable sprayer made of neoprene or high-strength nylon fabric fitted with a pump. (See also “Backpack Pump”) BLOW DOWN: An area of previously standing timber, which has been blown over by strong winds or storms. BLOW-UP: A sudden increase in fire intensity or rate of spread strong enough to prevent direct control or to upset control plans. Blow-ups are often accompanied by violent convection and my have other characteristics of a firestorm. (See “Flare-Up”) BOX CANYON: A steep sided dead-end canyon. BRANCH: Branch is the organizational level having functional or geographic responsibility for major parts of incident operations. The Branch level is organizationally between Section and Division/Group in the Operations Section, and between Section and Units in the Logistics Section. Branches are identified by the use of Roman Numerals or by functional name (e.g., medical, security, etc.). BROADCAST BURNING: Prescribed burning activity where fire is applied generally to most or all of an area within well-defined boundaries for reduction of fuel hazard, as a resource management treatment, or both. BRUSH: A collective term that refers to stands of vegetation dominated by shrubby, woody plants, or low growing trees, usually of a type undesirable for livestock or timber management. BRUSH BLADE: A blade attachment with long teeth specially suited to ripping and piling brush with minimum inclusion of soil. Also called brush rake or root rake. BRUSH FIRE: A fire burning in vegetation that is predominantly shrubs, brush and scrub growth. Page 85 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 BRUSH MANAGEMENT: Manipulation of brush by manual, mechanical, chemical, or biological means or by prescribed burning for the purpose of achieving land management objectives. BUCKET: Any device suspended by cables from a helicopter designed to contain and drop retardant or water onto a fire. BUCKET DROP: A Bucket Drop is the dropping of fire retardants or suppressants from specially designed buckets slung below a helicopter. BUFFER ZONE: A Buffer zone is an area of reduced vegetation that separates wildland from vulnerable residential or business developments. This barrier is similar to a greenbelt in that it is usually used for another purpose such as agriculture, recreation areas, parks, or golf courses. BUMP-UP METHOD: The Bump-up Method is a progressive method of building a fire line on a wildfire without changing relative positions in the line. Work is begun with a suitable space between workers. Whenever one worker overtakes another, all workers ahead move one space forward and resume work on the uncompleted part of the line. The last worker does not move ahead until completing his or her space. BURN BOSS: The person responsible for supervision a prescribed fire through ignition to mop-up. BURNING OUT: When attack is direct, intentionally setting a fire inside a control line to widen it or consume fuel between the edge of the fire and the control line to strengthen the line. “Burning Out” is almost always done as part of line construction; the control line is considered incomplete unless there is no fuel between the fire and the line. (See “Backfiring” for difference) BURNING BAN: A declared ban on open air burning within a specified area, usually due to sustained high fire danger. BURNING CONDITIONS: Burning Conditions is the state of the combined factors of the environment that affect fire behavior in a specified fuel type. BURNING INDEX: An estimate of the potential difficulty of fire containment as it relates to the flame length at the most rapidly spreading portion of a fire’s perimeter. Page 86 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 BURNING PERIOD: That part of each 24-hour period when fires will spread most rapidly, typically from 10:00 a.m. to sundown. BURNOVER: A situation where personnel or equipment is caught in an advancing flame front. BUYING TEAM: A team that supports incident procurement through the local administrative staff and is authorized to procure a wide range of services, supplies, and land and equipment rentals. In addition, the Buying Team leader has the responsibility of coordinating property accountability with the unit supply leader. -CCACHE: A Cache is a pre-determined complement of tools, equipment, and/or supplies stored in a designated location, available for incident use. CALCULATION OF PROBABILITIES: The Calculation of Probabilities is the evaluation of all existing factors, pertinent to the probability of future behavior, of an on-going fire and of the potential ability of available forces to carry out control operations on a given time schedule. CAMP: A geographical site, within the general incident area, separate from the Incident Base, equipped and staffed to provide sleeping, food, water, and sanitary services to incident personnel. CAMPFIRE: As used to classify the cause of a wildland fire, a fire that was started for cooking or warming that spreads sufficiently form its source to require action by a fire control agency. CANDLE OR CANDLING: A single tree or a very small clump of trees; which is burning from the bottom up. CANOPY: The Canopy is the uppermost spreading, branch layer of vegetation. CATFACE: A defect on the surface of a tree resulting from a wound where healing has not re-established the normal cross-section. CARDINAL DIRECTIONS: When describing a fire, always use the North, South, East or West when giving directions and information from the ground or air. (e.g., the west flank or east flank, never using right or left flank) Page 87 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 CENTER FIRING: A method of broadcast burning in which fires are set in the center of the area to create a strong draft; additional fires are then set progressively nearer the outer control lines as in-draft builds up so as to draw them in toward the center. CHAIN: A unit of linear measurement equal to 66 feet. CHAIN OF COMMAND: A series of management positions in order of authority. CHIMNEY (S): Canyons can act as a chimney by funneling heated air up the canyon and creating strong up slop drafts. This accelerates the rate at which a fire moves up the canyon. CHECK LINE: A temporary fire line constructed at right angles to the control line and used to interrupt the spread of backfire as a means of regulating the heat or intensity of the backfire. CHECK-IN: The process whereby resources first report to an Incident Base, Camps, Staging Areas, Helibases, Helispots, and Division Supervisors (for direct line assignments). CHIEF: The ICS title for individuals responsible for command of functional sections: Operations, Planning, Logistics, and Finance/Administration. CIRRUS: A form of high cloud composed of ice crystals, which seldom obscures the sun. CLASS “A” FOAM: Foam intended for use on Class A or woody fuels; made from hydrocarbon-based surfactant, therefore lacking the strong filming properties of Class B foam, but possessing excellent wetting properties. CLASSIFIED FOREST LAND: Land that has enough timber, standing or down, slash, or brush to constitute in the judgment of the MT Department of Natural Resources and Conservation a fire menace to life or property. Grassland and agricultural areas are included when those areas are intermingled with or contiguous to and no further than one-half mile from areas of forestland. CLEAR TEXT: Clear Text is the use of plain English in radio communications transmissions. No Ten Codes or agencyspecific codes are used when utilizing Clear text. Page 88 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 CLOCK METHOD: The Clock Method is a means of establishing a flight path, to a target on a fire, by reference to clock directions. CLOSED AREA: An area in which specified activities or entry are temporarily restricted to reduce the risk of human-caused fires or to mitigate the risk to human health or safety by potential or ongoing wildland fires. CLOSURE: A Closure is a legal restriction, but not necessarily elimination of specified activities such as smoking, camping, or entry that might cause fires in a given area. CLOUD: A visible cluster of minute water/ice particles in the atmosphere. COLD FRONT: The leading edge of relatively cold air masses that displace warmer air. The heavier cold air may cause some of the warm air to be lifted. If the lifted air contains enough moisture, the result may be cloudiness, precipitation, and thunderstorms. If both air masses are dry, no clouds may form. Following the passage of a cold front in the Northern Hemisphere, westerly or northwesterly of 15 to 30 or more miles per hour often continue for 12 to 24 hours. COLD TRAILING: A method of controlling a partly dead fire edge by carefully inspecting and feeling with the hand for heat to detect any fire and extinguishing it by digging out every live spot, and trenching any live edge. COMBUSTIBLE: Any material that, in the form, which it is used, and under the conditions anticipated, will ignite and burn. COMMAND: Command is the act of directing and/or controlling resources by virtue of explicit legal, agency, or delegated authority and may also refer to the Incident Commander. COMMAND POST: (See “Incident Command Post”.) COMMAND STAFF: The Command Staff consists of the Information Officer, Safety Officer, and Liaison Officer. They report directly to the Incident Commander. They may have an assistant or assistants, as needed. COMMUNICATIONS UNIT: An organizational unit in the Logistics Section responsible for providing communication services at an incident. A Communications Unit may also be a facility (e.g., a trailer or mobile van) used to provide the major part of an Incident Communications Center. Page 89 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 COMPACTS: Compacts are formal working agreements among agencies to obtain mutual aid. COMPENSATION UNIT/CLAIMS UNIT: Compensation Unit/Claims Unit is a functional unit within the Finance/Administration Section responsible for financial concerns resulting from property damage, injuries, or fatalities at the incident. COMPLEX: Two or more individual incidents located in the same general area, which are assigned to a single Incident Commander or to a Unified Command. COMPRESSED AIR FOAM SYSTEMS (CAFS): A generic term used to describe foam systems consisting of an air compressor (or air source), water pump and foam solution. CONDITION CLASS: Depiction of the degree of departure from historical fire regimes, possibly resulting in alterations of key ecosystem components. These classes categorize and describe vegetation composition and structure conditions that currently exist inside Fire Regime groups. Based on the course-scale national data, they serve as generalized wildfire rankings. The risk of loss of key ecosystem components from wildfires increases from Condition Class 1 (lowest risk) to Condition Class 3 (highest risk). CONDITION OF VEGETATION: A stage of growth or degree of flammability of vegetation that forms part of a fuel complex. Herbaceous stage is at times used when referring to herbaceous vegetation alone. In grass areas, minimum qualitative distinctions for stages of annual growth are usually green, curing, and dry or cured. CONDUCTION: Heat transfer through a material from a region of higher temperature to a region of lower temperature. CONFINE A FIRE: To restrict a fire within determined boundaries established either prior to or during the fire. CONFLAGRATION: A raging, destructive fire often used to describe a fire burning under extreme fire weather. The term is also used when a wildland fire burns into a wildland/urban interface, destroying many structures. CONSTRAINTS: Constraints are parameters or limitations on the use of specific suppression resources. CONTAINED: The status of a wildfire suppression action signifying that a control line has been completed around the fire, and any associated spot fires, which can reasonably be expected to stop the fire’s spread. Page 90 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 CONTAINMENT: 1 The status of a wildfire suppression action signifying that a control line has been completed around the fire, and any associated spot fires, which can reasonably be expected to stop the fire’s spread. The act of controlling hazardous spilled or leaking materials. 2 CONTINGENCY ACTIONS: A back-up plan of action when actions described in the primary plan are no longer appropriate. Contingency Actions are required to be taken when the result exceeds its intents. Actions are taken to return the project to its intended design. CONTINGENCY PLANS: The portion of a prescribed fire plan, incident action plan, or wildfire use implementation plan, that identifies possible but unlikely events and the contingency resources needed to mitigate those events. CONTINGENCY RESOURCES: Planned and identified fire suppression personnel and equipment that mitigate possible but unlikely events that exceed or are expected to exceed holding resource capabilities. CONTOUR MAP: A map having lines of equal elevation that represent that land surface (Topographic). CONTROL FORCE: Personnel and equipment used to control a fire. CONTROL LINE: All built or natural fire barriers and treated fire edge used to control a fire. CONTROL TIME: The time a fire is declared controlled. CONTROLLED: The completion a control line around a fire, any spot fires there from, and any interior islands to be saved; burn out any unburned area adjacent to the fire side of the control lines; and cool down all hot spots that are immediate threats to the control line, until the lines can reasonably be expected to hold under the foreseeable conditions. CONVECTION: 1 2 The transfer of heat by the movement of a gas or liquid; convection, conduction, and radiation are the principal means of energy transfer. As specialized in meteorology, atmospheric motions that are predominately vertical in the absence of wind (which distinguishes this process from advection), resulting in vertical transport and mixing of atmospheric properties. Page 91 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 CONVECTION COLUMN: The rising column of gases, smoke, fly ash, particulates, and other debris produced by a fire. The column has a strong vertical component indicating that buoyant forces override the ambient surface wind. CO-OP FIRE: Refers to federal, state and local cooperative fire programs. COOPERATING AGENCY: An agency supplying assistance other than direct tactical, direct suppression, rescue, support or service functions or resources to the incident control effort (e.g., Red Cross, Law Enforcement Agency, Telephone Company, etc.). COOPERATOR: Local agency or person who has agreed in advance to perform specified fire control services and has been properly instructed to give such service. COORDINATION: The process of systematically analyzing a situation, developing relevant information, and informing appropriate command authority of viable alternatives for selection of the most effective combination of available resources to meet specific objectives. The coordination process (which can be either intra- or inter-agency) does not involve dispatch actions. However, personnel responsible for coordination may perform command or dispatch functions within the limits established by specific agency delegations, procedures, legal authority, etc. COORDINATION CENTER: Term used to describe any facility that is used for the coordination of agency or jurisdictional resources in support of one or more incidents. COST SHARING AGREEMENTS: Agreements between agencies or jurisdictions to share designated costs related to incidents. Cost sharing agreements are normally written but may also be oral between authorized agency and jurisdictional representatives at the incident. COST UNIT: Functional unit within the Finance/ Administration Section responsible for tracking costs, analyzing cost data, making cost estimates, and recommending cost-saving measures. COUNTY COOPERATIVE PROGRAM: In Montana, a County Cooperative Fire Program is a form of fire protection for all state and private lands within a county. The county provides fire protection and is supported by the state in the areas of organization, planning, equipment, prevention, training and fire suppression support. COVER: The area on the ground covered by the combined aerial parts of plants expressed as a percent of the total area. Page 92 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 COVER TYPE: The designation of a vegetation complex described by dominate species, age and form. COYOTE TACTIC: A progressive line construction technique involving self-sufficient crews who build fire line until the end of a shift, remain overnight (RON) at or near the point while off duty, and begin building fire line again on the next shift. Crews should be properly equipped and be prepared to spend several shifts on the line with minimal support from fire camp. CREEPING FIRE: Creeping fire is a fire burning with a low flame and spreading slowly. CREW: An organized group of firefighters under the leadership of a crew boss or other designated official. CREW BOSS (CRWB): A person in supervisory charge of usually 16 to 21 firefighters and responsible for their performance, safety, and welfare. CRITICAL FIRE WEATHER: Critical fire weather is a set of weather conditions whose effects on fire behavior make control difficult and threaten fire fighter safety. CROWN: A tree crown is the primary and secondary branch growing out from the main stem, together with twigs and foliage. CROWN COVER: The ground area covered by the crown of a tree as delimited by the vertical projection of its outermost perimeter. CROWN FIRES: (Crowning) Crown Fires or Crowning is the uncontrolled movement of a wildfire spreading through tree crowns or shrubs. This fire moves more or less independently from the surface fire. This is different from single trees burning. CROWN OUT: A fire that rises from the ground into the tree crowns and advances from treetop to treetop. To intermittently ignite tree crowns as a surface fire advances. CROWN SCORCH: Browning of needles or leaves in the crown of a tree or shrub caused by heating to lethal temperature during a fire. Crown scorch may not be apparent for several weeks after a fire. Page 93 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 CROWN SCORCH HEIGHT: The height above the surface of the ground to which a tree canopy is scorched. CROWNING POTENTIAL: A probability that a crown fire may start, calculated from inputs of foliage moisture content and height of the lowest part of the tree crowns above the surface. CUMULONIMBUS: The ultimate growth of a cumulus cloud into an anvil-shaped cloud with considerable vertical development, usually with fibrous ice crystal tops, and usually accompanied by lightening, thunder, hail, and strong winds. CUMULUS: A principal low cloud type in the form of individual cauliflower-like cells of sharp non-fibrous outline and less vertical development than cumulonimbus. CUP TRENCH: A fire line trench on the downhill side of a fire burning on steep slopes that is supposed to be built deep enough to catch rolling firebrands that could otherwise start fire below the fire line. A high berm on the outermost downhill side of the trench helps the cup trench catch material. Also called gutter trench. CURED: In the 1978 version of NFDRS, the herbaceous stage when herbaceous fuel moisture falls to 30% or less. CURING: Drying and browning of herbaceous vegetation due to mortality or senescence, and also loss of live fuel moisture content of woody fuel following. -DDEAD FUELS: Dead Fuels are fuels with no living tissue in which moisture content is governed almost entirely by atmospheric moisture (relative humidity and precipitation), dry-bulb temperature, and solar radiation. DEBRIS BURNING FIRE: 1 2 In fire suppression terminology, a fire spreading from any fire originally ignited to clear land or burn rubbish, garbage, crop stubble, or meadows (including incendiary fires). In prescribed fire terminology, fire used to dispose of scattered, piled, or windrowed dead woody fuel, generally in the absence of a merchantable overstory. Its purpose is to reduce unsightly fuel concentrations, or consume unwanted natural fuels to facilitate subsequent resource management or land use actions on the area. DECADENT: In regards to vegetation, it refers to plants of declining vigor; and deteriorating health. Page 94 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 DEFENSIBLE SPACE: See “Asset Protection Zone”. DELEGATION OF AUTHORITY: A statement provided to the incident commander by the agency executive delegating authority and assigning responsibility. The delegation of authority can include objectives, priorities, expectations, constraints and other considerations or guidelines as needed. Many agencies require written delegation of authority to be given to incident commanders prior to their assuming commands on larger incidents. DEPLOYMENT: See “Fire Shelter Deployment”. DEPLOYMENT ZONE: Deployment zones are very similar to safety zones. The key difference is that fire shelters must be deployed to insure firefighter survival in a deployment zone due to the available space and/or fire behavior conditions at the deployment zone locations. (See “Safety Zone”) DETECTION: The act or system of discovering a locating fires. DIRECT ATTACK: Any treatment of burning fuel, e.g., by wetting, smothering, or chemically quenching the fire by physically separating the burning from unburned fuel. This is a suppression strategy, in which resources are directed to work close to the fire edge. DEPUTY: A fully qualified individual who, in the absence of a superior, could be delegated the authority to manage a functional operation or perform a specific task. In some cases, a Deputy could act as relief for a superior and therefore must be fully qualified in the position. Deputies can be assigned to the Incident Commander, General Staff, and Branch Directors. DEMOBILIZATION UNIT: The Demobilization Unit is a functional unit within the Planning Section responsible for assuring orderly, safe and efficient demobilization of incident resources. DEW POINT: Temperature to which a specified parcel of air must cool, at constant pressure and water-vapor content, in order for saturation to occur. The dew point is always lower than the wet-bulb temperature, which is always lower than the dry-bulb temperature, except when the air is saturated and all three values are equal. Fog may form when temperature drops to equal the dew point. DIGITAL ELEVATION MODEL: A set of points, which defines the terrain as numbers for computer applications. This data may be used to draw contours, make ortho photos, slope maps, and drive fire models. Page 95 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 DIRECT ATTACK: Any treatment applied directly to burning fuel such as wetting, smothering, or chemically quenching the fire or by physically separating the burning from unburned fuel. DIRECT LINE: Any treatment applied directly to burning fuel such as welting, smothering, or chemically quenching the fire or by physically separating the burning from unburned fuel. DIRECT PROTECTION AREA: That area for which a particular fire protection organization has the primary responsibility for attacking an uncontrolled fire and for directing the suppression action. Such responsi8bility may develop through law, contract, or personal interest of the firefighting agent (e.g., a lumber operator). Several agencies or entities may have some basic responsibilities (e.g., private owner) without being known as the fire organization having direct protection responsibility. DIRECTOR: The ICS title for individuals responsible for supervision of a Branch. DISCOVERY TIME: Elapsed time from start of fire (known or estimated) until the time of the first discovery that results directly in fire suppression action. DISPATCH: This is the implementation of a command decision to move a resource or resources from one place to another. DISPATCH CENTER: The Dispatch Center is a facility from which resources are assigned to an incident. DISPATCHER; A person employed who receives reports of discovery and status of fires, confirms their locations, takes action promptly to provide people and equipment likely to be needed for control in first attack, and sends them to the proper place. DIURNAL: Daily, especially pertaining to cyclic actions which are completed within 24 hours, and which recur every 24 hours, such as temperature, relative humidity and wind. DIVERGENCE: The expansion or spreading out of a horizontal wind field. Generally associated with high pressure and light winds. DIVISION: Divisions are used to divide an incident into geographical areas of operation. A Division is located within the ICS organization between the Branch and the Task Force/Strike Team. (See Group.) Divisions are Page 96 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 identified by alphabetic characters for horizontal applications and, often, by floor numbers when used in buildings. DIVISION/GROUP SUPERVISOR: The ICS position responsible for supervising equipment and personnel assigned to a division or group. This position reports to a Branch Director or Operations Section Chief. DOCUMENTATION UNIT: The Documentation Unit is a functional unit within the Planning Section responsible for collecting, recording, and safeguarding all documents relevant to the incident. DOWNLOADING: Downloading is a reduction to aircraft payload made to compensate for loss of performance due to increase in density altitude. DOZER: Any tracked vehicle with a front-mounted blade used for exposing mineral soil. DOZER BOSS (DOZB): The individual responsible for supervising the operations of a dozer. DOZER COMPANY: A resource that includes a dozer, its transportation unit and a standard complement of personnel for its operation. DOZER LINE: A fire line constructed by the front blade of a dozer. DRAFT: Drawing water from static sources such as a lake, pond, cistern, river, etc. into a pump, which is above the level of the water supply. This is done by removing the air from the pump and allowing atmospheric pressure [14.7 psi (101 kPa) at sea level] to push water through a non-collapsible suction hose into the pump. DRIFT: Effect of wind on smoke, retardant drops, paracargo, smokejumper streamers, etc. DRIFT SMOKE: Smoke that has drifted from its point of origin and is no longer dominated by convective motion. May give false impression of a fire in the general area where the smoke has drifted. DRIP TORCH: Hand-held device for igniting fires by dripping flaming liquid fuel on the materials to be burned; consists of a fuel fount, burner arm, and igniter. Fuel used is generally a mixture of diesel and gasoline. Page 97 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 DROP CONFIGURATION: The type of retardant drop selected to cover a ground target. Terms that can specify the type of drop configuration include Salvo Drop and Trail Drop. DROP PATTERN: The distribution of an aerially delivered retardant drop on the target area in terms of its length, width, and momentum (velocity x mass) as it approaches the ground. The latter determines the relative coverage level of the fire retardant on fuels within the pattern. DROP ZONE: The Target area for air tankers, helitankers and cargo dropping that applies to retardant and paracargo. DROUGHT INDEX: A number representing the net effect of evaporation, transpiration and precipitation in producing cumulative moisture depletion in deep duff or upper soil layers. DRY BULB: A name given to an ordinary thermometer used to determine the temperature of the air (to distinguish it from the wet bulb). DRY HYDRANT: Permanent devices with fire engine threads attached to expedite drafting operations in locations where there are water sources suitable for use in fire suppression (e.g., piers, wharves, bridges over streams, highways adjacent to ponds). Permanently installed supply private fire pumps, which depend upon suction sources. Also called suction pipe. DRY LIGHTNING STORM: Thunderstorm in which negligible precipitation reaches the ground. Also called dry storm. DRY RUN: A Dry Run is a trail pass over the target area by an air tanker. DRY-BULB TEMPERATURE: Temperature of the air. DUFF: The layer of decomposing organic materials lying below the litter layer of freshly fallen twigs, needles, and leaves and immediately above the mineral soil. Page 98 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 -E- ECOLOGICAL LAND UNITS: Ecological Land Units are defined by elevation and fire groups, and described environmentally similar conditions, utilized by the US Forest Service in landscape planning. ECOSYSTEM: An interacting natural system, including all the component organisms, together with the abiotic environment and processes affecting them. EDDY: A circular-like flow of a fluid (such as air or water) drawing its energy from a flow of much larger scale, and brought about by pressure irregularities as in the downwind (lee) side of a solid obstacle. For example, wind conditions may be erratic and may eddy on the downwind side of large rock outcroppings, buildings, etc. EDGE: The place where plant communities meet or where successional stages or vegetative conditions within plan communities come together. The boundary between two fairly distinct fuel types. EDGE FIRING: Method of burning in which fires are set along the edges of an area and allowed to spread inward. EFFECTIVE WINDSPEED: The midflame wind speed adjusted for the effect of slope on fire spread. EMERGENCY: Any incident, which requires the response of a fire protection organization’s attack units and/or support units. EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT COORDINATOR/DIRECTOR: The Emergency Management Coordinator/Director is the individual within each political subdivision that has coordination responsibility for jurisdictional emergency management. EMERGENCY MEDICAL TECHNICIAN (EMT): An Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) is a health-care specialist with particular skills and knowledge in pre-hospital emergency medicine. EMERGENCY OPERATIONS CENTER (EOC): A pre-designated facility established by an agency or jurisdiction to coordinate the overall agency or jurisdictional response and support to an emergency. Page 99 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 EMERGENCY OPERATONS PLAN: The plan that each jurisdiction has and maintains for responding to appropriate hazards, EMERGENCY STABILIZATION: Planned actions to stabilize and prevent unacceptable degradation to natural and cultural resource, to minimize threats to life or property resulting from the effects of a fire, or to repair/replace/construct physical improvements necessary to prevent degradation of land or resources. ENERGY RELEASE COMPONENT (ERC): The computed total heat released per unit area (British thermal units per square foot) within the fire front at the head of a moving fire. ENGINE: An Engine is any ground vehicle providing specified levels of pumping, water and hose capacity. ENGINE COMPANY: An Engine Company is any ground vehicle providing specified levels of pumping, water, hose capacity, and personnel. ENGINE CREW: An Engine Crew is fire fighters assigned to an engine. The Fireline handbook defines the minimum crew makeup by engine type. ENTRAPMENT: An Entrapment is a situation where personnel are unexpectedly caught in a fire behavior-related, lifethreatening position where planned escape routes or safety zones are absent, inadequate, or compromised. An entrapment may or may not include deployment of a fire shelter for its intended purpose. These situations may or may not result in injury. They include “near misses”. ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENT (EA): EAs were authorized by the national Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969. They are concise, analytical documents prepared with public participation that determine if an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) is needed for a particular project or action. If an EA determines an EIS is not needed, the EA becomes the document allowing agency compliance with NEPA requirements. ENTRAPMENT AVOIDENCE: A process used to improve the safety of personnel on the fire line, which emphasizes tools and tactics available to prevent being trapped in a burnover situation. This process includes appropriate decision making through risk management, application of LCES, use of pre-established trigger points, and recognition of suitable escape routes and safety zones. ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT STATEMENT (EIS): EISs were authorized by the national Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969. Prepared with public participation, they assist decision makers by providing information, analysis and an array of action alternatives, allowing managers to see the probable effects of decisions on the environment. Generally, EISs are written for large-scale actions or geographical areas. Page 100 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 EQUILIBRIUM MOISTURE CONTENT: Moisture content that a fuel particle will attain if exposed for an infinite period in an environment of specified constant temperature and humidity. When a fuel particle reaches equilibrium moisture content, next exchange of moisture between it and the environment is zero. ESCAPE ROUTE: An Escape Route is a pre-planned and understood route firefighters take to move to a safety zone or other low-risk area, such as an already burned area, previously constructed safety area, a meadow that won’t burn, natural rocky area that is large enough to take refuge without being burned. When escape routes deviate from a defined physical path, they should be clearly marked (flagged). ESCAPED FIRE: Escaped Fire is fire which has exceeded or is expected to exceed initial attach capabilities or prescription. ESCAPED FIRE SITUATION ANALYSIS: See “Wildland Fire Situation Analysis”. ETA: The Estimated Time of Arrival. ETD: The Estimated Time of Departure. EVACUATION: An organized, phased and supervised withdrawal, dispersal, or removal of civilians from dangerous or potentially dangerous areas and their reception and care in safe areas. EVENT: A planned, non-emergency activity. ICS can be used as the management system for a wide range of events, e.g., parades, concerts, or sporting events. EXPOSURE: 1 2 3 Property that may be endangered by a fire burning in another structure or by a wildfire. Direction in which a slope faces, usually with respect to cardinal directions. The general surroundings of a site with special reference to its openness to winds. EXPOSURE FIRE: Classification for a fire not originating in a building, but which ignites building(s). A fire originating in one building and spreading to another is classified under the original cause of fire. EXTEND: Extend means to drop retardant in such a way that the load slightly overlaps and lengthens a previous drop. “Extend your last drop”. Page 101 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 EXTENDED ATTACK: Suppression activity for a wildfire that has not been contained or controlled by initial attack or contingency forces and for which more firefighting resources are arriving, en route, or being ordered by the initial attack incident commander. EXTENDED ATTACK INCIDENT: A wildland fire that has not been contained or controlled by initial attack forces and for which more firefighting resources are arriving, en route, or being ordered by the initial attack incident commander. EXTREME FIRE BEHAVIOR: “Extreme” implies a level of fire behavior characteristics that ordinarily precludes methods of direct control action. One or more of the follow is usually involved: high rate of spread, prolific crowning and/or spotting presence of fire whirls, strong convection column. Predictability is difficult because such fires often exercise some degree of influence on their environment and behaves erratically, sometimes dangerously. -FFACILITIES UNIT: Functional unit within the Support Branch of the Logistics Section that provides fixed facilities for the incident. These facilities may include the Incident Base, feeding areas, sleeping areas, sanitary facilities, etc. FALLER: Faller is a person who fells trees. They can also be called a sawyer or cutter. FIELD OPERATIONS GUIDE: A Field Operations Guide is a pocketsize manual of instructions on the application of the Incident Command System. FEDERAL AVIATION REGULATION (FAR): The Federal Aviation Regulations (FAR) refers to the regulations governing all aviation activities of civil aircraft within the United States and its territories. FIELD OBSERVER: The field Observer is responsible to the situation Unit leader for collecting and reporting information about an incident obtained from personal observations and interviews. FINAL: Final is when an air tanker is said to be “on final” when it is on line with the target and intends to make the drop on that pass. This also applies to cargo dropping. FINANCE/ ADMINISTRTATION SECTION: The Finance/Administration Section is responsible for all incident costs and financial considerations. It includes the Time Unit, Procurement Unit, Compensation/Claims Unit, and Cost Unit. Page 102 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 FINGERS OF A FIRE: The long narrow extensions of a fire projecting from the main body. FINE FUEL MOISTURE: The probable moisture content of fast-drying fuels which have a timelag constant of 1 hour or less; such as grass, leaves, ferns, tree moss, pine needles, and small twigs (0-1/4”). FINE (LIGHT) FUELS: Fine Fuels are fast-drying dead fuels, generally characterized by a comparatively high surface area-tovolume ratio, which are less than ¼ inch in diameter and have a time lag of one hour or less. These fuels (grass, leaves, needles, etc.) ignite readily and are consumed rapidly by fire when dry. FIRE ANALYSIS: Review of fire management actions taken on a specific fire, group of fires, or fire season in order to identify reasons for both effective and ineffective actions, and to recommend or prescribe ways and means of doing a more efficient job. Also called hot line review. FIRE BEHAVIOR: The manner in which a fire reacts to the influences of fuel, weather and topography FIRE BEHAVIOR ANALYST: Person responsible to the planning section chief for establishing a weather data collection system and for developing fire behavior predictions based on fire history, fuel, weather, and topography. FIRE BEHAVIOR SPECIALIST: The Fire Behavior Specialist is responsible to the Planning Section Chief for establishing a weather data collection system and for developing fire behavior predictions based on fire history, fuel, weather and topography. FIRE BEHAVIOR FORECAST: Fire Behavior Forecast is the prediction of probable fire behavior, usually prepared by a Fire Behavior Officer, in support of fire suppression of prescribed burning operations. FIRE BRAND: Any source of heat, natural or human made, capable of igniting wildland fuels. Flaming or glowing fuel particles that can be carried naturally by wind, convection currents, or by gravity into unburned fuels. Examples include leaves, pinecones, glowing charcoal, and sparks. FIRE BREAK: A Fire Break is a natural or constructed barrier in a fuel bed used to segregate, stop and control the spread of fire or to provide a control line from which to suppress a fire. Page 103 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 FIRE CACHE: A Fire Cache is a supply of fire tools and equipment assembled in planned quantities or standard units at a strategic point for exclusive use in fire suppression. FIRE CREW: A Fire Crew is an organized group of firefighters under the leadership of a crew leader or other designated official. FIRE DANGER: Sum of constant danger and variable danger factors affecting the inception, spread, and resistance to control, and subsequent fire damage; often expressed as an index. FIRE DANGER INDEX: A relative number indicating the severity of wildland fire danger as determined from burning conditions and other variable factors of fire danger. FIRE DANGER RATING: A fire management system that integrates the effects of selected fire danger factors into one or more qualitative or numerical indices of current protection needs. FIRE DEPARTMENT: Any regularly organized fire department, fire protection district or fire company regularly charged with the responsibility of providing fire protection to the jurisdiction. FIRE DEPENDENT: Plants and vegetation communities which have evolved adaptations such as a reliance on fire as disturbance agent, protection as a species against the effects of wildland fire, or even a strengthening or enhancement by it. FIRE DETECTION: Act or system of discovering and locating fires. FIRE ECOLOGY: The study of the effects of fire on living organisms and their environment. FIRE EDGE: The boundary of a fire at a given moment. FIRE EFFECTS: The physical, biological, and ecological impacts of fire on the environment. FIRE ENVIRONMENT: The surrounding conditions, influences, and modifying forces of topography, fuel, and weather that determine fire behavior. Page 104 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 FIRE FOAM: Fire Foam is an extinguishing agent, chemically and/or mechanically produced, that blankets and adheres to the fuel, reducing combustion. It relies on moisture it contains for its effectiveness, so is a short-term suppressant. FIRE FREQUENCY: A general term referring to the recurrence of fire in a given area over time. FIRE FRONT: A Fire Front is the part of a fire within which continuous flaming combustion is taking place. Unless otherwise specified, the fire front is assumed to be the leading edge of the fire perimeter. In ground fires, the fire front may be mainly smoldering combustion. FIRE GROUP: A Fire Group is a vegetation classification system combining fire frequency information, fire ecology and habitat types. There are twelve fire groups. FIRE HAZARD: A fuel complex, defined by volume, type condition, arrangement, and location, that determines the degree of ease of ignition and of resistance to control. FIRE HYDRANT: A valved connection on a piped water supply system having one or more outlets that is used to supply hose and fire department pumpers with water. FIRE INTENSITY: Fire Intensity is a general term used to measure the fire in BTU’s or flame length to determine control difficulty and the heat energy released by a fire. FIRE INTERVAL: The number of years between two successive fire events for a given area; also referred to as fire-free interval or fire-return interval. FIRE LINE: A Fire Line is a loose term for any cleared strip used to control a fire. It is a linear fire barrier or control line from which flammable materials have been removed by scraping or digging down into the mineral soil. FIRE LOAD: A Fire Load is the number and size of fires historically experienced on a specified unit over a specified period (usually one day) at a specified index of fire danger. Page 105 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 FIRE MANAGEMENT PLAN (FMP): A plan, which identifies and integrates all wildland fire management and related activities within the context of approved land/resource management plans. It defines a program to manage wildland fires (wildfire, prescribed fire, and wildland fire use). The plan is supplemented by operational plans, including but limited to preparedness plans, preplanned dispatch plans, and prevention plans. Fire Management Plan’s assure that wildland fire management goals and components are coordinated. FIRE MANAGEMENT UNIT: A land management area definable by objectives, management constraints, topographic features, access, values to be protected, political boundaries, fuel types, major fire regime groups, etc. that set it apart from the characteristics of an adjacent FMU. The FMU may have dominant management objectives and pre-selected strategies assigned to accomplish these objectives. FIRE PERIMETER: The entire outer edge or boundary of a fire. FIRE PLANNING: Systematic technological and administrative management process of designing organization, facilities, and procedures, including fire use, to protect wildland from fire. FIRE PLANNING UNIT: The geographic scope of the landscape defined for the fire management analysis. A Fire Planning Unit consists of one or more Fire Management Units. PFUs may relate to a single administrative unit, a subunit, or any combination of units or sub-units. FPUs are scalable and may be contiguous or noncontiguous. FPUs are not predefined by agency administrative unit boundaries, and may relate to one or more agencies. They may be described spatially. FIRE PREVENTION: Activities, including education, engineering, enforcement and administration that are directed at reducing the number of wildfires, the costs of suppression, and fire-caused damage to resources and property. FIRE PROGRESS MAP: A map maintained on a large fire to show at given times the location of the fire, deployment of suppression forces, and progress of suppression. FIRE PROGRESSION: The progress of the fire outwards from the point of origin. FIRE PROOFING: Removing or treating fuel with fire retardant to reduce the danger of fires igniting or spreading (e.g., fireproofing roadsides, campsites, structural timber). Protection is relative, not absolute. FIRE PROTECTION: The actions taken to limit the adverse environmental, social, political and economical effects of fire. Page 106 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 FIRE REGIME: Description of the patterns of fire occurrences, frequency, size, severity, and sometimes vegetation and fire effects as well, in a given area or ecosystem. A fire regime is a generalization based on fire histories at individual sites. Fire regimes can often be described as cycles because some parts of the histories usually get repeated, and the repetitions can be counted and measured, such as fire return interval. FIRE REGIME CONDITION CLASS: A qualitative measure classified into three classes describing the relative degree of departure from historical fire regimes, possibly resulting in alterations of key ecosystem components such as species composition, structural stage, stand age, canopy closure, and fuel loadings. FIRE REGIME GROUPS: A classification of fire regimes into a discrete number of categories based on frequency and severity. The national, coarse-scale classification of fire regime groups commonly used includes five groups: 1 – frequent (0-35 years), low severity; II – frequent (0-35 years), stand replacement severity; III- 35-100+ years, mixed severity; IV – 35-100+ years, stand replacement severity; and V – 200+ years, stand replacement severity. FIRE RESISTANT CONSTRUCTION: Fire Resistant Construction is a construction designed to resist the spread of fire. For descriptions, see the “Uniform Building Code”. FIRE RESISTANT LANDSCAPING: Fire Resistant Landscaping is a vegetative management that removes flammable fuels from around a structure to reduce the structure’s exposure to radiant heat. The flammable fuels may be replaced with green lawn; gardens; decorative stone; certain, individually spaced, green, ornamental shrubs; individually spaced and pruned trees. FIRE RESISTIVE RATING: The time that the material or construction will withstand fire exposure as determined by a fire test made in conformity with the standard methods of fire tests of building, construction and materials. FIRE RESISTANT ROOFING: The classification of roofing assemblies A, B or C as defined in the Uniform Building Code (UBC) Standard 32.7. FIRE RESISTANT TREE: A species with compact, resin-free, thick corky bark and less flammable foliage that has a relatively lower probability of being killed or scarred by a fire than a fire sensitive tree. FIRE RETARDANT: Fire Retardant is any substance except plain water that by chemical or physical action reduces the flammability of fuels or slows their rate of combustion, e.g., a liquid or slurry applied aerially or from the ground during a fire suppression operation. Page 107 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 FIRE RISK: 1 2 3 The chance of fire starting, as determined by the presence and activity of causative agents. A causative agent. A number related to the potential number of firebrands to which a given area will be exposed during the rating day (National Fire Danger Rating System). FIRE SEASON: 1 2 Period(s) of the year during which wildland fires are likely to occur, spread, and affect resource values sufficient to warrant organized fire management activities. A legally enacted time during which burning activities are regulated by State or Local authority. FIRE SEVERITY: Degree to which a site has been altered or disrupted by fire; loosely, a product of fire intensity and residence time. FIRE SHELTER: An aluminized tent offering protection by means of reflecting radiant heat and providing a volume of breathable air in a fire entrapment situation. Fire shelters should only be used in life threatening situations, as a last resort. FIRE SHELTER DEPLOYMENT: The removing of a fire shelter from its case and using it as protection against fire. FIRE SPREAD: Fire spread is a measurement of the rate of movement of the flaming front of a wildfire in feet per minute or chains per hour. The rate of spread is used in order to contain and extinguish all the fire. FIRE STORM: A violent convection caused by a large continuous area of intense fire. These storms are often characterized by destructively violent surface in drafts, near and beyond the perimeter, and sometimes by tornado-like whirls. FIRE SUPPRESSION: Fire Suppression is to stop or slow fire spread in order to contain and extinguish all fire. FIRE TRIANGLE: Instruction aid in which the sides of a triangle are used to represent the three factors (oxygen, heat, fuel) necessary for combustion and flame production; removal of any of the three factors causes flame production to cease. Page 108 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 FIRE USE MODULE (PRESCRIBED FIRE MODULE): The Fire use Module is a team of skilled a mobile personnel dedicated primarily to prescribed fire management. These are national and interagency resources, available throughout the prescribed fire season, that can ignite, hold and monitor prescribed fires. FIRE WEATHER: Fire Weather is weather conditions that influence fire ignition, behavior and suppression. FIRE WEATHER WATCH: A Fire Weather Watch is issued to advise of conditions, which could result in extensive wildland fire occurrence, or extreme fire behavior, which are expected to develop in the next 12 to 48 hours, but not more than 72 hours. In cases of dry lightning, a Fire Weather Watch may be issued for the next 12 hours. FIRE WHIRL: Spinning vortex column of ascending hot air and gases rising from a fire and carrying aloft smoke, debris, and flame. Fire whirls range in size from less than one foot to over 500 feet in diameter. Large fire whirls have the intensity of a small tornado. FIRE BREAK: A natural or constructed barrier used to stop or check fires that may occur, or to provide a control line from which to work. FIREFIGHTER: A person who is trained and proficient in the components of structural or wildland fire. FIREFIGHTING FORCES: Qualified firefighters, together with their equipment and material, used to suppress wildland fires. FIRE-FLOOD CYCLE: The greatly increased rate of water run off and soil movement from steep slopes that may follow removal of the vegetative cover by burning. FIRELINE: The part of a containment or control line that is scraped or dug to mineral soil. FIREWISE CONSTRUCTION: The use of materials and systems in the design and construction of a building or structure to safeguard against the spread of fire within a building or structure and the spread of fire to or from buildings or structures to the wildland/urban interface area. FIREWISE LANDSCAPING: Vegetative management that moves flammable fuels from around a structure to reduce exposure to radiant heat. The flammable fuels may be replaced with green lawn, gardens, certain individually spaced green, ornamental shrubs, individually spaced and pruned trees, decorative stone or other non-flammable or flame-resistant materials. Page 109 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 FIXED TANK: A device mounted inside or directly underneath an aircraft, which can contain water or retardant for dropping onto a fire. FLAME: A mass of gas undergoing rapid combustion, generally accompanied by evolution of sensible heat and incandescence. FLAME HEIGHT: The average maximum vertical extension of flames at the leading edge of the fire front. Occasional flashes that rise above the general level of flames are not considered. This distance is less than the flame length if flames are tilted due to wind or slope. FLAME LENGTH: The distance between the flame tip and the midpoint of the flame depth at the base of the flame (generally the ground surface), an indicator of fire intensity. FLAMING FRONT: That zone of a moving fire where the combustion is primarily flaming. Behind this flaming zone combustion is primarily glowing or involves the burning out of larger fuels (greater than about 3 inches in diameter). Light fuels typically have a shallow flaming front, whereas heavy fuels have a deeper front. FLAMMABILITY: The relative ease with which fuels ignite and burn regardless of the quantity of the fuels. Preferred to “inflammability”. FLAMMABLE: Easily ignitable and capable of burning and producing flames. FLANK FIRE: A firing technique consisting of treating an area with lines of fire set into the wind, which burn outward at right angles to the wind. FLANKING FIRE SUPPRESSION: Attacking a fire by working along the flanks either simultaneously or successively from a less active or anchor point and endeavoring to connect two lines at the head. FLANKS OF A FIRE: The parts of a fire’s perimeter that are roughly parallel to the main direction of spread. FLARE-UP: Any sudden acceleration in rate of spread or intensification of the fire. Unlike blowup, a flare-up is of relatively short duration and does not radically change existing control plans. Page 110 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 FLASH FUELS: Highly combustible fine fuels such as grass, leaves, draped pine needles, fern, tree moss and some kinds of slash, which ignite readily and are consumed rapidly when dry. FLASHOVER: 1 2 Rapid combustion and/or explosion of unburned gases trapped at some distance from the main fire front. Usually occurs only in poorly ventilated topography. Stage of a fire at which all surfaces and objects within a space have been heated to their ignition temperature, and flame breaks out almost at once over the surface of all objects within the space. FOAM: The aerated solution created by forcing air into, or entraining air in water containing a foam concentrate by means of suitably designed equipment or by cascading it through the air at a high velocity. Foam reduces combustion by cooling, moistening and excluding oxygen. FOAM LINE: A body of foam placed along areas to be protected from fire; also used as an anchor for indirect attack in place of hand-made fire line. FOEHN WIND: A warm, dry and strong general wind that flows down into the valleys when stable, high-pressure air is forced across and then down the lee slopes of a mountain range. The descending air is warmed and dried due to adiabatic compression producing critical fire weather conditions. Locally called by various names such as Santa Ana winds, Devil winds, North winds, Mono winds, etc. FOLDING TANK: A portable, collapsible water tank with a tubular frame. Tank capacities vary in size from 500-1500 gallons. FOOD UNIT: The Food unit is a functional unit within the Service Branch of the Logistics Section responsible for providing meals for incident personnel. FORB: A plant with a soft, rather than permanent woody stem, that is not a grass or grass-like plant. FOREST FIRE: Variously defined for legal purposes (e.g., the State of California Public Resources Code: uncontrolled fire on lands covered wholly or in part by timber, brush, grass, grain, or other flammable vegetation). Types of fires are ground, surface, and crown. FOREST FIRE PROTECTION DISTRICT: Forest fire Protection District is a district established by a vote of 51% of the landowners who own 50% of the private lands in the proposed district. Private landowners pay an established fee through the county tax base for which, in return, they receive wildland fire suppression (Montana Code: MCA 76-13-204). Page 111 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 FOREST FUELS: Forest Fuels are vegetative material, living and dead, found in the wildland environment that contributes to the overall fire hazard. FORWARD LOOKING INFRARED (FLIR): Hand held or aircraft mounted device designed to detect heat differentials and display their images on a video screen. FLIRs have thermal resolution similar to IR line scanners, but their spatial resolution is substantially less; commonly used to detect hot spots and flare-ups obscured by smoke, evaluate the effectiveness of firing operations, or detect areas needing mop-up. FREQUENCY OF OCCURRENCE: A quantitative expression of the presence or absence of individuals of species in a population; the ratio between the number of sample units that contain a species and the total number of sample units. FRONT: In meteorology, the boundary between two air masses of differing atmospheric properties. FUEL: Fuel is a combustible material, which includes vegetation, such as grass, leaves, ground litter, plants, shrubs, and trees that feed a fire (see “Surface Fuels). FUEL BED: A Fuel Bed is an array of fuels usually constructed with specific loading, depth and particle size to meet experimental requirements; also commonly used to describe the fuel composition in natural settings. FUEL CLASS: Part of the National Fire Danger Rating System (NFDRS). Group of fuels possessing common characteristics. Dead fuels are grouped according to 1-, 10-, 100-, and 1000-hour timelag, and living fuels are grouped as herbaceous (annual or perennial) or woody. FUEL CONDITION: Relative flammability of fuel as determined by fuel type and environmental conditions. FUEL GROUP: An identifiable association of fuel elements of distinctive species, form, size, arrangement, or other characteristics. General fuel groups are grass, brush, timber, and slash. FUEL LOADING: Fuel loading is the amount of fuel present and expressed quantitatively in terms of weight of fuel per unit area. FUEL MANAGEMENT: Act or practice of controlling flammability and reducing resistance to control of wildland fuels through mechanical, chemical, biological, or manual means, or by fire, in support of land management objectives. Page 112 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 FUEL MODEL: Fuel Model is a simulated fuel complex (or combination of vegetation types) for which all fuel descriptors required for the solution of a mathematical rate of spread model have been specified. FUEL MODIFICATION: Manipulation or removal of fuels to reduce the likelihood of ignition and/or to lessen potential damage and resistance to control (e.g., lopping, chipping, crushing, piling and burning). FUEL MOISTURE CONTENT: The quantity of moisture in fuel expressed as a percentage of the weight when thoroughly dried at 212 degrees Fahrenheit. FUEL REDUCTION: Fuel Reduction is the manipulation, including combustion, or removal of fuels to reduce the likelihood of ignition and/or to lessen potential damage and resistance to control. FUEL TREATMENT: Manipulation or removal of fuels to reduce the likelihood of ignition and/or to lessen potential damage and resistance to control (e.g., lopping, chipping, crushing, piling and burning). FUEL TYPE: Fuel Type is an identifiable association of fuel elements of a distinctive plan species, form, size, arrangement, or other characteristics that will cause a predictable rate of fire spread or difficulty of control under specified weather conditions. FUELBREAK: Fuel Break is an area, strategically located for fighting anticipated fires, where the native vegetation has been modified or replaced so that fires burning into it can be more easily controlled. FUELBREAK SYSTEM: A natural or manmade change in fuel characteristics which affects fire behavior so that fires burning into them can be more readily controlled. FUNCTION: In ICS, function refers to the five major activities in the ICS, i.e., Command, Operations, Planning, Logistics, and Finance/ Administration. The term function is also used when describing the activity involved, e.g., the planning function. FUSEE: Fusee is a colored flare designed as a railway-warning device and widely used to ignite suppression and prescription fires. Page 113 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 -G- GENERAL FIRE WEATHER FORECAST: A forecast, issued daily during the regular fire season to resource management agencies, that is intended for planning of daily fire management activities, including daily staffing levels, prevention programs, and initial attack on wildfires. Also called pre-suppression forecast. GENERAL STAFF: The General Staff is the group of incident management personnel reporting to the Incident Commander. They may each have a deputy, as needed. The General Staff consists of: Operations Section Chief Planning Section Chief Logistics Section Chief Finance/ Administration Section Chief GENERAL WINDS: Large scale winds caused by high- and low-pressure systems but generally influenced and modified in the lower atmosphere by terrain. GEOGRAPHIC AREA: The Geographic Area is a political boundary designated by the wildland fire protection agencies, where these agencies work together in coordination and effective utilization. GLOBAL POSITIONING SYSTEM (GPS): A system of navigational satellites operated by the U.S. Department of Defense and available for civilian use. The system can track objects anywhere in the world with an accuracy of approximately 40 feet. GRADIENT WIND: 1 Wind flowing parallel to pressure isobars or contours with low pressure on the left of the observer in the Northern Hemisphere; velocity such that the pressure gradient, Coriolis, and centrifugal force acting in the area are in balance. Wind created by differing barometric pressures between high- and low-pressure systems. Velocity is generally five to 30 miles per hour, and wind shifts are usually gradual as systems move and shift. 2 GRASS FIRE: Any fire in which the predominant fuel is grass or grass-like. GRAZING: Grazing is the eating of vegetation by animals. GREENBELT: A fire in an area adjacent to a suburban home cleared of all dead and dying vegetative material and replaced with living, green vegetation which is essentially non-flammable. Page 114 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 GREEN-UP: Green-up for the 1978 version of NFDRS model is defined as the beginning of a new cycle of plan growth. Green-up usually occurs once a year, except in desert areas where rainy periods can produce a flush of new growth more than once a year. Green-up may be signaled at different dates for different fuel models. Green-up should not be started when the first flush of green occurs in the area. Instead, the vegetation that will be the fire problem (represented by the NFDRS fuel model associated with the weather station) when it matures and cures should be identified. Green-up should start when the majority of this vegetation starts to grow. GROUND FIRE: Ground fire is fire that consumes the organic material in the soil layer, e.g., a “peat fire”. GROUND FUEL: Ground Fuel is all combustible materials below the surface litter, including duff, tree or shrub roots, punchy wood, peat, and sawdust that normally support a glowing combustion without flame. GROUND SUPPORT UNIT: The Ground Support Unit is a functional unit within the Support Branch of the Logistics Section responsible for the fueling, maintaining, and repairing of vehicles, and the transportation of personnel and supplies. GROUP: Groups are established to divide the incident into functional areas of operation. Groups are composed of resources assembled to perform a special function not necessarily within a single geographic division. (See division.) Groups are located between Branches (when activated) and Resources in the Operations Section. GUST: Rapid fluctuations in wind speed with variation of 10 knots (11.5 mph) or more between peaks and lulls. -HHAINES INDEX: This is an atmospheric index used to indicate the potential for wildfire growth by measuring the stability and dryness of the air over a fire. HAND CREW: A number of individuals that have been organized and trained and are supervised principally for operational assignments on an incident. HANDLINE: Hand Line is a fire line built with hand tools. Page 115 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 HAZARD: Any real or potential condition that can cause injury, illness or death pf personnel, or damage to, or loss of equipment or property. HAZARD ASSESSMENT: Assess hazards to determine risks. Assess the impact of each hazard in terms of potential loss, cost, or strategic degradation based on probability and severity. HAZARD FUEL: A fuel complex defined by kind, arrangement, volume, condition, and location that form a special threat of ignition and resistance to control. HAZARD MAP: Map of the area of operations that shows all of the known aerial hazards, including but not limited to power lines, military training areas, hang gliding areas, etc. HAZARD REDUCTION: A Hazard Reduction is any treatment of a hazard that reduces the threat of ignition and fire intensity or rate of spread. HAZARDOUS AREAS: Those wildland areas where the combination of vegetation, topography, weather, and the threat of fire to life and property create difficult and dangerous problems. HAZE: A sufficient concentration of atmospheric aerosols to affect a visible attenuation of light and measurable reduction in visual range. The aerosol particle diameter is near the wavelength of visible light, optimizing the light scattering efficiency of the particles. HEAD FIRE: A Head Fire is a fire spreading or set to spread with the wind and/or upslope. HEADING: The Heading is the compass direction in which the longitudinal axis of the aircraft points. HEAD OF A FIRE: Head of a Fire is the side of the fire having the fastest rate of spread. HEAT: Temperatures higher than that of the normal atmosphere, produced by the process of burning or oxidation. Page 116 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 HEAT OF COMBUSTION: The heat emergency resulting form the complete combustion of a fuel, expressed as the quantity of heat per unit weight of fuel. The high heat of combustion is the potential available, HEAT PER UNIT AREA: The Heat per Unit Area is the heat released from a square foot of fuel while the flaming front is in the area. HEAT TRANSFER: Process by which heat is imparted from one body to another, through conduction, convection, and radiation. HEAVY FUELS: Fuels of large diameter such as snags, logs, large limb wood that ignites and is consumed more slowly than flash fuels. HELD LINE: A Held Line is when all of the worked control lines still contain the fire when mop-up is completed. HELIBASE: The Helibase is the main location within the general incident area for parking, fueling, maintenance, and loading of helicopters. It is usually located at or near the incident base. HELIBUCKET: The Helibucket is specially designed bucket carried by a helicopter like a sling load and used to drop suppressants or retardants. HELISPOT: A natural or improved takeoff and landing area intended for temporary or occasional helicopter use. HELITACK: The utilization of helicopters to transport crews, equipment, and fire retardants or suppressants to the fireline during the initial stages of a fire. The term also refers to the crew that performs helicopter management and attack activities. HELITACK CREW: A crew of firefighters specially trained and certified in the tactical and logistical use of helicopters for fire suppression. HELITANKER: A helicopter equipped with a fixed tank, Air Tanker Board certified, capable of delivering a minimum of 1,100 gallons of water, foam, or retardant. Page 117 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 HELITORCH: An aerial ignition device hung from or mounted on a helicopter to disperse ignited lumps of gelled gasoline. Used for backfires, burnouts, or prescribed burns. HERB: A plant that does not develop woody, persistent tissue but is relatively soft or succulent and sprouts from the base (perennials) or develops from seed (annuals) each year. Includes grasses, forbs and ferns. HERBACEOUS FUEL MOISTURE: In NFDRS, a calculated value representing the approximate moisture content of the live herbaceous vegetation in the rating area expressed as a percentage of the over dry weight of the sample. HERBACEOUS STAGE: The modeled condition of herbaceous vegetation (pre-green, green-up, transition, cured, frozen) for the 1978 version of NFDRS. HIERARCHY OF COMMAND: See “Chain of Command” HOLDING ACTIONS: Holding Actions are planned actions required to achieve wildland prescribed fire management objectives. These actions have specific implementation timeframes for fire use actions but can have less sensitive implementation demands for suppression actions. HOLDING RESOURCES: Holding Resources are firefighting personnel and equipment assigned to do all required fire suppression work following fire line construction but generally not including extensive mop-up. HOME ASSESSMENT: Evaluation of a dwelling and its immediate surrounding to determine its potential to escape damage by an approaching wildland fire. Includes the fuels and vegetation in the yard and adjacent to the structure, roof environment, decking and siding materials, prevailing winds, topography, fire history, etc., with the intent of mitigating fire hazards and risks. HORIZONTAL CONTINUITY: Horizontal Continuity is the degree to which fuels form a continuous layer on a horizontal plane. HOSE LAY: Hose Lay is an arrangement of connected lengths of fire hose and accessories on the ground, beginning at the first pumping unit and ending at the point of water delivery. HOTSHOT CREW: The Hotshot Crew is a highly trained fire crew used mainly to build fire line by hand. Page 118 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 HOT SPOT: A Hot Spot is a particularly active part of a fire. HOT SPOTTING: Hot Spotting is the reducing or stopping the spread of fire a points of particularly rapid rate of spread or special threat. Generally this is the first step in prompt control with emphasis on first priorities. HUMAN-CAUSED FIRE: Any fire caused directly or indirectly by person(s). HUMAN-CAUSED RISK: The probability of a fire ignition as a result of human activities. HUMIDITY: General term referring to the moisture content of the atmosphere. HYDRANT: A discharge pipe with three valves and fittings at which water can be drawn from a water main or other source for the purpose of fighting fires. -IIGNITION COMPONENT: Part of the National Fire Danger Rating System (NFDRS). A rating of the probability that a firebrand will cause an actionable fire. IGNITION FACTOR: The conditions, subsequent action, and sequence of events that bring a competent ignition source into contact with the materials first ignited. Also referred to as the cause of the fire. IGNITION PROBABILITY: Chance that a firebrand will cause an ignition when it lands on receptive fuels. IGNITION TIME: Time between application of an ignition source and self-sustained combustion of a fuel. INCIDENT: An occurrence either human caused or by natural phenomena, that requires action by emergency service personnel to prevent or minimize loss of life or damage to property and/or natural resources. INCIDENT ACTION PLAN (IAP): Contains objectives reflecting the overall incident strategy and specific tactical actions and supporting information for the next operational period. The plan may be oral or written. When written, the plan may Page 119 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 have a number of attachments, including: incident objectives, organization assignment list, division assignment, incident radio communication plan, medical plan, traffic plan, safety plan, and incident map. Formerly called shift plan. INCIDENT BASE: Location at the incident where the primary logistics functions are coordinated and administered. (Incident name or other designator will be added to the term Base). The incident command post may be collected with the base. There is only one Base per incident. INCIDENT COMMANDER: The Incident commander is responsible for the management of all incident operations at the incident site. INCIDENT COMMAND POST (ICP): The ICP is the location where the primary command functions are executed. The ICP may be co-located with the incident base or other incident facilities. INCIDENT COMMAND SYSTEM (ICS): A standardized on-scene emergency management concept specifically designed to allow its user(s) to adopt an integrated organizational structure equal to the complexity and demands of single or multiple incidents, without being hindered by jurisdictional boundaries. INCIDENT COMMUNCATIONS CENTER: This is the location of the Communications Unit and the Message Center. ICS NATIONAL TRAINING CURRICULUM: A series of 17 training modules consisting of instructor guides, visuals, tests, and student materials. The modules cover all aspects of ICS operations. The modules can be intermixed to meet specific training needs. INCIDENT MANAGEMENT TEAM: The Incident Commander and appropriate Command and General Staff personnel assigned to manage an incident. INCIDENT METEOROLOGIST (IMET): A specially trained meteorologist who provides site-specific weather forecasts and information at an incident. The individual works under the direction of the fire behavior analyst and the planning section chief. INCIDENT OBJECTIVES: The Incident Objectives are the statements of guidance and direction necessary for the selection of appropriate strategy(s), and the tactical direction of resources. Incident objectives are based on realistic expectations of what can be accomplished when all allocated resources have been effectively deployed. Incident objectives must be achievable and measurable, yet flexible enough to allow for strategic and tactical alternatives. INCIDENT ORGANIZATION: Resources, together with a complement of overhead personnel, calculated to be sufficient to provide fire efficient incident management. Page 120 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 INCIDENT OVERHEAD: All supervisory positions described in the Incident Command System. INCIDENT SUPPORT ORGANIZATION: This Organization includes any off-incident support provided to an incident. Examples would be Agency Dispatch center, Airports, Mobilization Centers, etc. INCIDENT WEATHER FORECAST: A special weather forecast for a specific incident prepared by a meteorologist on site at or near the incident area. INDIRECT ATTACK: An Indirect Attack is a method of suppression in which the control line is located some considerable distance away from the fire’s active edge. This is generally done in the case of a fast-spreading or high-intensity fire to utilize natural or constructed firebreaks or fuel breaks and favorable breaks in the topography. The intervening fuel is usually backfired; but occasionally the main fire is allowed to burn to the line, depending on conditions. INFORMATION OFFICER: The Information Officer is a member of the Command Staff responsible for interfacing with the public and media or with other agencies requiring information directly from the incident. There is only one Information Officer per incident. The Information Officer may have assistants. INFRARED DETECTION: The use of heat sensing equipment, known as Infrared Scanners, for detection of heat sources that are not visually detectable by the normal surveillance methods of either ground or air patrols. INITIAL ATTACK: Initial Attack is the actions taken by the first resources to arrive at a wildfire to protect lives and property, and to prevent further extension of the fire. INSURANCE SERVICES OFFICE (ISO): The ISO is an agency that recommends fire insurance rates based on a grading schedule which incorporates evaluation of fire fighting resources and capability. The grading schedule is equally rated, giving 50% credit for water supply and 50% for the fire department. A Class 1 rating is the very best fire protection capability, a class 10 rating equates to no fire protection. INVERSION: Atmospheric inversion. The departure from the usual increase or decrease with altitude of the value of an atmospheric property. In fire management usage, nearly always refers to an increase in temperature with increasing height. Also, the layer through which this departure occurs (also called inversion layer) the lowest altitude at which the departure is found is called the base of the inversion. I-ZONE: An area that, in relation to wildland/urban fire, has a set of conditions that provides the opportunity for fire to burn from wildland vegetation to the home/structure ignition zone. Page 121 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 -J- JOB HAZARD ANALYSIS: This is an analysis of a project that is completed by staff to identify hazards to employees and the public. It identifies hazards, corrective actions and the required safety equipment to ensure public and employee safety. JUMP SPOT: Jump Spot is a selected landing area of smoke jumpers or helijumpers. JUMP SUIT: A Jump Suit is an approved protection suit worn by smoke jumpers. JURISDICTION: Jurisdiction refers to the agency that has a range or sphere of authority and responsibility for a specific geographical area, or a mandated function. Public agencies have jurisdiction at an incident related to their legal responsibilities and authority for incident mitigation. Jurisdictional authority at an incident can be political/geographical (e.g., city, county, state, or federal boundary lines) or functional (e.g., police department, health department, etc.). (See Multijurisdiction.) JURISDICTIONAL AGENCY: The agency that has land and resource management responsibility for a specific geographical or functional area as provided by federal, state or local law. -KKEECH BYRAM DROUGHT INDEX (KBDI): This is a commonly used drought index adapted for fire management applications, with a numerical range from 0 (no moisture deficiency) to 800 (maximum drought). KNOCK DOWN: A Knock Down is used to reduce the flame or heat on the more vigorously burning parts of a fire edge. -LLADDER FUELS: Ladder Fuels are forest vegetation situated at different heights and close enough together to allow a surface fire to become a potential crown fire. LAND USE PLAN: A set of decisions that establish management direction for land within an administrative area; an assimilation of land-use-plan-level decision developed through the planning process regardless of the scale at which the decisions were developed. LAND/RESOURCE MANAGEMENT PLAN: A document prepared with public participation and approved by an agency administrator that provides general guidance and direction for land and resource management activities for an administrative area. The L/RMP identifies the need for fire’s role in a particular area and for a Page 122 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 secific benefit. The objectives in the L/RMP provide the basis for the development of fire management objective and the fire management program in the designated area. LANDING ZONE: (See helispot.) LARGE FIRE: (For Statistical Purposes) 1 2 A fire burning more than a specified area of land, e.g., 300 acres. A fire burning with the size and intensity such that its behavior is determined by interaction between its own convection column and weather conditions above the service. LEAD PLANE: The Lead Plane is an aircraft flown to make trial runs over the fire to check wing and smoke conditions and topography and to direct the tactical deployment of air tankers. LEADER: The ICS title for an individual responsible for a Task Force, Strike Team, or functional unit. LEAPFROG METHOD: A system of organizing workers in fire suppression in which each crew member is assigned a specific task such as; clearing or digging fireline on a specific section of control line, and when that task is completed, passes other workers in moving to a new assignment. LEVEL OF SERVICE: Amount of fire prevention and fire suppression supplied; may be expressed several ways (e.g., percent of people or building protected, area protected, dollar value of property protected, firefighters per capita, water flow capability). LIAISON OFFICER: The Liaison Officer is a member of the Command Staff responsible for coordinating with representatives from cooperating and assisting agencies. LIFE-SAFETY: Life safety refers to the joint consideration of both the life and physical well being of individuals. LIGHT (FINE) FUELS: These are fast-drying fuels, generally with a comparatively high surface area-to-volume ratio, which are less than ¼ inch in diameter and have a time lag of one hour or less. These fuels readily ignite and are rapidly consumed by fire when dry. LIGHTNING ACTIVITY LEVEL (LAL): Part of the National Fire Danger Rating System (NFDRS). A number, on a scale of 1 to 6, which reflects frequency and character of cloud-to-ground lightning (forecasted or observed). The scale for 1 to 5 is exponential, based on powers of 2 (i.e., LAL 3 indicates twice the lightning of LAL 2). LAL 6 is a special category for dry lightning and is closely equivalent to LAL 3 in strike frequency. LIMBING: Removing branches from a felled or standing tree, or from brush. LINE OFFICER: The individual with decision-making authority for the agency or jurisdiction having responsibility for the incident. Also known as Agency Administrator. LINE SCOUT: A Line Scout is a firefighter who determines the location of a fire line. Page 123 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 LITTER: The top layer of the forest floor, composed of loose debris of dead sticks, branches, twigs, and recently fallen leaves or needles; little altered in structure by decomposition. LIVE FUEL MOISTURE CONTENT: Ratio of the amount of water to the amount of dry plan material in living plants. LIVE FUELS: Living plants, such as trees, grasses, and shrubs, in which the seasonal moisture content cycle is controlled largely by internal physiological mechanisms, rather than by external weather influences. LOCAL AGENCY: Any agency having jurisdictional responsibility for all or part of an incident. LOCAL RESPONSIBILITY AREA: Lands on which neither the state nor the federal government has any legal responsibility for providing fire protection. LOCAL WINDS: Winds which are generated over a comparatively small area by local terrain and weather. They differ from those which would be appropriate to the general pressure pattern. LOGGING DEBRIS: Unwanted tree parts (crowns, logs, uprooted stumps) remaining after harvest. LOGISTICS SECTION: This section is responsible for providing facilities, services, and materials for the incident. LONG-RANGE FORECAST: Fire weather forecast for a period greater than five days in advance. LONG-RANGE SPOTTING: Large glowing firebrands are carried high into the convection column and then fall out downwind beyond the main fire starting new fires. Such spotting can easily occur ¼ mile or more from the firebrand’s source. LONG-TERM RETARDANT: A Long-Term Retardant is a chemical that has the capability to inhibit spread of flame through chemical reactions between products of combustion and the applied chemicals, even after the water component has evaporated. LOOKOUT: 1 2 3 A person designated to detect and report fires from a vantage point. A location from which fires can be detected and reported. A fire crewmember assigned to observe the fire and warn the crew when there is danger of becoming trapped. LOOKOUT TOWER: Structure that elevates a person above nearby obstructions to sight for fires; generally capped by some sort of house or cupola. Page 124 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 LOOKOUTS, COMMUNICATION, ESCAPE ROUTES & SAFETY ZONE: Elements of a safety system used by firefighters to routinely assess their current situation with respect to wildland firefighting hazards. LOPPING: After felling, cutting branches, tops, and unwanted boles into lengths such that resultant logging debris will lie close to the ground. LOPPING & SCATTERING: Lopping, logging debris and spreading it more or less evenly over the ground. -MMANAGERS: Managers are the individuals within ICS organizational units that are assigned specific managerial responsibilities, e.g., Staging Area Manager or Camp Manager. MANAGEMENT BY OBJECTIVES: In ICS, this is a top-down management activity, which involves a three-step process to achieve the incident goal. The steps are: establishing the incident objectives, selection of appropriate strategy(s) to achieve the objectives, and the tactical direction associated with the selected strategy. Tactical direction includes: selection of tactics, selection of resources, resource assignments, and performance monitoring. MAXIMUM MANAGEMENT AREA (MMA): The maximum geographic limits of spread within which a wildland fire use fire is allowed to spread. MAXIMUM RELATIVE HUMIDITY: The highest value for relative humidity measured at the observation site during the preceding 24hour period. MAY DAY: International distress signal/call. When repeated three times it indicates imminent and grave danger and that immediate assistance is required. MEAN FIRE RETURN INTERVAL: Arithmetic average of all fire intervals in a given area over a given time. MEDICAL UNIT: Functional unit within the Service Branch of the Logistics Section responsible for the development of the Medical Emergency Plan, and for providing emergency medical treatment of incident personnel. MESSAGE CENTER: The Message Center is part of the Incident Communications Center and is collocated or placed adjacent to it. It receives records, and routes information about resources reporting to the incident, resource status, and administrative and tactical traffic. MICRO-REMOTE ENVIRONMENTAL MONITORING SYSTEM: (Micro-REMS) This is the mobile weather monitoring station. A Micro-REMS usually accompanies an incident meteorologist and ATMU to an incident. Page 125 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 MID-FLAME WINDSPEED: The speed of the wind measured at the midpoint of the flames, considered to be most representative of the speed of the wind that is affecting fire behavior. MINERAL SOIL: Soil layers below the predominantly organic horizons; soil with little combustible material. MINIMUM IMPACT SUPPRESSION TECHNIQUES (MIST): The application of strategy and tactics that effectively meet suppression and resource objectives with the least environmental, cultural and social impacts. MITIGATION: Those activities implemented prior to, during, or after an incident; which are designed to reduce or eliminate risks to persons or property that lessen the actual or potential effects or consequences of an incident. Mitigation measures can include efforts to educate governments, businesses, and the general public on measures they can take to reduce loss and injury and are often informed by lessons learned from prior incidents. MITIGATION ACTIONS: On-the-ground actions that will serve to increase the defensibility of the Maximum Management Area (MMA); check, direct, or delay the spread of fire; and minimize threats to life, property, and resources. Mitigation actions may include mechanical and physical non-fire tasks, specific fire applications, and limited suppression actions. These actions will be used to construct firelines, reduce excessive fuel concentrations, reduce vertical fuel continuity, create fuel breaks or barriers around critical or sensitive sites or resources, create “black lines” through controlled burnouts, and to limit fire spread and behavior. MOBILIZATION: The process and procedures used by all organizations federal, state, and local for activating, assembling, and transporting all resources that have been requested to respond to or support an incident. MOBILIZATION CENTER: An off-incident location at which emergency service personnel and equipment are temporarily located pending assignment, release, or reassignment. MODULAR AIRBORNE FIREFIGHTING SYSTEM (MAFFS): MAFFA stands for Modular Airborne Firefighting System which is a manufactured unit consisting of five interconnecting tanks, a control pallet, and a nozzle pallet, with a capacity of 3,000 gallons (11,355 liters), designed to be rapidly mounted inside an unmodified C-130 (Hercules) cargo aircraft for use in cascading retardant chemicals on wildfires. MOP-UP: Mop-up is the process used to make a fire safe or reduce residual smoke after the fire has been controlled by extinguishing the remaining hot spots to insure the incident will not re-ignite or continue to spread and/or remove burning material along or near the control line, felling snags, or moving logs so they won’t roll downhill. MOSAIC: Mosaic is a fuel modification system that provides for the creation of islands and irregular boundaries to reduce the visual and ecological impact of fuel modification. MOST EFFICIENT LEVEL (MEL): The fire management program budget level that results in the minimum cost plus net value change. Page 126 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 MULTI-AGENCY COORDINATION (MAC): A generalized term which describes the functions and activities of representative of involved agencies an/or jurisdictions who come together to make decisions regarding the prioritizing of incidents, and the sharing and use of critical resources. The MAC organization is not a part of the on-scene ICS and is not involved in developing incident strategy or tactics. MULTI-AGENCY COORDINATION SYSTEM (MACS): MACS provide the framework to support coordination for incident prioritization, critical resource allocation, communication systems integration, and information coordination, (MACS components include facilities, equipment, emergency operating centers EOCs), specific multiagency coordination entities, personnel, procedures, and communications. MULTI-AGENCY INCIDENT: Multi-Agency incident is an incident where one or more agencies assist a jurisdictional agency or agencies. It may be single or unified command. MULTI-JURISDICTIONAL INCIDENT: An incident requiring action from multiple agencies that have a statutory responsibility for incident mitigation. In ICS these incidents will be managed under unified command. MUTUAL AID: Assistance in firefighting or investigation by fire agencies, without regard for jurisdictional boundaries. MUTUAL AID AGREEMENT: Written agreement between agencies and/or jurisdictions in which they agree to assist one another upon request, by furnishing personnel and equipment. MUTUAL THREAT ZONE: A geographical area between two or more jurisdictions into which those agencies would respond on initial attack. Also called mutual response zone or initial action zone. -NNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF STATE FORESTERS (NASF): An organization consisting of the State Forester from each state and territory, which promotes cooperation in forestry matters between the states and territories, the federal government and private forestry groups. It promotes legislation, programs and activities; which will advance the practice of forestry and use of forest products. NATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY ACT (NEPA): NEPA is the basic national law for protection of the environment, passed by congress in 1969. It sets policy and procedures for environmental protection, and authorizes Environmental Impact Statements and Environmental Assessments to be used as analytical tools to help federal managers make decisions. NATIONAL FIRE DANGER RATING SYSTEM (NFDRS): NFDRS is a uniform fire danger rating system that focuses on the environmental factors that control the moisture content of fuels. NATIONAL INCIDENT MANAGEMENT SYSTEM (NIMS): A system mandated by HSPD-5 that provides a consistent nationwide approach for state, local, and tribal governments; the private-sector, and non-governmental organizations to work effectively and efficiently together to prepare for, respond to, and recover from domestic Page 127 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 incidents, regardless of cause, size, or complexity. NIMS includes a core set of concepts, principles, and terminology such as: ICS; multi-agency coordination systems; training; identification and management of resources (including systems for classifying types of resources); qualification and certification; and the collection, tracking, and reporting of incident information and incident resources. NATIONAL INTERAGENCY INCIDENT MANAGEMENT SYSTEM (NIIMS): An NWCG-developed program consisting of five major subsystems which collectively provide a total systems approach to all-risk incident management. The subsystems are: The Incident Command System, Training, Qualifications and Certification, Supporting Technologies, and Publications Management. NATIONAL RESPONSE PLAN: A plan that integrates federal government domestic prevention, preparedness, response, and recover plans into one all-discipline, all-hazard plan. NATIONAL WIDLFIRE COORDINATING GROUP (NWCG): A group formed under the direction of the Secretaries of the Interior and Agriculture and comprised of representatives of the U.S. Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, Bureau of Indian Affairs, National Park Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Association of State Foresters. The group’s purpose is to facilitate coordination and effectiveness of wildland fire activities, and provide a forum to discuss, recommend appropriate action, or resolve issues and problems of substantive nature. The NWCG is the certifying body for all courses in the National Fire Curriculum of ICS development and training. NATURAL BARRIER: Any area where lack of flammable material obstructs the spread of wildfires. NATURAL FUELS: Fuels resulting from natural processes and not directly generated or altered by land management practices. NOMEX: Nomex is the trade name for a fire resistant synthetic material used in the manufacturing of flight suits, pants and shirts used by firefighters (see Aramid). NON-COMBUSTIBLE: A material that, in the form in which it is used and under the conditions anticipated, will not aid combustion or add appreciable heat to an ambient fire. NON-FOREST ZONE: Non-Forest Zone is an area, which the concentration of residences and other buildings makes the primary fire protection problem one of structural fires rather than forest fires. NORMAL FIRE SEASON: 1 2 A season when weather, fire danger, number and distribution of fires are about average. The period of the year that normally comprises the fire season. NORTHERN REGION: The Northern Region includes twelve National Forests in northern Idaho, northeastern Washington, and Montana; and a National Grassland in North Dakota and northwestern South Dakota, approximately 25.395 million acres. Page 128 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 -O- OCCLUDED FRONT OR OCCLUSSION: The front that is formed when and where a cold front overtakes a warm front or a stationary front. OFFICER: The ICS title for the personnel responsible for the Command Staff positions of Safety, Liaison, and Information. ONE-HOUR TIMELAG FUEL MOISTURE (1-H FUR): Moisture content of one-hour timelag fuels. ONE-HOUR TIMELAG FUELS: Fuels consisting of dead herbaceous plans and roundwood less that about one-fourth inch (6.4mm) in diameter. Also included is the uppermost layer of needles or leaves on the forest floor. ONE-HUNDRED HOUR TIMELAG FUEL MOISTURE 100-h TL FM): The moisture content of the 100-hour timelag fuels. ONE-HUNDRED HOUR TIMELAG FUELS: Dead fuels consisting of roundwood in size range of 1 to 3 inches (2.5 to 7.6 cm) in diameter and very roughly the layer of litter extending from approximately three-fourths of an inch (1.9 cm to 4 inches (10 cm) below the surface. ONE-THOUSAND HOUR TIMELAG FUEL MOISTURE (1,000-h TL FM): The moisture content of the 1,000-hour timelag fuels. ONE-THOUSAND HOUR TIMELAG FUELS: Dead fuels consisting of roundwood 3-8 inches in diameter and the layer of the forest floor more than about 4 inches below the surface. OPEN BURNING: Uncontrolled burning of wastes in the open or in an open dump. OPERATIONAL PERIOD: The period of time scheduled for execution of a given set of operation actions as specified in the Incident Action Plan. Operational Periods can be of various lengths, although usually not over 24 hours. OPERATIONS BRANCH DIRECTOR (OPBD): This ICS position is responsible for implementing that portion of an incident action plan (IAP) appropriate to a designated operational branch and reports to the Operations Section Chief. OPERATIONS SECTION: The Operations Section responsible for all tactical operations at the incident. It includes Branches, Divisions and/or Groups, Task Forces, Strike Teams, Single Resources, and Staging Areas. OPERATIONS SECTION CHIEF: This ICS position is responsible for supervision the Operations Section. Reports to the incident Commander and is a member of the General Staff. This position may have one or more deputies assigned. Page 129 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 ORBIT: The Orbit is the circular holding pattern of an air tanker in the vicinity of a fire waiting for orders to make a drop. ORGANIC MATTER: That fraction of the soil that includes plant and animal residues at various stages of decomposition, cells and tissues of soil organisms, and substances synthesized by the soil population. OROGRAPHIC: Pertaining to, or caused by mountains. ORTHOPHOTO: Photograph obtained from the orthogonal (i.e., horizontal) projection of a correctly oriented stereoscopic model formed by two overlapping aerial photographs; an orthophoto is free of tilt and relief displacements. ORTHOPHOTO MAP: Aerial photographs corrected to scale such that geographic measurements may be taken directly from prints OUT-OF-SERVICE RESOURCES: Resources assigned to an incident but unable to respond for mechanical, rest, or personnel reasons. OVERHEAD: Personnel assigned to supervisory positions, including incident commander, command staff, general staff, branch directors, supervisors, unit leaders, managers and staff. OVERSTORY: That portion of the trees in a forest, which forms the upper or uppermost layer. -PPACK TEST: The Pack Test is used to determine the aerobic capacity of fire suppression and support personnel and assign physical fitness scores. The test consists of walking a specified distance, with or without a weighted pack, in a pre-determined period of time, with altitude corrections. PARACARGO: Anything dropped, or intended for dropping from an aircraft by parachute or by other retardant devices, or by free fall. PARTS OF A FIRE: The Parts of a Fire, on typical free-burning fires, the spread is uneven with the main spread moving with the wind or upslope. The most rapidly moving portion is designated the head of the fire. The adjoining portions of the perimeter at right angles to the head are known as the flanks, and the slowest moving portion is known as the rear or the base or (Australia) the back. PATROL: 1 2 To travel over a given route to prevent, detect, and suppress fires. Includes interaction with the public for wildland fire prevention and educational purposes. To go back and fourth vigilantly over a length of control line during and/or after construction to prevent breakovers, suppress spot fires, and extinguish overlooked hot Page 130 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 3 spots. A person or group of persons who carry out patrol actions. PEAK FIRE SEASON: That period of the fire season during which fires are expected to ignite most readily, to burn with greater than average intensity, and to create damages at an unacceptable level. PEAK WIND: The greatest 5-second average wind speed during the previous hour that exceeded 25 knots. PEAK WIND SPEED: Maximum wind speed during the previous 60 minutes. PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT (PPE): That equipment and clothing required to mitigate the risk of injury from or exposure to hazardous conditions encountered during the performance of duty. PPE includes but is not limited to: fire resistant clothing, hard hat, flight helmets, shroud, goggles, gloves, respirators, hearing protection, chainsaw chaps, and shelter. PILING AND BURNING: Piling slash resulting from logging or fuel management activities and subsequently burning the individual piles. PING PONG BALL SYSTEM: Mechanized method of dispensing DAIDs (Delayed Aerial Ignition Devices) at a selected rate. The DAIDs are polystyrene balls, 1.25 inches in diameter, containing potassium permanganate. The balls are fed into a dispenser, generally mounted in a helicopter, where they are injected with water-glycol solution and then drop through a chute leading out of the helicopter. The chemicals react thermally and ignite in 25-30 seconds. The space between ignition points on the ground is primarily a function of helicopter speed, gear ratio of the dispenser, and the number of chutes used (up to four). PLAN OF ATTACK: The selected course of action and organization of personnel and equipment in fire suppression, as applied to a particular fire or to all fires of a specific type. PLANNING MEETING: A meeting held as needed throughout the duration of an incident, to select specific strategies and tactics for incident control operations, and for service and support planning. On larger incidents, the planning meeting is a major element in the development of the Incident Action Plan. PLANNING SECTION: Responsible for the collection, evaluation, and dissemination of tactical information related to the incident, and for the preparation and documentation of Incident Action Plans. The Section also maintains information on the current and forecasted situation, and on the status of resources assigned to the incident. This includes the Situation, Resources, Documentation, and Demobilization Units, as well as Technical Specialists. PLASTIC SPHERE DISPENSER: Device installed, but jettisonable, in a helicopter, which injects glycol into a plastic sphere containing potassium permanganate, which is then expelled from the machine and aircraft. This produces an exothermic reaction resulting in ignition of fuels on the ground for prescribed or wildland fire applications Page 131 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 PLOW LINE: Fireline constructed by a fire plow, usually drawn by a tractor or other motorized equipment. PLUME: A convection column generated by combustion (of wildland fuel). PLUME-DOMINATED WILDLAND FIRE: A wildland fire whose activity is determined by the convection column. POINT OF ORIGIN: The precise location where a competent ignition source came into contact with the material first ignited and sustained combustion occurred. PREATTACK: A planned, systematic procedure for collecting recording, and evaluating prefire and fire management intelligence data for a given planning unit or preattack block. The planning phase is usually followed by a construction and development program integrated with other resources and activities. PREATTACK PLANNING: Within designated blocks of land, planning the locations of firelines, fire camps, water sources, and helispots; planning transportation systems, probable rates of travel, and constraints of travel on various types of attack units; and determining what types of attack units likely would be needed to construct particular firelines, their probable rate of fireline construction, and topographic constraints on fireline construction. PRECIPITATION: Any or all forms of water particles, liquid or solid, that falls from the atmosphere and reach the ground. PREDICTIVE SERVICES: Those Geographic Area and National-level fire weather or fire danger services and products produced by wildland fire agency meteorologists and intelligence staffs in support of resource allocation and prioritization. PREPAREDNESS: Preparedness is a condition or degree of being ready to cope with a potential fire situation. PREPAREDNESS LEVEL: Increments of planning and organization readiness commensurate with increasing fire danger. PRESCRIBED BURNING: Application of prescribed fire. Page 132 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 PRESCRIBED FIRE: Any fire ignited by management actions under certain, predetermined conditions to meet specific objective related to hazardous fuels or habitat improvement. A written, approved prescribed fire plan must exist, and NEPA requirements must be met upon ignition. PRESCRIBED FIRE BURN PLAN: A plan required for each fire application ignited by management. Plans are documents prepared by qualified personnel, approved by the agency administrator, and include criteria for the conditions under which the fire will be conducted (a prescription). Plan content varies among the agencies. PRESCRIPTION: 1 A Prescription is a measurable criterion that defines conditions under which a prescribed fire may be ignited, guide selection of appropriate management responses, and indicate other required actions. The Prescription criteria may include safety, economic, public health, and environmental, geographic, administrative, social, or legal considerations. 2 PRESSURE GRADIENT: The difference in atmospheric pressure between two points on a weather map. That is, the magnitude of pressure difference between two points at sea level, or at constant elevation above sea level. Wind speed is directly related to pressure gradient. If distance between constant pressure lines is reduced by one-half, wind speed will be doubled. Conversely, if distance between lines is doubled, wind speed will be reduced by one-half. PRESUPPRESSION: Activities in advance of fire occurrence to ensure effective suppression action. Includes planning the organization, recruiting and training, procuring equipment and supplies, maintaining fire equipment and fire control improvements, and negotiating cooperative and/or mutual aid agreements. PRETREAT: The use of water, foam or retardant along a control line in advance of the fire. Often used where ground cover or terrain is considered best for control action. PREVENTION: 1 2 Activities directed at reducing the incidence of fires, including public education, law enforcement, personal contact, and reduction of fuel hazards (fuels management). Actions to avoid an incident, to intervene for the purpose of stopping an incident from occurring, or to mitigate an incident’s effect to protect life and property. Includes measures designed to mitigate damage by reducing or eliminating risks to persons or property, lessening the potential effects or consequences of an incident. PROBABILITY: A number representing the chance that a given event will occur. The range is from 0% for an impossible event, to 100% for an inevitable event. Page 133 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 PROBABILITY OF IGNITION: The chance that a firebrand will cause an ignition when it lands of receptive fuels. PROCUREMENT UNIT: The Procurement Unit functions within the Finance/ Administration Section responsible for financial matters involving vendor contracts. PROGRESSIVE HOSE LAY: A hose lay in which double shutoff wyes are inserted in the main line at intervals and lateral lines are run from the wyes to the fire edge, thus permitting continuous application of water during extension of the lay. PROPERTY PROTECTION: To protect structures from damage by fire, whether the fire is inside the structure, or is threatening the structure from an exterior source. The municipal firefighter is trained and equipped for this mission and not usually trained and equipped to suppress wildland fires. Wildland fire protection agencies are not normally trained nor charged with the responsibility to provide structural fire protection but will act within their training and capabilities to safety prevent a wildland fire from igniting structures. PROTECTION AREA: That area for which a particular fire protection organization has the primary responsibility for attacking an uncontrolled fire and for directing the suppression action. Such responsibility may develop through law, contract, or personal interest of the fire protection agent. Several agencies or entities may have some basic responsibilities without being known as the fire organization having direct protection responsibility. PROTECTION BOUNDARY: The exterior perimeter of an area within which a specified fire agency has assumed a degree of responsibility for wildland fire control. It may include land in addition to that for which the agency has jurisdiction or contractual responsibility. PRUNING: Pruning is the removal of live and dead branches in the lower portion of the tree crown. PULASKI: Pulaski is a combination chopping and trenching tool which combines a single-bitted axe-blade with a narrow adze-like trenching blade fitted to a straight handle. It is useful for grubbing or trenching in duff and matted roots. It is also well balanced for chopping. -RRADIANT BURN: A thermal trauma that maybe a superficial, partial thickness or full thickness burn. RADIANT HEAT FLUX: The amount of heat flowing through a given time, usually expressed as calories/square centimeter/second. Page 134 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 RADIO CACHE: A supply of radios stored in a pre-determined location for assignment to incidents. RAILROAD FIRE: A fire resulting from any operation or activity of a common carrier railroad, except smoking. RANGE FIRE: Any wildfire on rangeland. RANGER DISTRICT: An administrative subdivision of a national forest (under a district ranger) or other tract of public land. RAPPELLING: Rappelling is a technique of landing specifically trained firefighters from hovering helicopters; involves sliding down ropes with the aid of friction-producing devices. RATE OF SPREAD: The relative activity of a fire in extending its horizontal dimensions. It is expressed as a rate of increase of the total perimeter of the fire, as rate of forward spread of the fire front, or as rate of increase in area, depending on the intended use of the information. Usually it is expressed in chains or acres per hour for a specific period in the fire’s history. REBURN: 1 Repeat burning of an area over which a fire has previously passed, but left fuel that later ignites when burning conditions are more favorable. An area that has reburned. 2 RECOVERY: 1 2 The increase in fuel moisture as a result of increased relative humidity, usually occurring overnight. The general term used to describe the maximum overnight value of atmospheric relative humidity. RED FLAG CONDITIONS: The Red Flag Conditions consist of: 1 Dry thunderstorm activity during extremely dry periods or when a marked increase in dry thunderstorm activity is forecast during a drier than normal period 2 Surface winds are expected to increase 20 mph or higher or change directions abruptly due to the approach and passage of a cold front, squall line, or other weather phenomena other than isolated thunderstorms. Prolonged hot and dry conditions (RH below 205) in combination with a Fire Danger Rating of High or greater. 3 Page 135 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 4 5 A combination of conditions listed above. Anytime the forecaster foresees a change in weather that would result in a significant increase in fire danger. RED FLAG WARNING: Term used by fire weather forecasters to alert forecast users to an ongoing or imminent critical fire weather pattern. REHABILITATION: Efforts undertaken within three years of a wildland fire to repair or improve fire damaged lands unlikely to recover to a management approved conditions or to repair or replace minor facilities damaged by fire. REINFORCED RESPONSE: Those resources requested in addition to the initial response. RELATIVE HUMIDITY (Rh): The ratio of the amount of moisture in the air, to the maximum amount of moisture that air would contain if it were saturated. The ratio of the actual vapor pressure to the saturated vapor pressure. REMOTE AUTOMATIC WEATHER STATION (RAWS): A GEOS telemetered weather station that transmits hourly observations 24 times per day. These observations are automatically delivered through ASCADS to WIMS. REPORTING LOCATIONS: The Reporting Location or facilities is the area where incoming resources can check-in at the incident (See Check-in.) RESCUE: Rescue is a vehicle capable of providing emergency medical services. RESIDENCE TIME: Residence Time is the time required for the flaming zone of a fire to pass a stationary point; the width of the flaming zone divided by the rate of spread of the fire. RESISTENCE TO CONTROL: The relative difficulty of constructing and holding a control line as affected by resistance to line construction and by fire behavior. Also called difficulty of control. RESOURCES: 1 2 Resources are the personnel and equipment available, or potentially available, for assignment to be used in tactical support or overhead capacities at an incident. The natural resources of an area are described by kind and typed, e.g., timber, crass, ground, watershed values, recreation values, air, and wildlife habitat, etc. Page 136 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 RESOURCE MANAGEMENT PLAN (RMP): Resource Management Plan is the document prepared by a field office staff with public participation and approved by field office managers. It provides general guidance and direction for land management activities at a field office. The RMP identifies the need for fire in a particular area and for a specific benefit. RESOURCE ORDER: Resource Order is an order placed for firefighting or support resources. RESOURCE ORDERING AND STATUS SYSTEM (ROSS): A national system that provides automated support to interagency and agency dispatch and coordination offices. The system will provide current status of resources available to support all-risk activities; enables dispatch offices to exchange and track resource ordering information electronically; enable dispatch offices to rapidly and reliably exchange mission-critical emergency electronic messages. RESPONSE: 1 2 Movement of an individual firefighting resource from its assigned standby location to another location or to an incident in reaction to dispatch orders or to a reported alarm. Activities that address the short-term, direct effect of an incident, including immediate actions to save lives, protect property, and meet basic human needs. Also includes the execution of emergency operations plans as well as mitigation activities designed to limit the loss of life personal injury, property damage, and other unfavorable outcomes. RESPONSIBLE FIRE AGENCY: Agency with primary responsibility for fire suppression on any particular land area. RESTORATION: The continuation of rehabilitation beyond the initial three years or the repair or replacement of major facilities damaged by the fire. RETARDANT: A substance or chemical agent, which reduces the flammability of combustibles. RETARDANT BASE: Ground facilities for mixing, storing, and loading fire retardant into air tankers. RISK: 1 2 3 The chance of fire starting as determined by the presence and activity of causative agents. A chance of suffering harm or loss. A causative agent. Page 137 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 4 (NFDRS) a number related to the potential of firebrands to which a given area will be exposed during the rating day. RISK SOURCE: Identifiable human activity that historically has been a major cause of wildfires on a protection unit; one of the eight general causes listed on the standard fire report. RUN (OF A FIRE): This is the rapid advance of the head of a fire with a marked change in fire line intensity and rate of spread from that noted before and after the advance. RUNNING FIRE: A rapidly spreading surface fire with a well defined head. RURAL FIRE DISTRICT: An organization established to provide fire protection to a designated geographic area outside of areas under municipal fire protection. Usually has some taxing authority and officials may be appointed or elected. RURAL FIRE PROTECTION: Fire protection and firefighting problems that are outside of areas under municipal fire prevention and building regulations and that are usually remote from public water supplies. -SSADDLE: Depression or pass in a ridgeline. SAFETY ALERT: A warning or alert concerning critical information relating to firefighter safety that is distributed via email through an NWCG mail server. There are three types of alerts: Safety Warning, Safety Advisory, and safety Bulletin. SAFETY BRIEFING: A safety briefing emphasizes key safety concerns on the incident and is presented at each briefing session. The safety briefing should contain information to alert incident personnel of potential risk/hazard considered to be most critical. SAFETY OFFICER: A member of the Command Staff responsible for monitoring an assessing safety hazards or unsafe situations, and for developing measures for ensuring personnel safety. The Safety Officer may have assistants. Page 138 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 SAFETY ZONE: An area cleared of flammable materials used for escape in the event the line is outflanked or in case a spot fire causes fuels outside the control line to render the line unsafe. In fire operations, crews progress so as to maintain a safety zone close at hand allowing the fuels inside the control line to be consumed before going ahead. Safety zones may also be constructed as integral parts of fuelbreaks; they are greatly enlarged areas, which can be used with relative safety by firefighters and their equipment in the event of blowup in the vicinity. SCRATCH LINE: A Scratch Lin is an unfinished preliminary fire line hastily established or built as an emergency measure to check the spread of fire. SCORCH HEIGHT: Average heights of foliage browning or bole blackening caused by a fire. SECONDARY LINE: A Secondary Line is any fire line constructed at a distance from the fire perimeter concurrently with or after a primary control line has already been constructed on or near to the perimeter of the fire. It is generally constructed as an insurance measure in case the fire escapes control by the primary line. SECTION: The Section is responsible for organizing the major functions of the incident, e.g., Operations, Planning, Logistics, Finance/ Administration. The Section is organizationally between Branch and Incident Commander. SEGMENT: A geographical area in which a task force/strike team leader or supervisor of a single resource is assigned authority and responsibility for the coordination of resources and implementation of planned tactics. A segment may be a portion of a division or an area inside or outside the perimeter of an incident. Segments are identified with Arabic numbers. SERAL: Seral is an ecological sere, e.g., a series of ecological communities formed in ecological succession. SERVICE BRANCH: The Service Branch is a Branch within the Logistics Section responsible for service activities at the incident. It includes the Communications, Medical, and Food Units. SEVERITY FUNDING: Suppression funds used to increase the level of pre-suppression capability and fire preparedness when predicted or actual burning conditions exceed those normally expected, due to severe weather conditions. Page 139 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 SHADED FUELBREAK: Fuelbreaks built in timbered areas where the trees on the break are thinned and pruned to reduce the fire potential yet retain enough crown canopy to make a less favorable microclimate for surface fires. SHORT-RANGE SPOTTING: Firebrands, flaming sparks, or embers are carried by surface winds, starting new fires beyond the zone of direct ignition by the main fire. The range of such spotting is usually less than ¼ mile. SHORT-TERM FIRE RETARDANT: A chemical which has not inherent fire retarding property but which alters the viscosity or retards the evaporation of water. SIMPLE HOSE LAY: A Hose Lay consists of consecutively coupled lengths of hose without laterals. The lay is extended by inserting additional lengths of hose in the line between pump and nozzle. SINGLE RESOURCE: The Single Resource is an individual, a piece of equipment and its personnel complement, or a crew or team of individuals with an identified work supervisor that can be sued on an incident. SITE PREPARATION: Removal or killing unwanted vegetation, residue, etc. by use of fire, herbicides, or mechanical treatment in preparation for reforestation and future management. SITUATION ANALYSIS: Analysis of factors which influence suppression of an escaped fire from which a plan of attack will be developed; includes development of alternative strategies of fire suppression and net effect of each. SITUATION UNIT: Functional unit within the Planning Section responsible for the collection, organization, and analysis of incident status information, and for analysis of the situation as it progresses. This Unit reports to the Planning Section Chief. SIZE CLASS OF FIRE: As to size of wildfire: Class A – on-fourth acre or less; Class B – more than one-fourth acre, but less than 10 acres; Class C – 10 acres or more, but less than 100 acres; Class D – 100 acres or more, but less than 300 acres; Class E – 300 acres or more, but less than 1,000 acres; Class F – 1,000 acres or more, but less than 5,000 acres; Class G – 5,000 acres or more. SIZEUP: Size-up means to evaluate a fire to determine a course of action for fire suppression. Page 140 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 SLASH: Slash is the debris left after logging, pruning, thinning or brush cutting: This includes logs, chips, bark, branches, stumps and broken understory trees or brush. SLASH DISPOSAL: Treatment of slash to reduce fire hazard or for other purposes (Preferred to Brush Disposal). SLING LOAD: Any cargo carried beneath a helicopter and attached by a lead line and swivel. SLOPE: Slope is the variation of terrain from the horizontal; the number of feet rises or fall per hundred feet measured horizontally, expressed as a percentage. SLOPE CLASS: One of five categories used to describe the topography of a fire danger rating area. SLOP-OVER A fire edge that crosses a control line or natural barrier intended to contain the fire and also the fire that results. Other names are break away, break over, and break over fire. SLOPE PERCENT: The ratio between the amount of vertical rise of a slope and horizontal distance as expressed in a percent. One hundred feet of rise to 100 feet of horizontal distance equals 100 percent. SLOPE WINDS: Small-scale convective winds that occur due to local heating and cooling of a natural incline of the ground. SMOKE: 1 2 The visible products of combustion rising above a fire. Term used when reporting a fire or probable fire in its initial stages. SMOKE MANAGEMENT: Smoke Management is the application of fire intensities and meteorological processes to minimize degradation of air quality during prescribed fires. SMOKE PLUME: The gases, smoke, and debris that rise slowly from a fire while being carried along the ground because the buoyant forces are exceeded by those of the ambient surface wind. SMOKEJUMPER: A firefighter who travels to fires by aircraft and parachute. Page 141 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 SMOLDERING FIRE: Smoldering Fire is a fire burning without flame and barely spreading. SNAG: A Snag is a standing dead tree or part of a dead tree from which at least the smaller branches have fallen. SPAN OF CONTROL: The Span of Control is the maximum number of subordinates who can be directly supervised by one person without loss of efficiency. In fire suppression, the number varies by activity but is usually in the general range of 3 to 7. SPARK ARRESTER: A Spark Arrester is a device installed in a chimney, flue, or exhaust pipe to stop the emission of sparks and burning fragments. SPECIMEN TREES: Specimen Trees are vigorous trees left within a fuel break to enhance the visual characteristics of the fuel break without compromising its objective. SPOT FIRE: A Spot Fire is a fire ignited outside the perimeter of the main fire by flying sparks or embers. SPOT WEATHER FORECAST: A special forecast issued to fit the time, topography, and weather of a specific incident. Theses forecasts are issued upon request of the user agency and are more detailed, timely, and specific than zone forecasts. Usually, on-site weather observations or a close; representative observation is required for a forecast to be issued. SPOTTER: In smoke jumping, the spotter is responsible for selecting drop targets and supervising all aspects of dropping smoke jumpers. SPOTTING: Behavior of a fire producing sparks or embers that are carried by the wind and which start new fire beyond the zone of direct ignition by the main fire. SPREAD COMPONENT: Part of the National Fire Danger Rating System (NFDRS). A rating of the forward rate of spread of the head of a fire. STAGING AREA: Locations set up at an incident where resources can be placed while awaiting a tactical assignment. Staging Areas are managed by the Operations Section. Page 142 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 STAND REPLACING FIRE: Fire which kills all or most of the living overstory trees in a forest and initiates forest succession or regowth. Also explicitly describes the nature of fire in grasslands and some shrublands. STATE FOREST: Forests owned and administered by a state, and not by a federal government. STATE PARK: An area established by the government of a state primarily for public recreation or for the preservation of unique natural or historic resources, administrative details varying widely. NOTE: Such parks may also be established by lesser administrative units, e.g. countries, municipalities, and also by large private owners. STRATEGY: Strategy is an overall plan of action for fighting a fire which gives regard to the most cost efficient use of personnel and equipment in consideration of values threatened, fire behavior, legal constraints, and objectives established for resource management. This leaves decisions on the tactical use of personnel and equipment to supervisors and leaders in the operations section. STRIKE TEAM: Specified combinations of the same kind of type of resources, with common communications, and a leader. STRIKE TEAM LEADER: The ICS position responsible for supervision a strike team. Reports to a Division/Group Supervisor or Operations Section Chief. This position may supervise a strike team of engines, crews, dozers, or tractor/plows. STRIP BURNING: 1 2 Burning by means of strip firing. In hazard reduction, burning narrow strips of fuel and leaving the rest of the area untreated by fire. STRIP FIRING: Stetting fire to more than one strip of fuel and providing for the strips to burn together. Frequently done in burning out against a wind where inner strips are fired first to create drafts; which pull flames and sparks away from the control line. STRIP HEAD FIRE: A series of lines of fire ignited near and up wind (or downslope) of a firebreak or backing fire so they burn with the wind (or upslope) toward the firebreak or backing fire. STRUCTURE: A constructed object, usually a freestanding building above ground. Page 143 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 STRUCTURE FIRE: A structure fire is a fire originating in and burning any part or all of any building, shelter, or other structures. STRUCTURE FIRE PROTECTION: The protection of a structure from interior and exterior fire ignition sources. This fire protection service is normally provided by municipal fire departments, with trained and equipped personnel. After life safety, the agency’s priority is to keep the fire from leaving the structure of origin and to protect the structure from an advancing wildland fire. (The equipment and training required to conduct structural fire protection is not normally provided to the wildland firefighter.) Various taxing authorities fund this service. STRUCTURE FIRE SUPPRESSION: Structure Fire Suppression is the interior or exterior actions taken to suppress and extinguish a burning structure or improvement. STRUCTURE PROTECTION: Structure Protection is the action to protect the structure from the threat of damage from an advancing wildfire. This normally does not include an attack of fire that is inside the structure. It involves the use of fire control lines (constructed or natural) and the extinguishment of spot fires near or on the structure. This protection can be provided by the structural or wildland fire fighter. SUBURBAN: Suburban is the residential perimeter of a metropolitan area, which lies adjacent to undeveloped rural land. SUBSIDENCE: Downward or sinking motion of air in the atmosphere. Subsiding air warms due to compression. Increasing temperature and decreasing humidity are present in subsiding air. Subsidence results in a stable atmosphere inhibiting dispersion. Subsidence is generally associated with high atmospheric pressure. SUBSIDENCE INVERSION: Subsidence Inversion is a slow sinking motion of a high level air mass over a broad area. This is often associated with the presence of a high-pressure system. Frequently results in very limited atmospheric mixing conditions. SUCCESSION: The process of vegetational development whereby an area becomes successively occupied by different plant communities of higher ecological order. SUPERVISOR: The ICS title for individuals responsible for command of a Division or Group. Page 144 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 SUPPLY UNIT: Functional unit within the Support Branch of the Logistics Section responsible for ordering equipment and supplies required for incident operations SUPPORT BRANCH: The Support Branch is a Branch within the Logistics Section responsible for providing personnel, equipment, and supplies to support incident operations. This includes the Supply, Facilities, and Ground Support Units. SUPPORTING TECHNOLOGIES: Any technology, which may be used to support NIIMS. Examples of these technologies include GIS mapping, infrared technology, NFDRS, communications, dispatch coordination, and national cache system. SUPPORT RESOURCES: The Support Resources are Non-tactical resources under the supervision of the Logistics, Planning, Finance/ Administration Sections, or the Command Staff. SUPPRESSANT: A suppressant is an agent, such as water or foam, used to extinguish the flaming and glowing phases of combustion when direction applied to burning fuels. SUPPRESSION: Suppression is all the work of extinguishing or containing a fire, beginning with its discovery. SURFACE FIRE: A Surface Fire is a fire that burns surface litter, other loose debris of the forest floor, and small vegetation. SURFACE FUEL: Fuels lying on or near the surface of the ground, consisting of leaf and needle litter, dead branch material, downed logs, bark, tree cones, and low stature living plants. SURFACE HIGH: An area on the earth’s surface where atmospheric pressure is at a relative maximum. Winds blow clockwise around highs in the Northern Hemisphere but, due to friction with the earth’s face, tend to cross constant pressure lines away from the high center. Air is usually subsiding above a surface high. This causes warming due to air compression. This results in stable atmospheric conditions and light surface winds. SURFACE LOW: An area on the earth’s surface where atmospheric pressure is at a relative minimum. Winds blow counter-clockwise around lows in the Northern Hemisphere but due to friction with the earth’s surface, tend to cross constant pressure lines toward the low center. Upon converging into the low’s center, air currents are forced to rise. As air rises it cools due to expansion. Cooling reduces its capacity to hold moisture; so cloudiness and precipitation are common in lows. If a low center intensifies sufficiently it will take on the characteristics of a storm center with precipitation and strong winds. Page 145 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 SURFACE WIND: Wind measured at a surface observing station, customarily at some distance (usually 20 feet) above the average vegetative surface to minimize the distorting effects of local obstacles and terrain. SUSTAINED ATTACK: Continuing fire suppression action until fire is under control. SWAMPER: 1 A worker who is used to walk ahead of the dozer to guide the operator and assists fallers and/or sawyers by clearing away brush, limbs and small trees. They carry fuel, oil and tools and watches for dangerous situations. A worker on a dozer crew, who pulls winch line, helps maintain equipment, etc., to speed suppression work on a fire. 2 -TTACTICAL DIRECTION: Direction given by the Operations Section Chief which includes the tactics appropriate for the selection strategy, the selection and assignment of resources, tactics implementation, and performance monitoring for each operational period. TACTICS: Tactics are the operational aspects of fire suppression. Determining exactly where and how to build a control line and what other suppression measures are necessary to extinguish the fire. To deploy and direct resources on an incident to accomplish the objectives designated by strategy. TAILGATE SAFETY SESSION: Brief meetings held at the beginning, during, or end of an operational period to discuss new work assignments, new work methods, changes in plans, use of tools and equipment, and recognition and protection against work hazards that may be encountered. TASK FORCE: A combination of single resources assembled for a particular tactical need, with common communications and a leader. TECHNICAL SPECIALISTS: Technical Specialists are the personnel with special skills that can be used anywhere within the ICS organization. TEMPORARY FLIGHT RESTRICTIONS (TFR): TFRs are temporary airspace restrictions for non-emergency aircraft in the incident area. TFRs are established and put into effect by the FAA in the vicinity of an incident to ensure aircraft safety, and are normally limited to a five-nautical-mile radius and 2000 feet in altitude. Page 146 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 TEN-HOUR TIMELAG FUEL MOISTURE (10-HR TL FM): The moisture content of the 10-hour timelag roundwood fuels. TEN-HOUR TIMELAG FUELS: Dead fuels consisting of round wood ¼ to 1-inch (0.6 to 2.6 cm) in diameter and, very roughly, the layer of litter extending from immediately below the surface to ¾ inch (1.9 cm) below the surface. TERRA TORCH: A Terra Torch is a device for throwing a stream of flaming liquid, used to facilitate rapid ignition during burn out operations on a wildland fire or during a prescribed fire operation. TERRORISM: Any premeditated, unlawful act dangerous to human life or public welfare that is intended to intimidate or coerce civilian populations or governments. TEST FIRE: A prescribed fire set to evaluate such things as fire behavior, fire effects, detection performance, or control measures. THERMAL BELT: An area of mountainous slope (characteristically the middle third), where the tope of the radiation inversion intersects the slope. It typically experiences the least variation in diurnal temperatures and has the highest average temperatures and, thus, the lowest relative humidity. Its presence is most evident during clear weather with light wind. THERMAL IMAGERY: The display or printout of an infrared scanner operating over a fire. Also called infrared imagery. THINNING: Thinning is a selectively cutting of trees to improve the remaining forest stand, by removing trees of poor vigor or by reducing tree density. THUNDERSTORM: Localized storm characterized by one or more electrical discharge(s). TIE-IN: Act of connecting a control line to another fireline or an intended firebreak. TIMELAG: Time needed under specified conditions for a fuel particle to lose about 63 percent of the difference between its initial moisture content and its equilibrium moisture content. If conditions remain unchanged, a fuel will reach 95 percent of its equilibrium moisture content after 4 timelag periods. Page 147 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 TIME UNIT: The Time Unit is a functional unit within the Finance/ Administration Section responsible for recording time for incident personnel and hired equipment. TORCHING: The burning of the foliage of a single tree or a small group of trees, from the bottom up. TRANSITION: In the 1978 version of NFDRS, the herbaceous stage when herbaceous fuel moisture is between 120% and 30%. TRANSITION ZONE: Areas where the fire progress transitions from one direction to another, which are characterized by change in the appearance of the indicators. TRANSPORT WIND SPEED: A measure of the average rate of the horizontal transport of air within the Mixing Layer. May also be the wind speed at the final height of plume rise. Generally refers to the rate at which emissions will be transported from one area to another. TRAVEL TIME: Compensable time en route to or from an emergency incident. TREE CROWN: The primary and secondary branches growing out from the main stem, together with twigs and foliage. TRIGGER POINT: Trigger Point is a pre-determined point or line on a map. When a fire hits the trigger point, actions such as evacuations take place. TROUGH: An elongated area of relatively low atmospheric pressure, usually extending from the center of a lowpressure system. TURN-THE-CORNER: Turn -the- Corner means to contain a fire along a flank and begin containing it across the head. It refers to ground or air attack. TWO-WAY RADIO: Two-way Radio is the radio equipment with transmitters in mobile units on the same frequency as the base station, permitting conversation in two directions using the same frequency in turn. Page 148 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 TYPE: Type refers to capability of a firefighting resource in comparison to another type. A Type 1 resource provides a greater overall capability due to power, size, capacity, etc., than would be found in a Type 2 resource. Resource typing provides manager with additional information in selecting the best resource for the task. -UUNACCEPTABLE RISK: The level of risk as determined by the risk management process, which cannot be mitigated to an acceptable safe level. UNCONTROLLED FIRE: An Uncontrolled fire is any fire, which threatens to destroy life, property, or natural resources. UNDERBURN: A fire that consume surface fuels but not the overstory canopy. UNDERCUT LINE: A fireline below a fire on a slope. Should be trenched to catch rolling material. Also called underslung line. UNDERSTORY: Low-growing vegetation (herbaceous, brush or reproduction) growing under a stand of trees. Also, that portion of trees in a forest stand below the overstory. UNIFIED AREA COMMAND: A Unified Area Command is established when incidents under an Area Command are multijurisdictional. (See Area Command and Unified Command.) UNIFIED COMMAND: In ICS, Unified Command is a unified team effort which allows all agencies with responsibility for the incident, either geographical or functional, to manage an incident by establishing a common set of incident objectives and strategies. This is accomplished without losing or abdicating agency authority, responsibility, or accountability. UNIT: The Unit is the organizational element having functional responsibility for a specific incident planning, logistics, or finance/ administration activity. UNITY OF COMMAND: The concept by which each person within an organization reports to one and only one designated person. Page 149 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 UPPER LEVEL (Cold) LOW: (Upper Level Disturbance, Cold Low Aloft) A circulation feature of the upper atmosphere where pressure, at a constant altitude, is lowest. Winds blow counter-clockwise around the center in an approximately circular pattern. Upper level lows are usually quite small. The mechanics of these upper lows is such that a pool of cool moist air always accompanies their development. There is often no evidence of low pressure at the earth’s surface. An upper low may exist above a surface high pressure system. UPPER LEVEL (Cold) TROUGH: (Trough, Trough Aloft, Upper Level [Cold] Low) An elongated area of relatively low pressure, at constant altitude, in the atmosphere. The opposite of an upper level ridge. Upper level troughs are usually oriented north-south with the north end open. That is, air currents moving from west to east around the earth flow around three sides of the trough then turn eastward rather than toward the west, as in the case of a closed circulation. A large upper level trough may have one or more small upper level closed low circulation systems within it. UPPER LEVEL HIGH: (Upper High, High Aloft, Upper Level Ridge) A circulation feature of the upper atmosphere where pressure, at a constant altitude, is higher than in the surrounding region. Winds blow clockwise around an upper level high. Air in an upper level high is usually subsiding. This results in comparatively warm dry air with light winds over a large area. An upper level high may exist without there being high pressure at the earth’s surface. UPPER LEVEL RIDGE: (Upper Level High, Ridge Aloft) An elongated area of relatively high pressure, at a constant altitude, in the atmosphere. The opposite of an upper level trough. Upper level ridges are often oriented northsouth, alternating between upper level troughs; however, during summer they may assume random orientations and vast dimensions. URBAN: Area in which residences and other human developments form an essentially solid covering of the landscape, includes most areas within cities and towns, subdivision, commercial and industrial parks, and similar developments whether inside city limits or not. URBAN INTERFACE: Any area where wildland fuels threaten to ignite combustible homes and structures. -VVALUES TO BE PROTECTED: Include property, structures, physical improvements, natural and culture resources, community infrastructure, and economic, environmental, and social values. VALUES-AT-RISK: Values-At-Risk is the physical and non-physical elements of the environment that may be adversely affected by fire. Page 150 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 VECTORS: Vectors are the directions of fire spread as related to rate of spread calculations (in degrees from upslope). VEHICLE FIRE: Fire originating in or on a vehicle or mobile equipment. VENTILATION: Ventilation is the airflow and supply through a structure. VERTICAL FUEL ARRANGEMENT: Fuels above ground and their vertical continuity, which influences fire reaching various levels or vegetation strata. VIGOR: A subjective assessment of the health of individual plants in similar site and growing conditions; or a more specific measure based upon a specific facet of growth, such as seed stalk or tiller production per plant or per unit area. VIRGA: Precipitation falling out of a cloud but evaporating before reaching the ground. VISCOSITY: Thickness of a liquid, the degree to which it resists flow. VOLUNTEER FIRE COMPANY: A fire department company or a response unit, the members of which are not paid. VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPARTMENT (VFD): The VFD is a fire department of which some or all members are unpaid. VOLUNTEER FIREFIGHTER: Legally enrolled firefighter under the fire department organization laws who devote time and energy to community fire service without compensation other than Worker’s Compensation or other similar death and injury benefits. -WWALK TEST: The walk test is designed to determine the ability to carryout light duties. It consists of a one-mile test with no load that approximates an aerobic fitness score of 35. A time of 16 minutes, the passing score for this test, ensures the ability to meet emergency and evacuate to a safety zone. Page 151 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 WARM FRONT: The leading edge of a relatively warm air mass, which moves in such a way that warm air, replaces colder air that moves away from a region. Winds associated with warm frontal activity area usually light and mixing is limited. The atmosphere is relatively stable when compared to cold front activity. WATER BAR: A shallow channel or raised barrier, e.g., a ridge of packed earth or a thin pole laid diagonally across the surface of a road or trail so as to lead off water, particularly storm water. (Frequently installed in firelines on steep slopes to prevent erosion). WATER SOURCE: A source of water for firefighting activities. WATER SUPPLY MAP: A map showing location of supplies of water readily available for pumps, tanks, trucks, camp use, etc. WATER TENDER: A Water Tender is a ground vehicle capable of transporting specified quantities of water. WEATHER ADVISORY: An aviation forecasting, an expression of hazardous weather conditions not predicted in the zone weather forecast, as they affect the operation of air traffic. WEATHER INFORMATION AND MANAGEMENT SYSTEM (WIMS): A centralized weather data processing system at which daily fire danger ratings are produced. WET LINE: A line of water, or water and chemical retardant, sprayed along the ground, and which serves as a temporary control line from which to ignite or stop a low-intensity fire. WET WATER: Wet Water is water containing a wetting or foaming agent. WET-BULB TEMPERATURE: The lowest temperature to which air can be cooled by evaporating water into it at a constant pressure when the heat required for evaporation is supplied by the cooling of the air. It is measured by the wet bulb thermometer, which usually employs wetted wicking on the bulb as a cooling (through evaporation) device. WETTING AGENT: A Wetting Agent is an additive that reduces the surface tension of water (producing wet water) causing it to spread and penetrate more effectively. Page 152 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 WETTING RAIN: A widespread rain that over an extended period of time significantly reduces fire danger. One-tenth of an inch may be sufficient to reduce fire danger in grass fuel models. One half inch may be necessary for timber fuels under closed canopies. WILDFIRE: An unplanned, unwanted wildland fire including unauthorized human-caused fires, escaped wildland fire use events, escaped prescribed fire projects, and all other wildland fires where the objective is to put the fire out. WILDFIRE CAUSES: The general causes of wildland fires are (1) natural (such as lightning), (2) accidental (debris burning, children with matches, and so forth), and (3) intentional (arson). WILDFIRE SUPPRESSION: An appropriate management response to wildfire escaped wildland fire use or prescribed fire that results in curtailment of fire spread and eliminates all identified threats from the particular fire. WILDLAND: An area in which development is essentially non-existent, except for roads, railroads, power lines, and similar transportation facilities. Structures, if any, are widely scattered. WILDLAND FIRE: A Wildland Fire is any non-structure fire, other than prescribed fire, that occurs in the wildland. WILDLAND FIRE IMPLEMENTATION PLAN (WFIP): WFIP is a progressively developed assessment and operational management plan that documents the analysis and selection of strategies and describes the appropriate management response for a wildland fire being managed for resource benefits. WILDLAND FIRE PROTECTION: The protection of natural resources and watersheds from damage by wildland fires. State and Federal forestry or land management agencies normally provide wildland fire protection with trained and equipped personnel. (The equipment and training required to conduct wildland fire protection is not normally provided to the structural fire protection firefighter.) Various taxing authorities and fees fund this service. WILDLAND FIRE SITUATION ANALYSIS: (WFSA) A decision-making process that evaluates alternative wildfire suppression strategies against selected environmental, social, political, and econo9mic criteria, and provides a record of those decisions. WILDLAND FIRE USE: The application of the appropriate management responses to naturally-ignited wildland fires to accomplish specific resource management objectives in pre-defined designated areas outlined in Fire Management Plans. Operational management is described in the Wildland Fire Implementation Plan (WFIP). Page 153 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 WILDLAND/URBAN INTERFACE (WUI): The line, area, or zone where structures and other human development meet or intermingle with undeveloped wildland or vegetative fuels. WIND: The horizontal movement of air relative to the surface of the earth. WIND DIRECTION: Compass direction from which wind is blowing. WIND SHIFT: 1 2 For aviation purposes, a change in the average wind direction of 45 degrees or more which takes place in less than 15 minutes if the wind speed during this period is 6 knots (3 m/s) or greater. For ground observation purposes, a change of at least 45 degrees in the direction of a significant wind which occurs in a relatively short time frame. WIND SPEED: 1 2 Wind, in miles per hour, measured at 20 feet above open, level ground or as adjusted to meet this standard to compensate for height of ground cover, uneven ground, and nearby obstructions. (NFDRS) Wind, in mph, measured at 20 feet above ground, or above the average height of vegetation, and averaged over at least a 10-minute period. Also called wind velocity. WIND VECTORS: Wind Vectors are wind directions used to calculate fire behavior. WIND-DRIVEN WILDLAND FIRE: A wildland fire that is controlled by a strong consistent wind. WINDS ALOFT: Generally, wind speeds and wind directions at a various levels in the atmosphere above the domain of surface weather observations. WOODY FUEL MOISTURE: In NFDRS< a calculated value representing the approximate moisture content of the live woody vegetation in the rating area expressed as a percentage of the oven dry weight of the sample. WORK CAPACITY TEST: A family of tests to determine firefighter physical capabilities. Work capacity tests are used to ensure that persons assigned to fire activities are physically capable of performing the duties of wildland firefighting and to meet National Wildfire Coordinating Group (NWCG) standards for wildland firefighters (Wildland Fire Qualification Subsystem Guide 310-1, NWCG, 1993). The WCT is a family of tests to determine firefighter physical capabilities at three levels: Page 154 of 160 Glossary of Wildland Fire Terminology April 2007 Arduous: “Duties involve field work requiring physical performance calling for above-average endurance and superior conditioning. These duties may include an occasional demand for extraordinarily strenuous activities in emergencies under adverse environmental conditions and over extended periods. Requirements include running, walking, climbing, jumping, twisting, bending, and lifting more than 50 pounds; the pace of work typically is set by the emergency condition”. Moderate: “Duties involve field work requiring complete control of all physical faculties and may include considerable walking over irregular ground, standing for long periods, lifting 25 to 50 pounds, climbing, bending, stooping, squatting, twisting, and reaching. Occasional demands may be required for moderately strenuous activities in emergencies over long periods. Individuals usually set their own work pace”. Light: “Duties mainly involve office-type work with occasional field activity characterized by light physical exertion requiring basic good health. Activities may include climbing stairs, standing, operating a vehicle, and long hours of work, as well as some bending, stooping, or light lifting. Individuals almost always can govern the extent and pace of their physical activity”. Pack Test: The pack test is a job-related test of the capacity for arduous work. It consists of a 3-mile hike with a 45pound pack over level terrain. A time of 45 minutes, the passing score for the test, approximates an aerobic fitness score of 45, the established standard for wildland firefighters. Field Test: The field test is a job-related test of work capacity designed for those with moderately strenuous duties. It consists of a 2-mile hike with a 25-pound pack. A time of 30 minutes, the passing score, approximates an aerobic fitness score of 40. Walk Test: The walk test is designed to determine the ability to carry out light duties. It consists of a 1-0mile test with no load that approximates an aerobic fitness score of 35. A time of 16 minutes, the passing score for the test, ensures the ability to meet emergencies and evacuate to a safety zone. WORK/REST RATIO: An expression of the amount of rest that is required for each hour an individual is in work status. Current NWCG guidelines required one hour of rest for every two hours in work status. - ZZONE WEATHER FORECAST: A portion of the general fire weather forecast issued on a regular basis during the normal fire season specifically to fit the requirements of fire management needs; i.e., time, areas, and weather elements. These zones or areas are a combination of administrative and climatological areas, usually nearly the size of an individual forest or district. Page 155 of 160 Public Education Materials June 2007 10.3. Public Education Materials This Section provides background information to the citizens and makes suggestions for what they can do individually and collectively to survive a wildland fire. 10.3.1. Community Emergency Response Teams Community-based preparedness planning allows us to prepare for and respond to anticipated disruptions and potential hazards following a disaster. As individuals, we can prepare our homes and families to cope during that critical period. Through pre-event planning, neighborhoods and worksites can also work together to help reduce injuries, loss of lives, and property damage. Neighborhood preparedness will enhance the ability of individuals and neighborhoods to reduce their emergency needs and to manage their existing resources until professional assistance becomes available. With training and information, individuals and community groups can be prepared to serve as a crucial resource capable of performing many of the emergency functions needed in the immediate post-disaster period. The Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) program is designed to help communities prepare for effective disaster response through training and planning. If available, emergency services personnel are the best trained and equipped to handle emergencies, and you should use them. However, following a catastrophic disaster, you and the community may be on your own for a period of time because of the size of the area affected, lost communications, and impassable roads. CERT training is designed to prepare you to help yourself, your family, and your neighbors in the event of a catastrophic disaster. This training covers basic skills that are important to know in a disaster when emergency services are not available. With training and practice and by working as a team, you will be able to do the greatest good for the greatest number of victims after a disaster, while protecting yourself from becoming a victim. CERT training is available through the Federal Emergency Management Agency. As each CERT is organized and trained and in accordance with standard operating procedures developed by the sponsoring agency, its members select a team leader and an alternate and identify a meeting location, or staging area, to be used in the event of a disaster. The CERT program can provide an effective first-response capability. Acting as individuals first, then later as members of teams, trained CERT volunteers can fan out within their assigned areas, extinguishing small fires, turning off natural gas inlets to damaged homes, performing light search and rescue, and rendering basic medical treatment. Trained volunteers also offer an important potential workforce to service organizations in non-hazardous functions such as shelter support, crowd control, and evacuation. 10.3.2. Emergency Communication All fires or emergencies should be immediately reported to 911! Helpful information to provide to the dispatcher when calling 911 includes: Type of incident (fire, medical emergency, rescue) Location of incident (address, mile marker) Directions Your name, address or location, and a phone number where you can be reached. 10.3.3. Agency Fire Response Plan All fires in the Chouteau County are suppressed as rapidly as possible, no matter how they start or whose land they are burning on. Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 10.3 -156 Public Education Materials June 2007 Response to a structure or wildland fire in the Chouteau County does not depend upon whose land the fire started on, but rather in which agency’s jurisdiction the incident is located. Typically during the summer fire season, both the Lewistown Field Office – Lewistown Station, Lewis and Clark National ‘Forest and/or Chouteau County Fire Department will respond and suppress the fire and determine jurisdiction later. Bureau of Land Management and United States Forest Service personnel are not trained, equipped, or authorized to enter burning structures, but they can take action on the exterior of a structure and will assist the Chouteau County FD in protecting exposures and surrounding wildland fuels. The first few hours of a wildland fire may be chaotic as crews try to accurately assess the situation (public safety, cause, terrain, access, fire behavior, values at risk, weather, etc.). It is important that residents and visitors stay away from a fire incident, especially during the initial phases of the fire. Significant incident management problems arise when: Fires threaten human lives or public safety. The fire grows or fire behavior changes faster than crews are deployed or redeployed. There are multiple lightning strikes in the area. Emergency vehicle access is restricted. Unanticipated events occur such as a second large wildland fire or a fire fighter fatality. There is a shortage of resources or resources are being prioritized on a Regional or National basis. Another likely scenario is when a fire occurs on national forest land but cannot be contained by USFS resources, it would be managed by a Type I, II or III Incident Management Team under a delegation of authority from the Forest Supervisor of the Lewis and Clark National Forest. 10.3.4. Escape Routes and Evacuation The decision to recommend an evacuation of any area of Chouteau County is made by the Agency Administrators responsible for public safety and may be predicated by the ingress-egress access routes and the number of lives potentially at risk from a wildland fire incident. It is always a hard call to balance the potential liability of possible loss of life or property with a desire to warn, but not necessarily displace residents and visitors. If an evacuation is ordered do the following: Leave when requested to do so, taking medications and other necessary personal items, and valuables that you cannot replace. Implement your pet or livestock plan Report to the evacuation center even if you are not going to stay there, so you can be accounted for. This may be your mechanism to confirm your safety with family and friends. Road closures and roadblocks will be maintained, so don’t try to re-enter the evacuated area. Return when authorized by the Sheriff’s Office. 10.3.5. Preparing Pets and Livestock for Emergencies and Evacuation Our pets and some livestock enrich our lives in more ways than we can count. In turn, they depend on us for their safety and well-being. Here's how you can be prepared to protect your pets and livestock when disaster strikes. 10.3.5.1. Be Prepared with a Disaster Plan The best way to protect your family from the effects of a disaster is to have a disaster plan. If you are a pet owner, that plan must include your pets. Being prepared can save their lives. Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 10.3 -157 Public Education Materials June 2007 In the event of a disaster, if you must evacuate, the most important thing you can do to protect your pets is to evacuate them, too. Leaving pets behind, even if you try to create a safe place for them, is likely to result in their being injured, lost, or worse. 10.3.5.1.1. Have a Safe Place to Take Your Pets It may be difficult, if not impossible, to find shelter for your animals in the midst of a disaster, so plan ahead. Do not wait until disaster strikes to do your research. Contact hotels and motels outside your immediate area to check policies on accepting pets and restrictions on number, size, and species. Ask if "no pet" policies could be waived in an emergency. Keep a list of "pet friendly" places, including phone numbers, with other disaster information and supplies. If you have notice of an impending disaster, call ahead for reservations. Ask friends, relatives, or others outside the affected area whether they could shelter your animals. If you have more than one pet, they may be more comfortable if kept together, but be prepared to house them separately. Prepare a list of boarding facilities and veterinarians who could shelter animals in an emergency; include 24-hour phone numbers. Ask local animal shelters if they provide emergency shelter or foster care for pets in a disaster. Animal shelters may be overburdened caring for the animals they already have as well as those displaced by a disaster, so this should be your last resort. 10.3.5.1.2. Assemble a Portable Pet & Livestock Disaster Supplies Kit Whether you are away from home for a day or a week, you'll need essential supplies. Keep items in an accessible place and store them in sturdy containers that can be carried easily (duffle bags, covered trash containers, etc.). Your pet disaster supplies kit should include: Medications and medical records (stored in a waterproof container) and a first aid kit. Sturdy leashes, harnesses, and/or carriers to transport pets safely and ensure that your animals can't escape. Current photos of your pets in case they get lost. Food, potable water, bowls, cat litter/pan, and can opener. Information on feeding schedules, medical conditions, behavior problems, and the name and number of your veterinarian in case you have to foster or board your pets. Pet beds and toys, if easily transportable. 10.3.5.1.3. Develop a Live Stock Evacuation Plan Your evacuation plan should outline each type of disaster and determine specific scenarios best suited for each situation. It should include a list of resources such as trucks, trailers, pasture and/or feed which might be needed in an evacuation as well as a designated person who will unlock gates and doors and make your facility easily accessible to emergency personnel. Post your plan in a clearly visible place. Make sure that everyone who lives, works or boards at your facility is familiar with the plan. Get to know your neighbors and their animals. Select a Neighborhood Coordinator who is familiar with your evacuation plan and will be ready to assist should a disaster occur when you are not at home. Learn to handle your neighbors' animals and identify those, which have special handling needs (i.e. stallions). Post an updated phone list (home and office) of all neighbors and anyone who boards at your facility. Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 10.3 -158 Public Education Materials June 2007 10.3.6. When a Wildland Fire Approaches – A Checklist for Action at Home Should your home be threatened by a wildland fire, you may be advised to evacuate to protect you from life-threatening circumstances. Homeowners, however, have the right to stay on their properties if they desire to do so and so long as their activities do not hinder fire-fighting activities. If homeowners and visitors are not contacted in time to evacuate or if owners decide to stay with their homes, these suggestions will help them protect themselves and their property. Evacuate, if possible, all family members not essential to protecting the home, as well as all pets and livestock. Assign tasks to all family members that will be assisting with protecting the home. These should be assigned and practiced, if possible, prior to the event. Contact a friend or relative and relay your plans to them. Arrange a meeting place and ensure family members are aware of its location. Tune into a local radio station and listen for instructions and/or updates. Wear only cotton or wool clothes. Proper attire includes long pants, long sleeved shirt or jacket, hat and boots. Carry gloves, a handkerchief to cover your face, water to drink, and goggles. Place vehicles in the garage, have them pointing out, roll up windows, and leave keys in the vehicles. Place valuable papers and mementoes in the vehicles. Close the garage door, but leave it unlocked. Disconnect electric garage doors or it can be opened manually. Prepare the outside of the home o Gather fire tools, such as rakes, shovels, hoses, ladders and hoes. o Prop ladder against the house to provide easy access to the roof. o Make sure garden hoses are connected to faucets and attached nozzle is set to “spray.” o Soak rags, towels, burlap sacks, or small rugs with water to use in beating out embers or small fires. o Fill garbage cans, buckets and other containers with water. o Place combustible patio furniture in the house or garage, or move away from the home. o Shut off propane tank. o Close or cover all exterior vents. Seal attic and ground vents with pre-cut plywood or commercial seals. o Attach pre-cut panels to the exterior side of windows and glass doors or close shutters, if available. Prepare the inside of the home. o Turn off pilot lights on all gas appliances. o Fill the bathtub, sinks and other containers with water. Remember that the hot water heater and toilet tank(s) are sources of water! o Close all exterior doors and windows and draw Venetian blinds, shutters or noncombustible window coverings and heavy drapes. o Remove lightweight and/or non-fire resistant curtains and other combustible materials from around windows. o Open the fireplace damper, but place the screen over the fireplace opening to prevent sparks and embers from entering the home. o Close all interior doors. o Leave a light on in each room to increase visibility of your home in heavy smoke conditions. When the fire hits o Continually check the roof and attic for embers, smoke or fires. o Monitor the exterior of the home for small fires and embers. Most importantly stay calm! Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 10.3 -159 Public Education Materials June 2007 10.3.7. Shelter in Place Plans Evacuation is not always possible. There are ways to protect yourself if you have to stay where you are and a fire is approaching. Do you have shelter in place procedures and is everyone informed? Chouteau County Community Wildfire Protection Plan Page 10.3 -160