Reducing the Risk of Wildland - Urban Interface Fires
Issues and Ideas Papers Presented During a PERI Internet Symposiun
Presented October 2001
Published by the Public Entity Risk Institute On the Web at: www.riskinstitute.org
This material is provided free of charge, as a public service of the Public Entity Risk Institute (PERI), 11350 Random Hills Rd., Suite 210, Fairfax, VA 22030. Phone (703) 352-1846. Web: www.riskinstitute.org.
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ii Reducing the Risk of Wildland - Urban Interface Fires
Issues and Ideas Papers Presented During a PERI Internet Symposiun
Presented October 2001
Published by the Public Entity Risk Institute 11350 Random Hills Road, Suite 210 Fairfax, VA 22030 Phone: (703) 352-1846 FAX: (703) 352-6339 On the web at: www.riskinstitute.org
iii Public Entity Risk Institute
The Public Entity Risk Institute's mission is to serve public, private, and nonprofit organizations as a dynamic, forward thinking resource for the practical enhancement of risk management. PERI pursues its mission by:
CFacilitating the development and delivery of education and training on all aspects of risk management, particularly for public entities, small nonprofit organizations, and small businesses. CServing as a resource center and clearinghouse for risk management, environmental liability management, and disaster management information. COperating an innovative, forward-looking grant and research program in risk management, environmental liability management, and disaster management.
For complete information on PERI's programs and information services, visit our Web site at www.riskinstitute.org.
To access a wealth of risk management intelligence, please visit the Risk Management Resource Center, at www.eriskcenter.org, a collaborative Web site operated by PERI, the Public Risk Management Association (PRIMA), and the Nonprofit Risk Management Center (NRMC).
Public Entity Risk Institute 11350 Random Hills Road, Suite 210 Fairfax, VA 22030 Phone: (703) 352-1846 FAX: (703) 352-6339
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iv Table of Contents
About PERI's Symposium Programs ...... vi
Introduction to the Symposium ...... 1 By John Granito
Wildland Firefighting When Lives and Property are at Risk ...... 3 By P. Michael Freeman
Homes Don't Have to Burn -- Getting Firewise in Your Community ...... 9 By Jim Smalley
Looking for Local Solutions to the Wildland - Urban Interface Problem . . . . 15 By G. Scott Waldron
The Challenges of Dealing with the Wildland - Urban Interface and ...... 19 Wildfire Suppression By Dan. W. Bailey
Wildland Fire Organization - Federal System ...... 25 By Wally Josephson
Are You Prepared? Lessons Learned from the Cerro Grande Fire ...... 29 By Doug MacDonald
Can We Increase the Public Perception of Danger in ...... 39 the Wildland - Urban Interface? By Norman Hamer
Firewise Public Education ...... 43 By Nancy Porter
Wildland - Urban Fire: Beware the Home Ignition Zone ...... 47 By Jack D. Cohen
Wildland - Urban Fire Hazard Issues, GIS Solutions ...... 51 By Ron Montague
The Emerging Role of Emergency Management ...... 57 By David Halstead
Protecting Homes and Businesses - IBHS and the Wildfire Hazard ...... 61 By Michele Steinberg
Learning From an Interface Fire ...... 65 By John Granito
v About PERI's Internet Symposium Programs
These Issues and Ideas Papers were presented during one of PERI's "virtual" Symposium Programs, programs that are conducted entirely via the Internet. Dealing with Public Risks Involved in Land Use Planning was presented in June 2001.
This publication is also available electronically on PERI's Web site at www.riskinstitute.org and on the Risk Management Resource Center at www.eriskcenter.org.
How We Conduct a Symposium
Our programs consist of specially commissioned papers, and an open, threaded discussion. Participation in the discussion is free and open to anyone interested in the subject of the Symposium.
Each day during a PERI Symposium, we present an Issues and Ideas Paper (or Papers) written by recognized experts. Each paper addresses a different aspect of the subject of the Symposium.
The papers are intended to be thought-provoking -- raising risk management issues about the week's subject -- and practical -- offering useful ideas and solutions.
Papers are posted each morning of the Symposium for reading. We also send the papers via e-mail each morning to participants who sign up ahead of time.
The discussion portion of the Symposium is a threaded discussion, in which comments and replies are posted in our Symposium Center, and are accessible by all. Anyone can view or post comments.
Our Symposium Programs are an important way for us to meet our goal of facilitating the delivery of education and training on all aspects of risk management. Participation in the programs is free and open to anyone interested in the subject.
Future Programs
For the schedule and topic of future programs, please visit PERI's Web Site at www.riskinstitute.org.
vi Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium
Introduction to the Symposium
By John Granito Symposium Coordinator
Welcome to the Public Entity Risk Institute's Symposium, Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires.
Increasing numbers of wildland-urban interface fires dramatically illustrate the need for understanding and cooperation between the residents who are most impacted by these fires and the organizations responsible for preventing and suppressing them. Thus, this Virtual Symposium is designed to provide information and motivation to a broad range of participants, from homeowner groups and local fire departments, to state organizations and national agencies. The flow of information among all concerned individuals, organizations, departments, and agencies is vital in the fight against "interface" fires -- whether in prevention, mitigation, or suppression.
Experience in many states has demonstrated that wildland fire-fighting, coupled with structural firefighting, is a difficult, complex, and dangerous task. The necessity to prevent interface fires falls not only on the agencies responsible for the well being of our forests, but also on the individual homeowners whose land and buildings are endangered through disregard of defensive parameters and other safe practices. And most often, community urging and leadership must come from the local fire department and other suppression agencies which will have to handle the interface firefight.
In the United States and Canada, plus places as far apart as Australia and France, interface fires appear to be growing in frequency. Like hurricane damage in north America, the increase in structural destruction has occurred not just because of heavy wildland fire seasons, but because homes and other structures are being built in formerly undeveloped areas. Coupled with either ignorance of or disregard for what can easily happen, property owners sometimes invite disaster. Even where fire departments and wildland agencies are very experienced in meeting interface challenges, fire incidents can grow quickly. Consider the May 2000 Los Alamos, New Mexico fire—described later in this Symposium—which destroyed 239 homes. It required the mutual aid efforts of 66 fire departments and 700 career and volunteer firefighters in addition to 1,300 wildland and hotshot firefighters working for more than two weeks.
A 1993 interface fire in Los Angeles County involved 2,600 firefighters and support personnel, 215 pumpers and tankers, and 22 aircraft. Lost were 155 homes and 40 other structures, and this in a county where the fire department is vastly experienced and effective at fighting interface fires. The 1991 Oakland interface fire killed 25 persons and destroyed more than 2000 homes. In 2000, the Bitterroot Valley, Montana interface fire claimed 72 homes, and the Fire Chief of Frenchtown, Montana describes later in this Symposium the preventive measures now being taken in the Bitterroot area. The Los Angeles County Fire Chief also recounts his department’s preparation and action steps.
Introduction to the Symposium 1 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium
Since local education, planning, and preventive action are essential to success, several papers will be presented which describe the national FIREWISE Communities program, as well as recent technical advances.
More than a dozen papers, all prepared by people very experienced in interface fires, present an overview of key topics in this broad subject. As we did in last year’s virtual symposium on fireground safety, we encourage you to download and circulate the presentations, and especially to offer your thoughts in the open discussion that is a vital part of the Symposium.
The presentation of Issues and Ideas Papers begins on October 15 and continues each weekday through October 24. On most of those days, we'll have two papers presented.
The Issues and Ideas papers you will read over the course of the next two weeks will provide you thoughtful, practical, and we hope, valuable, ideas. The value of the Symposium, however, will increase exponentially the more you participate. I urge you to share your thoughts and viewpoints -- like most conferences we attend, some of the best and most helpful ideas will come from a discussion with your colleagues. Please "speak up" from your computer keyboard each day.
To join in the open discussion, visit the "Current Program" section of the Symposium Center on PERI's Web site (www.riskinstitute.org). It's easy to participate.
I’ll prepare a brief daily summary to recap the points you make during the discussion.
Last year the United States suffered its worst wildfire season in 50 years. Those fires destroyed 861 structures and killed 17 firefighters. A concerted effort is needed to reduce these tragedies and your participation in this Symposium plus your continuing involvement and action will aid in the effort taking place in many countries.
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Introduction to the Symposium 2 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium
Wildland Firefighting When Lives and Property are at Risk
By P. Michael Freeman Chief, Los Angeles County Fire Department Los Angeles, Calif.
All fire departments respond to fires involving vegetation. Most of the time, such fires are controlled quickly without much, if any, risk to lives or property. Often, this is true because the areas that could burn are either relatively small in size or contain fuels that are limited in their capacity to burn. Yet, there are instances when the fuels, weather, and perhaps other factors result in a vegetation fire growing large enough to require multiple fire units and personnel to control. Sometimes, such fires pose a threat to structures, human life, and livestock, as they are driven by wind gusts and plentiful fuels.
Some areas of the United States, especially the western states, must contend with annual “fire seasons,” when weather and the abundance of combustible vegetation combine to create serious threats to life and property. In Southern California, in and around Los Angeles County, there is a unique mix of critical factors that makes almost any vegetation fire a significant challenge for fire fighters.
Recognizing this challenge, the Los Angeles County Fire Department has undertaken numerous programs and implemented many strategic and tactical policies to meet it. This wildland firefighting effort is in addition to a mission that includes protecting 57 incorporated cities and all of the unincorporated areas of the County, with emergency medical service, structural fire protection, fire prevention services, and public education provided to more than 3.5 million residents. This effort runs the full range of pre-fire, actual fire suppression, and post-fire activities aimed at life, property, and environmental protection.
Wildland fires in the past have been ignited by vehicle fires, lightning strikes, heavy equipment operating in brush areas, illegal open fires, wires blown down or shorted out by high winds, and arson.
Wildland fires fueled by plentiful and volatile vegetation in Southern California have always been as much a part of the landscape as the mountains, hills, and beautiful vistas. Over time, left unchecked, Southern California chaparral can grow to accumulate up to 400 tons to the acre. In fact, the periodic burning of the native fuels is an important part of the local ecosystem, according to scientific experts. With nothing of value in its way, such a fire cleanses the area and rejuvenates subsequent, new growth.
Through decades of building, though, many of the wildland hillsides and ridges are now covered with residential developments accessed by narrow, winding roads used by tens of thousands of people who reside there. Far too many times, past fires have caused staggering structure losses. Wildland fire, once just a natural phenomenon, has become a major challenge for the fire service because lives and property are now increasingly at risk.
Wildland Firefighting When Lives and Property are at Risk 3 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium
In 1993, more than 400 homes were destroyed, as Santa Ana wind-driven fires swept across Los Angeles County. Even at that, a Rand Institute study commissioned by the Los Angeles County Fire Department found that, although 388 structures were lost in the “Old Topanga” Fire of 1993, 89% of the threatened houses and buildings were saved.(1) That fire burned 16,516 acres of mountainous terrain, had a perimeter of 48 miles, and required more than 7,000 firefighters to contain.
Pre-fire Activities
Much of the community's and department's effort aimed at the threat of wildland fires is in pre-fire and prevention activities.
Fuel Modification Program – Based on decades of experience and supported by the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, local ordinances require new developments to create natural buffer zones planted with fire-resistant landscaping to prevent fire from traveling through a neighborhood. This fuel modification program has been adopted by most cities where construction encroaches on the wildland areas.
Fire Resistive Building Codes – Following the devastating fires of 1993, a Wildfire Safety Panel -- composed of architects, foresters, building officials, fire behavior experts, private citizens, and fire fighters -- made more than 30 recommendations. These were adopted by the Board of Supervisors in 1994 and tightened up building and fire code requirements for new and extensive remodeling jobs within the high risk, wildland fire areas of Los Angeles County. In addition to exterior construction stipulations, future homes and other structures were required to include fire sprinkler systems to protect them if exposed to a wildland fire.
Brush Clearance – Local fire codes require between 100 to 300 feet of clearance from combustible vegetation in the wildland fire zones. Each year, the Los Angeles County Fire Department inspects 36,000 improved parcels to assure that sufficient distance between vegetation and structures is maintained. In 1996, a wildland fire in the Santa Monica Mountains – Malibu area charred more than 16,000 acres, with the low structure loss being attributed to good brush clearance around homes.
Prescribed Fire – Each year, the Los Angeles County Fire Department uses controlled fire to create fire breaks and fuel reduction zones by burning off the natural fuels in designated areas. This program is both labor intensive and delicate, as the desire to burn sufficiently large areas for effective firebreaks must be balanced with the critical need to keep such fires well within safe boundaries. Recent prescribed burns have been improved by using a large, remotely controlled roller called the “Brush Crusher.” The “Brush Crusher,” which weighs 10 tons, is operated by a bulldozer that lowers the roller up and down mountainsides by cables and crushes the brush so that it can be burned more safely, with less likelihood of escaping control lines.
Pre-Attack Plans – All areas of the Los Angeles County Fire Department’s jurisdiction which have a wildland fire threat are preplanned by local firefighters and chief officers.
Wildland Firefighting When Lives and Property are at Risk 4 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium
Neighborhoods, developments, and prominent landmarks, such as parks and campgrounds, are evaluated carefully. Escape routes and water sources are identified, safe refuge areas are noted, and fire suppression resource needs are preplanned. All of this information is then transferred to standardized maps for duplication and distribution to the Department’s 157 fire stations for use in the event of a wildland fire.
Pre-Fire Season Training – Although history tells us that devastating wildland fires can occur at any time during the year, the months of August through November are generally considered the most challenging. This is in no small way a result of the Santa Ana winds that occur during the Fall months. Each Spring, all 3,500 fire suppression personnel review and drill on their wildland firefighting skills, logistical support, and emerging command systems. Station level training and drills include topics such as fire behavior and weather, personal fire shelter training, Standard Firefighting Orders, LCES (“Lookout, Communicate, Escape Route, Safety Zone”), personnel hydration at wildland fires, structure protection in wildland fire situations, and helispot reviews. In this manner, personnel are updated on training essential for life safety and property protection.
Fire Suppression in Wildland Areas
Whenever a wildland fire is reported to the Los Angeles County Fire Command and Control Center, a sizeable array of personnel and equipment is dispatched immediately. Responded to protect lives and property are the eight closest engine companies, three water-dropping helicopters, four firefighting hand crews, two airborne hand crews, a bulldozer team, and at certain times of the year, two SuperScooper water/foam-dropping airplanes.
Once on scene, an anchor point is established for the fire from which all suppression efforts begin. The leading edge of the fire, or the “head” (of the fire) as it is called, is a focal point of the attack, with careful assessment of the sides or flanks of the fire, so that the threat to lives and property are addressed as the forward movement of the fire is stopped. Terrain, fuel load per acre, wind, temperature, humidity, access, water supplies, proximity of structures and their construction features, distance from additional firefighting resources, size of the fire, and direction of movement must all be considered, weighed and factored into the initial attack strategy. Tactical preference is to offload the two airborne crews at or near the head of the fire where they, with aerial assistance from water-dropping helicopters and/or the SuperScoopers, can quickly control or redirect the forward progress of the fire.
Hand crews of 10 to 15 persons each use chain saws and various hand tools to cut and remove combustible vegetation from the path of the fire. Their efforts literally cut a line of bare earth around the fire and the entire burned area.
Engine company personnel are deployed to advance lightweight, one-inch hose lines to hillsides, usually along the flank of the fire where they extinguish flames, assist hand crews, and mop up hot spots. Of course, when structures and their many combustible features like wooden decks, gazebos, fire woodpiles, etc., are threatened, engine crews are
Wildland Firefighting When Lives and Property are at Risk 5 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium positioned in and around the structures to protect them with hose lines of 1 ¾ -inch , 2 ½- inch and even deck guns in some cases.
The water/foam-dropping helicopters used by Los Angeles County feature aerodynamic, fixed water tanks of 360-gallon and 1000-gallon capacities. These can be filled quickly by fire hoses and personnel who staff pre-designated helispots. Helicopter pilots can mix Class A Foam with this water to increase its coating and penetrating effects on the fuels. Experience shows that these helicopters are very effective in wildland firefighting where large areas of fuel can be covered quickly by multiple rotary aircraft. Many times, structures and personnel have been protected by a dramatic and accurate water drop from a helicopter.
Where distance or other special tactical considerations prevail, one or more bulldozers are used. These powerful tractors can maneuver up and down terrain impassable to all other vehicles, while cutting an 18-foot-wide swath of earth that provides a break in the fuel that helps control the progress of a wildland fire.
Frequently, wildland fires in Los Angeles County require more than a first-alarm brush fire response. The incident commander, whether the captain or the first unit on scene or the battalion chief, can request additional units or a second-alarm brush response. Large-scale fires may warrant the request for contracted, fixed-wing aircraft that, unlike the SuperScoopers which drop water or foam directly on the burning fuel, drop fire retardant chemical ahead of the fire to slow its progress. Occasionally, these wildland fires are of such complexities and proportions that mutual aid is requested from neighboring fire agencies who, like Los Angeles County Fire Department, are equipped, trained and prepared to respond, using common terminology and a standardized Incident Command System (ICS).
Through its 78-year history, the Los Angeles County Fire Department has continued its quest for the best in efficient, effective wildland fire prevention, preparation, and suppression. The addition of compressed air foam (CAF) engine companies for structure protection, Class A Foam on helicopters, progressive one-inch hose lay techniques and fittings on engine companies, and forward-looking infrared (FLIR) devices on helicopters, are among the tools and technologies utilized. Most recently, the acquisition of two new state-of-the art Sikorsky Firehawk helicopters now gives the Department water-dropping capability of 1000 gallons per drop per helicopter.
Post-Fire Activity
Following wildland fires of significant size, especially where vast hillsides or mountainsides are left bare, remedial action is taken. The Los Angeles County Fire Department Forestry Division foresters work with local residents, affected city officials, and the State of California to reseed the burned areas in time for late winter rains so that annual grasses have a chance to germinate and reduce the likelihood of mudslides. In those areas where burned-off, steep terrain poses serious threats of slides due to rain,
Wildland Firefighting When Lives and Property are at Risk 6 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium hydromulching, straw, and sandbags are used to further protect property and promote recovery.
Conclusion
Wildland firefighting in Southern California and Los Angeles County is a major endeavor for the Los Angeles County Fire Department. Ongoing programs and efforts seek to meet the challenges of the wildland fire when lives and property are at risk in the pre- fire, fire suppression, and post-fire phases. Where the wrong combination of weather, terrain, and placement of occupied structures gives a wildland fire the upper hand, success in meeting these challenges rests heavily on the gallant men and women of the fire service who together confront the full fury of Mother Nature.
References
(1) Rand, Report on the Old Topanga Incident, Grace M. Carter, Dennis L. Bean, and Robert E. Wissler, September 1994.
About the Author
P. Michael Freeman is Fire Chief of the Los Angeles County Fire Department. His Department provides fire protection and emergency medical services for more than 3.5 million residents in an area of 2,200 square miles. The Department has 3,500 employees located at 157 facilities. Chief Freeman currently serves as Chairman of the FIRESCOPE Board of Directors, is a member of the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s National Urban Search and Rescue Advisory Committee, is Chairman of the International Association of Fire Chiefs Terrorism Task Force, is Region I Coordinator for the greater Los Angeles area for the State of California, and is a member of the Los Angeles Area Fire Chiefs Organization.
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Wildland Firefighting When Lives and Property are at Risk 7 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium
Wildland Firefighting When Lives and Property are at Risk 8 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium
Homes Don’t Have to Burn – Getting Firewise in Your Community
By Jim Smalley Manager, National Firewise Program National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) Quincy, Mass
Shall we round up only the usual suspects?
What is this thing called the interface? Once thought of as a problem primarily in the western U.S., wildland fires were now a dangerous reality in the south, the lake states, and a growing possibility in other parts of the country.
First, we should look past the geographic connotations of the majority of definitions of the interface – those that begin “The wildland/urban interface is where…” Past experience has shown us that the “where” is really a “when” – when conditions for interface fires are present. The conditions have existed, judging by the incidence of wild fires, in Maine, Michigan, Missouri, Minnesota as well as the “usual suspects” like California, Montana, Idaho, Wyoming, and the other western states.
The Interface is Conditional, Not Geographical
The wildland-urban interface (WUI) is actually a set of conditions that exist -- or could exist -- in nearly every community in the country. These conditions include weather, humidity, type of vegetation, building construction, road construction, lot size, topography, and others factors that simply make some communities more vulnerable to wildfire than others.
Recent Census data show that, of the fifteen fastest growing areas in the U.S., nine are already in wildland fire prone areas or, as a result of rapid growth and the accompanying urban sprawl, are moving into those areas (see Table 1). In fact, the growth of communities into previously forested areas is one of the three major factors that will propagate the pressures of the interface on communities. The other two are unusually severe weather events (from prolonged drought to severe heating periods and floods that erode soils and vegetation) and inadequate infrastructure due to the rapidity of growth or aging.
The Firewise Concept
The evolution of the Firewise concept actually parallels development of the National WUI Program in 1986, following a particularly bad fire season in 1985. The states of California and Florida had fires so extensive that 1,400 homes were lost that year, 600 of those in Florida and 400 of those in one day (Black Friday, 5/17/85). From that fire
Homes Don't Have to Burn 9 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium season, the problem was recognized as national in scope, and not just a western states' problem.
Even though the majority of WUI losses are usually smaller in scale than, say, the 1991 Oakland fire, they still add up to a national problem. The paradox is that the federal government is very good at recognizing problems of a national scale, but the solution to the aggregate national problem is at the local level. Unfortunately, because of the local pressures of waste management, schools, public transportation, and the myriad of other services provided, local government is generally unconcerned, unable, or unwilling to take on one more problem.
Beginning in 1986, the National WUI Program developed a number of publications and programs for fire fighter safety and homeowner actions. Following three particularly major interface fires, the National Program issued case studies (Oakland CA; Grayling MI; and Boulder CO). The program directed its attention to the disciplines that affect the interface in the early 1990s: Firewise Landscaping (a three-part video and series of regional workshops) and Everyone’s Responsibility (a publication and video based on three distinctly different communities of different sizes and organization in three geographic locations that were doing very much the same thing in using a multi-disciplined approach to solve local problems). This last piece brings us to the recognition and basis for FIREWISE.
Everyone in Interface Communities has a Responsibility for Safety
Wildland fire disasters will follow a predictable cycle unless communities take action to break it.
The cycle begins with the building of homes and businesses in or near a forested area. Perhaps this is state forest, national forest or national park, or private land. To a wildland fire, fuel is fuel; it doesn’t matter who owns it or what form it takes (trees, homes, etc.). In many parts of our country, these homes are built in areas where fire has been, is, and will continue to be a factor in the ecological landscape. Assuming that where fire has occurred on the landscape, it will occur again, we can expect that at some point the non- Firewise home will be caught in a wildfire.
Almost immediately following a wildfire event, reparations pour in from insurance companies and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). That’s right - MONEY. Usually, homeowner’s insurance covers the structure and content, unless the homeowner was unaware of the wildland fire danger or potential, in which case the insurance policy might not cover 100% of the loss. If the wildland fire is large enough and destructive enough to be declared a natural disaster by FEMA, additional funds are likely available to assist the residents in re- building, and other government agencies offer low interest loans and other assistance. In an effort to regain the former comforts and familiarity of lost surroundings, homes are quickly rebuilt on the site just as they were before the fire - same construction, same vegetation, and so on.
Homes Don't Have to Burn 10 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium
This “recreation” of what was simply sets up the situation for the next wildland fire, with one possible change: the homes are usually larger -- with the same construction and vegetation as the smaller house. With low interest loans from FEMA and insurance settlements, homeowners often take advantage of the opportunity to build their “dream home.” More fuel for the future wildland fire! And these larger homes on the same size lot offer more exposure threats than before. Thus, the disaster cycle completes itself. State of the Art (For the Moment)
Planning for fire events and establishing creative incentives for encouraging homeowners to take appropriate responsibility are two things that community leaders should be doing immediately.
Don’t wait for others. Insurance companies are not going to give significant premium adjustments for positive action, nor are they willing to increase premiums or cancel insurance for hazardous conditions. The numbers just are not available to justify the financial decisions that affect their bottom lines. Floods, yes. Earthquakes, yes. Hurricanes and hail, yes. Wildfire, no. So quit looking for insurance as a homeowner incentive.
Stop looking at the fire agencies to accept the responsibility for 100% protection. They’ve got enough to do just trying to keep up with suppression. They cannot be responsible for homes whose owners neglect to clean gutters of pine needles and leaves, build unprotected wood decks, plant conifers next to their wooden homes, and store firewood on the porch. In a wide scale wildfire event, the chances that they can effectively protect every home are small. Worst case: 200 homes threatened at once – and seven fire engines available. Do the math. Expecting that they can actually extinguish every home places the firefighters in danger, the public in danger, and wastes resources.
What is needed are local solutions to encourage “doing the right thing.” For example, if you want homeowners to make appropriate improvements in their property (for example, putting on a non-combustible roof in place of an aging, dried out shake roof), then provide local incentives such as waiving building permit fees for Firewise improvements, waiving new taxes on the Firewise improvements, or providing community guidelines for Firewise improvements.
Conclusions
The wildland/urban interface will not be going away. Its roots are not a fire problem at all. The interface is a result of urban sprawl, changing life styles, decentralized e-business, population growth, and other non-fire-specific conditions. The fire problems experienced in the interface are the same kind of problems that urban fire departments have experienced in the past on a larger scale: exposures, limited water supplies, delayed alarms, and personal protective equipment and training.
Homes Don't Have to Burn 11 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium
The traditional role, reinforced by media, tradition, and the general public, is that the fire fighter is the "protector," the "hero." Citizens have become used to the idea that it’s someone else’s responsibility to come to their rescue when fire threatens them. Likewise, the homeowner is traditionally seen as the “helpless victim” as their homes burn from wildfire. Fire protection, it is believed, is the exclusive responsibility of the fire department or the wildland fire management agency.
In truth, the responsibility for fire protection belongs to everyone in the community. In varying degrees, many agencies and groups have something to offer toward the total fire protection system -- all interdependent and all definable. This is one of the objects of Firewise planning -- to define these responsibilities and to encourage the appropriate action by each group. For example, the schools’ fire protection responsibilities may be defined to offer fire safety education in selected grades, including wildland fire, outdoor, personal, and home safety. Police and law enforcement agencies usually assume emergency response responsibility in the event of evacuation. The water departments’ responsibility is to plan, design, operate and maintain the water distribution system to ensure adequate water resources for fire suppression. And so on. Likewise, homeowners must share the responsibility through active participation in the system.
When the responsibilities are clearly defined and direction is provided, the paradigm of “protector/victim” is re-defined. Fire fighters and homeowners become PARTNERS. Fire protection exists through a mutually agreed-upon system based on reason and responsibility in changing times, rather than tradition.
Table 1. Fifteen fastest growing areas, 1990-2000:
1. Fayetteville AR 2. Austin TX 3. Houston TX 4. McAllen TX 5. Phoenix AZ 6. Yuma AZ 7. Las Vegas NV 8. Myrtle Beach SC 9. Raleigh NC 10. Wilmington NC 11. Naples FL 12. Ft Collins CO 13. Provo UT 14. Boise ID 15. Atlanta GA Source:US Census 2000
Editor's Note: To learn more about community action to protect against wildland fires, visit www.firewise.org.
Homes Don't Have to Burn 12 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium
About the Author
Smalley is the manager of the National Wildland/Urban Interface Fire Program, an initiative that, since 1986, has provided information, research, training and education materials concerning the severity and impact of wildfires that threaten homes and other structures. The program is sponsored by NFPA, the USDA Forest Service, the Department of the Interior, the National Association of State Foresters, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Smalley also serves as the Staff Liaison for the Technical Committee for Forest and Rural Fire Protection, NFPA, and serves as the Executive Secretary for the Wildland Fire Management Section, one of NFPA’s special interest membership sections. He formerly worked for the United States Fire Administration, Washington, DC, and was Director of the Arkansas State Fire Training Academy.
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Homes Don't Have to Burn 13 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium
Homes Don't Have to Burn 14 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium
Looking for Local Solutions to the Wildland-Urban Interface Problem
By G. Scott Waldron Chief Frenchtown Rural Fire District Frenchtown, Mont.
The Frenchtown Rural Fire District provides emergency services to a number of communities in Missoula and Mineral County of western Montana. Emergency response is provided from eight stations with 5 paid staff and 70 volunteer personnel. This area includes approximately 200 square miles of wildland urban interface.
In 2001 the Frenchtown Fire District applied for and received grant funding to perform fuel reduction work. Without the grant funding the District lacks the financial ability and staffing to perform this much-needed work. The District recognizes our responsibility to utilize this funding effectively and work was started as soon as funding was confirmed.
Exhibit 1 of this paper reviews the project mission, goals and objectives, and outlines how the funding is being used. To date we are on target to meet or exceed all of the goals and objectives originally identified. These goals are not only identified as short- term desires. but as part of long-term commitment to future planning so the problems are managed at the development and construction stage. New subdivisions will be designed with fire and safety as a priority.
This project has so far been an excellent experience and the most productive effort in this area. Our partnerships with the U.S. Forest Service Nine Mile Ranger District, Montana Department of Natural Resources, and Confederated Salish Kootenai Tribe have been extremely productive. Jointly we have completed assessments on nearly 600 homes, fuel reduction work on 82 homes, and 2.6 miles of access roads. Currently, work is continuing on homes and jointly we are beginning cross-boundary fuel reduction that is beneficial to all parties. In addition, we are working with the local electric company to do collaborative work along roadways that serve as power line access to subdivisions and residential areas.
Homeowners individually and in groups are recognizing and assuming their responsibility as part of this team effort. Shake roofs are being removed and timber is being thinned in residential areas. This project is truly changing the culture in this area!
Homeowners are taking their responsibilities seriously and making significant changes. In the areas where we have performed work peer pressure is taking effect and groups of homes are being improved.
Local Solutions to the Wildland - Urban Interface Problem 15 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium
The National Fire Plan has provided funding for projects such as these and I believe that prevention is a much better investment than suppression. There is some concern that use of public funds to do fuel reduction work is inappropriate; however, I think it is appropriate and necessary for firefighter and public safety. Exhibit 2 outlines an example of how funds are spent in suppression action vs. prevention work.
The wildland interface involves a complex mixture of risks that cannot be resolved by a single action or approach. A combined approach that involves planning, ordinances and permitting with a consolidated suppression action is the best approach to managing the hazards that exist in this ecosystem.
Exhibit 1. Frenchtown Rural Fire District, Firewise Communities Project
Mission Statement Provide for the safety of firefighters and homeowners by working cooperatively with our public and private partners to educate the public about fire hazards; homeowner responsibility; removing of hazards fuels around homes; improving access and egress routes; mapping and assessing homes in the WUI and creating a sustainable Firewise Communities program for the future.
Goals
Create a Firewise community by:
S Reducing the potential for loss of structures and the environment to catastrophic wildland fire. S Improving survivability of homes in the Frenchtown Fire District wildland urban interface. S Educating the public on fire risks around their homes and their responsibilities as homeowners. S Completing the Fire Safety Permit and adopt it in the District. S Improving access and egress routes into WUI subdivisions. S Completing assessment maps.
Objectives
S Complete assessments on all homes in the forested interface. S Working in partnership with homeowners, complete fuel modifications on 100 homes annually. S Identify on maps all water supply locations in the District. S Remove wood shakes from 50% of homes in District. S Remove brush along all interface roadways to minimum 10’ off road. S Work with USFS and DNRC to reduce hazard fuels across boundaries. S Create Memorandum of Understanding with property owners to provide secondary emergency egress for Elk Meadows subdivision.
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Implementation Phase
1) Priority Areas a) Homes with High Probability of ignition in a fire. b) Homes with Moderate Probability of ignition in a fire. c) Homes with residents who, by virtue of age or physical condition, cannot do mitigation work themselves. d) Access and egress roadways.
2) Create property owner agreement that: a) Identifies work to be completed. b) Creates cost sharing for homeowner. c) Identifies District responsibilities. d) Identifies Homeowner responsibilities.
3) Message we want to deliver a) This is a partnership between fire agencies and homeowners. b) Requires homeowner participation and financial commitment. c) Creating survivable homes and environment.
4) Advertise program through newspapers and media a) Clark Fork Wagon Wheel. b) Locate information signs on access roads. c) School newsletters. d) News releases, print, television, radio.
5) Utilize USFS, MT DNRC, and Frenchtown prevention personnel to make homeowner contacts a) Continued assessments b) Follow up contacts c) Requests for mitigation work
6) Management a) Firewise project coordinator i) Crew leaders ii) Create position descriptions/expectations for crew personnel
7) Project Time Line a) June 11th Board Review and Approval b) June 12th advertising and news releases c) June 12th Initiate crew hiring d) June 14 –15-18 Crew Training: Safety, Purpose, Conduct, Chain Saw Training e) June 19th begin mitigation work f) October 1 hold 2001 project review
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Exhibit 2. Prevention costs vs. Suppression costs
S Suppression --
Sawmill Gulch Fire, Frenchtown Fire District July 14, 2001-July 16, 2001 13 acres Suppression Costs: Estimated $ 70, 000.00
S Prevention --
Prevention Crews June 26, 2001-August 30, 2001 100 Homes Survivable/Defensible Space Prevention Costs: $ 30, 000.00
About the Author
Waldron has been in the fire service for 15 years, and has served as the Chief of the Frenchtown Fire District in Missoula County, Mont. since 1991. The District is a combination emergency services organization, providing structural and wildland fire suppression, hazardous materials response, and ALS ambulance service. The District covers 250 square miles. Waldron has served as the chair of the Missoula County Fire Protection Association and as a member of the Montana State University Fire Services Training School Advisory Council; he is also an instructor at the school.
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Local Solutions to the Wildland - Urban Interface Problem 18 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium
The Challenges of Dealing with the Wildland Urban Interface and Wildfire Suppression
By Dan W. Bailey Firewise Coordinator U.S. Forest Service Washington, D.C.
Each year, on average, thousands of fires burn millions of acres (2.2 million ha) of protected forest, brush, and grass-covered lands in the U.S. and Canada. Protection services cost well over a $1 billion annually, with losses approaching $4 billion. These costs do not reflect the services of thousands of volunteer firefighters in both countries, nor the expenses of the many city fire departments that fight fires on wildlands—lands that are essentially undeveloped—within or near their jurisdictions.
Wildfires include any unwanted fire burning on wildlands. Most are extinguished while smaller than 1 acre (0.4 ha) by a few firefighters working with hand tools or water- handling equipment. Under extremely adverse conditions, however, a fire can spread to well over 100,000 acres (40,000 ha) and require thousands of fire fighters and hundreds of mechanized units for several weeks to over a month.
The wildfire problem is highly variable depending on location. This is because of:
S Fire Ignition -- Ignition is dependent on natural phenomena, such as lightning or volcanic activity, on human activity, on fuel bed characteristics, on the weather, and on the effectiveness of prevention efforts.
S Fire Behavior -- How fast a fire spreads and how intensely it burns is dependent on local conditions, such as weather, fuels, and topography.
S Effectiveness of Fire Suppression -- This is closely related to accessibility, difficulty of control, and the capability and performance of the local protection agency.
S Public Safety -- A danger to the public is involved when fires threaten recreation areas, mountain homes, or urban areas or when smoke obscures visibility along highways or near airports.
In the United States, wildland fire protection is handled by federal, state, county, and in some cases, city agencies, as well as by private corporations and career/volunteer fire departments. The U.S. Forest Service protects about 200 million acres (80 million ha) of national forest and other lands. Approximately 587 million acres (197 million ha) of other federal lands, mostly in the public domain, are protected by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), the National Park Service (NPS), the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, and the Bureau of Indian Affairs. States, local governments, corporations, and career/volunteer fire departments protect about 840 million acres (340 million ha) of the
Challenges of the Wildland - Urban Interface and Wildfire Suppression 19 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium country’s essentially undeveloped lands. About 158 million acres (64 million ha), or slightly less than 10 percent, of the wildlands in the United States are not protected.
In Canada, wildland fire protection is handled by ten provinces, two territories, and Parks Canada, as well as by private corporations and career/volunteer fire departments.
Fire Suppression
Fire suppression includes all work to extinguish or confine a fire, beginning with its discovery. Suppressing or fighting a fire is usually difficult work that is inherently dangerous. However, knowing and applying safety principles and firefighting tactics serves to increase the safety and effectiveness of operations. In the past, wildland fire suppression was somewhat a simple fire suppression effort, since wildland fire agencies dealt with only wildlands. Today, however, the wildland urban interface has compounded the problem by adding homes, people, business and other developments to the wildfire equation. This has generated one of the most complex and costly emergencies to manage anywhere in the world.
Basics About Wildland Firefighting Safety
A series of standard fire-fighting orders provides the basis for safety for those involved in wildland fire suppression. Every fire fighter must learn these orders, understand, and follow each when it applies:
F Fight all fires aggressively, but first provide for safety. I Initiate all action based on current and expected fire behavior. R Recognize current weather conditions and obtain forecasts. E Ensure that instructions are given and understood.
O Obtain current information on fire status. R Remain in communication with crew members, your supervisor, and adjoining forces. D Determine safety zones and escape routes. E Establish lookouts in potentially hazardous situations. R Retain control at all times. S Stay alert, keep calm, think clearly, act decisively.
Fire situation hazards -- Twenty situations create a hazardous situation for fire fighters in a wildland fire. These are:
S Fire not scouted or sized-up. S Being in areas that fire fighters have not seen before in daylight. S Safety zones and escape routes not identified. S Being unfamiliar with weather and local factors influencing fire behavior. S Being uninformed about strategy, tactics, and hazards. S Instructions and assignments not clear.
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S No communications link with crew members/supervisor. S Constructing fireline downhill without safe anchor point. S Building fireline downhill with fire below. S Attempting frontal assault on fire. S Unburned fuel between the fire fighter and the fire. S Not being able to see main fire; not in contact with anyone who can. S Being on a hillside where rolling material can ignite fuel below. S Weather getting hotter and drier. S Wind increasing and and/or changing direction. S Getting frequent spot fires across the fire line. S Terrain and fuels making escape to safety zones difficult. S Taking a nap near the fireline. S Personal protective equipment not being available or not being used properly. S Operating unfamiliar equipment.
Four common denominators -- Four major common denominators of fire behavior have been noted in fires where a fire fighter has been killed or from which fire fighters narrowly escaped. Such situations often occur:
1. On relatively small or deceptively quiet sectors of large fires. 2. In relatively light fuels, such as grass, herbs, and light brush. 3. When there is an unexpected shift in wind direction or wind speed. 4. When the fire responds to topographic conditions and runs uphill.
These factors should not be considered all-inclusive. For example, a sudden change of wind may change the direction of fire spread, regardless of topography. Each set of circumstances has the potential for creating a tragedy or near-miss fire. Often, human behavior is the determining factor. Fire fighters who remain calm when the wind direction changes and move back into a burned area should survive. Those who try to outrun a fire under similar conditions may die. The difference between a tragic fire and a near-miss fire may be due to luck, skill, and/or advance planning. In all cases, it is important to be alert and aware of conditions that may signal a sudden change in fire behavior. In a few words, be alert, watch out for light fuels, wind shifts, steep slopes, and “chimneys.” Those who remain alert and on the lookout for possible trouble have the best chance of survival.
Suppression of Small Fires
Wildland fire management strategies are aimed at prompt, safe, aggressive suppression action of all wildfires. Small fires pose the same kind of suppression problems and require the same kind of practices as larger fires. Effective suppression of small fires involves the following steps:
S first attack, line location, S line construction, S burning out,
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S mop-up, S patrol, and S declaring the fire out.
Suppression strategies range from prompt control at the smallest acreage possible to containment using a combination of fireline and natural or constructed features, to merely ensuring that the fire remains confined to a defined geographical area.
The principles of initial attack include:
S Sizing up a fire. Go around the fire as quickly and safely as possible, or inspect it from a vantage point. But do not go around the head of the fire if it is moving rapidly, as entrapment is likely. Size up a fire from a vantage point or from the flanks of the fire.
S Selecting a point of attack, and making an attack. The universal rules are to take prompt action on an attack point; to stay with the fire, and take the most effective action possible with the available forces and equipment; to inform the dispatcher of the situation by radio; and to continue to work day or night, if night work can be done safety.
S Mopping up. After primary line construction work is completed and a fire is called “controlled,” many things remain to be done to make the fireline “safe” and put the fire out. This work is called mop-up. The objective of mop-up is to put out all embers or sparks to prevent them from crossing the fireline. A certain amount of mop-up work is done while building the control line. Mop-up becomes an independent part of fire fighting as soon as the spread of the fire has been stopped and all lines have been completed. Ordinarily, mop-up is composed of two actions: putting the fire out and disposing of fuel, either by burning it to eliminate it or by removing it so it cannot burn.
S Patrolling. Patrol is that portion of the mop-up job that consists of moving back and forth over the control line and the edges of burn areas to check for and put out any fire that may burn or blow across the line, and, at the same time, to check for and put out spot fires outside the line.
S Declaring the fire out. Before abandoning a fire, and as a follow-up, the incident commander will take steps to ensure that the fire has been extinguished and that any fireline that has been constructed is adequate should a flare-up occur within the fireline.
Challenges of the Wildland - Urban Interface and Wildfire Suppression 22 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium
Suppression of Large Fires
Regardless of the size of the fire, certain basic management principals are necessary to obtain prompt and efficient control of the fire with the least fire damage and with reasonable cost.
If a wildland fire escapes initial attack efforts an Incident Command Team is brought in to manage the situation. There are three types of Incident Teams utilized: Type 3 for smaller non-complex fires, Type 2 for moderate size fires, and Type 1 for the largest and most complex fires. The Incident Command System provides the common thread for management of these and other types of emergencies. Today most local, state, and federal agencies have adopted this management system for all emergencies.
Summary
The toll on human life, the financial impact, and the increased value of natural resources make it undesirable to lose thousands of acres of valuable timber, rangeland, and watersheds. Continuing efforts to prepare managers and firefighters to deal with both the beneficial aspects of fire through the use of prescribed fire and the control and extinguishment of unwanted fires is of the utmost importance. In addition, the public must understand its critical role in preventing unwanted fires, and communities must recognize the importance of designing developments that will minimize the threat of fire to real property. In an effort to focus on how to deal with this escalating wildland urban interface fire problem from a national perspective, the National Firewise Communities initiative was born.
America's wildland fire agencies and the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) have been promoting Firewise living since 1986. Their National Wildland/Urban Interface Fire Protection Program has attracted new partners in this work and saved about $20 million annually in fire suppression costs. Now America's Firewise partners have gathered again to create the next generation of fire protection and land use planning with the whole community being involved.
Through dynamic presentations and such workshop tools as state-of-the-art mapping and wildfire simulations, hand-picked community leaders and professionals are learning first hand the complexities involved in building communities (and citizenries) that are prepared for the inevitable effects of unwanted wildland fire.
A series of Firewise Communities Regional Workshops have and are taking place throughout the Continental USA, Alaska, and Hawaii. Workshop participants are learning how to:
S Recognize interface fire hazards, S Design Firewise homes and landscapes, S Deliver fire education, and
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S Incorporate Firewise planning into existing and developing areas of their communities.
In an effort to share this information with all who are concerned, the Firewise Communities Partners have a formed a Firewise Web Site: www.FIREWISE.org. It is designed to give out wildfire protection information on such things as learning to live safely in fire prone areas, and providing tips of Firewise Landscaping and protecting homes from wildfire:
About the Author
Bailey is one of the founders of the National Wildland/Urban Interface Fire Program and originators of the Firewise Communities Program. Prior to his current post, he was the Fire & Aviation Officer for seven years on the Lolo National Forest in Missoula, Mont. He served as an Incident Commander of one of the National Incident Management Teams for more than 8 years, and was responsible for management of some of the largest, most complex wildland fires in the country. He serves on the NFPA's Board of Directors, and is a founder of NFPA's Wildland Fire Management Section.
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Challenges of the Wildland - Urban Interface and Wildfire Suppression 24 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium
Wildland Fire Organization -- Federal System
By Wally Josephson Office of Managing Risk and Public Safety Department of the Interior Washington, D.C.
Introduction
The wildland fire suppression organization has in recent years seen more intense fires. The number of acres burned is significant when compared with recent history but the numbers of acres burned in the first half of the century was far greater than today.
Ownership
The federal agencies manage nearly 700 million acres throughout the U.S.
Bureau of Land Management - 268 million acres U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service - 92 million acres National Park Service - 80 million acres Bureau of Indian Affairs - 60 million acres Bureau of Reclamation - 5 million acres U.S. Dept. of Agriculture Forest Service - 191 million acres Total - 696 million acres
Coordination
With much of the federal agency land ownership in the western U.S., the western weather patterns affect the fire situation as well as the actual occurrence of fires during the summer months. There are, of course, federal lands throughout the U.S. in which the federal agencies need to manage all the fire programs.
Fire Program Aids
Within the fire program many computer models assist the fire managers in the planning, organization, and operational suppression tasks. There are programs that model fire behavior, fire weather, fuel moisture, smoke plume, and fire planning.
Fire Season
The western fire season in years past was primarily a 3 to 4 month season. Due to the increased mobility of our fire assets, the U.S. fire season is virtually a year around event that can draw significant resources in any month of the year.
In the early months of the year, fire season starts in the southeast U.S. By April, the season continues north along the eastern U.S. and west along the southern states to
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California. The Alaska season starts in May and generally finishes by early August. In June the northeast slows and the western fire season begins. When September arrives the fire season usually slows in the northwestern states. The eastern states may have a second season at this time. By fall the fire season is in the southern states plus California. By the last months of the year, fire season is once again in the southeastern states.
There are, on average, 100,000 fires and 4 million acres burned each year.
National Wildfire Coordinating Group
The National Wildfire Coordinating Group has been established based on:
S Common philosophy and fire policy, S Shared training, education and expertise, S Support each other, locally and nationally, with personnel and equipment, S Key to interagency response.
Multi-Agency Coordination
Multi-Agency Coordination groups are organized during high fire activity. They consist of land managers and organizations affected by the fire which:
S Identify interagency issues, S Prioritizes fire incidents, S Allocate limited resources.
Incident Command System
The Incident Command System is a common organizational and management model used by the wildland fire organizations. It allows the agencies to utilize personnel from all parts of the country and many different organizations. Recently, during times of extreme drawdown, foreign ICS management teams have been used for management of the suppression organization on incidents.
Local Coordination
Most local fire offices combine with their neighbors to form interagency dispatch centers that service each of the member agencies and allow for more efficient operations. When local fire offices work together they provide for a coordinated suppression effort that mobilizes initial attack forces based on closest forces, not agency affiliation. This coordination also helps in training, prevention, and detection.
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Geographical Coordination
The country is divided into 11 geographical centers to assist in providing the coordination between local fire offices and to direct the organizations in providing the support for setting priorities.
National Coordination
The National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC) in Boise, Idaho provides the national coordination between the geographical centers, and provides national level coordination with other national and international organizations -- see www.nifc.gov. The National Interagency Coordination Center (NICC) locates and mobilizes nationwide personnel, equipment, supplies, and aircraft and establishes priorities for limited resources.
Attacks
Approximately 95 percent of all wildland fire incidents are controlled during initial attack. The support for this action is from local resources only.
Extended attack is taken when local resources are not adequate to control the incident. This incident is higher in complexity.
Project Fires
Project fires have the highest complexity and use support resources from other organizations including contractors. Less than 3 percent of the fires become project fires, yet this category uses up more than 90 percent of the funding for suppression activities.
Support Resources for Suppression
There are more than 20,000 people who have been trained to support the fire suppression organization in more than 50 positions on and off the fireline. The positions include 600-800 hand crews, 400 smokejumpers, 16 National ICS management teams, 9 national fire equipment and supply caches, airtankers, helicopters, hundreds of engines, many dispatch offices, and thousands of support personnel. Additional support includes contractors, National Weather Service, national guard and military battalions, and international fire fighters when called upon.
Contractors supply engines, crews, aircraft, commissary, food, communications, transportation, and emergency supplies.
Emergency Stabilization and Rehabilitation
After the fires are over the stabilization and rehabilitation of the burned area is started. Most burned areas are allowed to re-vegetate naturally. In cases where it is determined that nature will not re-vegetate the burned area, a plan is developed to stabilize
Wildland Fire Organization - Federal System 27 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium the soil and plants and reduce invasion of exotic plant species. The plan may also include actions that are needed to restore the ecosystem over a long-term implementation project.
Hazardous Fuels
Over the past many decades, land managers have believed that full suppression on all fires was necessary to protect the natural resources. Most managers now believe that nature must have fire act as a natural change agent in order to protect the resources. In most of the U.S. the plant communities are fire dependent, and to maintain these communities fire must be a part of the natural environment.
Funding
The federal wildland fire organization in the Departments of the Interior and Agriculture are funded through the Wildland Fire Management appropriation. There are two activities within this appropriation: preparedness and operations.
Preparedness funds program management, hiring, training, procurement of supplies and equipment and contracting of resources.
Operations funds four sub-activities: suppression, emergency stabilization and rehabilitation, severity, and hazardous fuels.
The suppression funding pays for personnel, equipment, supplies, contracts, and aircraft. Emergency stabilization and rehabilitation funds the stabilization of soils and replanting of burned areas. Severity funds the readiness of resources in extreme fire hazard areas. Hazardous fuels funds the program of treating the fuels to reduce the severity of the existing hazard. This funding provides for the use of mechanical and prescribed fire treatments and the contracting of resources to provide these treatment services.
Summary
There are nearly 700 million acres of federal lands that need wildland fire management. Our mission is to manage fire safely and effectively. It is a difficult job, but by working together with federal, state, and local government levels, we can succeed.
About the Author
Josephson is a Wildfire Specialist in the Office of Managing Risk and Public Safety, Department of the Interior, Washington. D.C. He holds a B.S. in Forestry from the University of Minnesota. He has worked with the Forest Service and in various positions with Bureau of Land Management in Idaho, Nevada, and Utah. He was Assistant State Fire Management Officer in Utah before moving to Washington, D.C. in 1995.
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Wildland Fire Organization - Federal System 28 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium
Are You Prepared? Lessons Learned from the Cerro Grande Fire
By Doug MacDonald Chief Los Alamos County Fire Department Los Alamos, New Mexico
It is my hope that this article will help fire departments, allied professionals, builders, environmentalists, and policy makers in their efforts toward finding ways to protect their communities from a wildfire similar to the one that swept through Los Alamos, New Mexico in May 2000, known as "The Cerro Grande Fire.” As the fire, its causes, and its aftermath are very complex, the following is but a single needle on the mighty ponderosa tree of available information. Ironically, we lost roughly 37 million ponderosas during the fire; had we addressed the danger earlier, through the steps outlined below, we certainly would not have cut 37 million trees! However, we may have avoided some of the destruction we experienced.
I have organized the paper into the following categories: 1) Background, 2) The Cerro Grande Fire, 3) Policy and Political, 4) Recovery, 5) Lessons Learned, and 6) Conclusions. If I am successful I will provoke discussion, awareness, thought, and action on your part to address your community’s fire issues, which will not necessarily be limited to wildland fires.
Background
Los Alamos, New Mexico, home of great folks and 110 square miles of magnificent mountains, canyons and mesas, has a short history, but one with world wide impact. Bordered by the Rio Grande on the east and the Jemez Mountains to the west, 7200 feet in elevation, Los Alamos is located on the Pajarito Plateau in Northern New Mexico, 35 miles west of Santa Fe, New Mexico. As the newest and smallest county in the state, it was formed from three other counties consisting of Federal, Pueblo, and private lands in the early 1940s for a National Security Mission. It is the birthplace the atomic bomb.
The population centers are two: White Rock is a community of approximately 8,000 along the county’s southeastern border and Los Alamos (or “the Townsite”) is a community of approximately 11,000 folks along the county’s western border. We are a consolidated County government. [This form of government has proven to be very successful and I suggest that those cities and counties experiencing difficulties in their governmental activities consider a consolidated government model as an alternative means to progress.] Originally established in 1943 as part of a national defense program known as "Project Y," Los Alamos was known as the "secret city" and remained a closed city until the federal government opened Los Alamos to the public in 1959. As the home of Los
Lessons Learned from the Cerro Grande Fire 29 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium
Alamos National Laboratory (“the Laboratory” or “LANL”) we have contributed much to the world in science, medicine, and technology.
We have always experienced fire in the world, whether natural or man made. What is new is fire of the magnitude and intensity seen recently, resulting in the extraordinary loss of life, public and private lands, and properties.
Scientists have analyzed tree ring data and concluded that prior to the 1880s fire in the West occurred every five to ten years and for the most part those fires were low intensity in their burning phases. At that time spatial densities were less: there were approximately 50 -100 trees per acre, leaving the native grasses to carry the fire. Again, with low fuel loading, fires were low intensity in nature and relatively frequent. Along about the 1880s more areas of the West were settled, more grasslands were abused by overgrazing, and when the settlers saw fire they developed ways to suppress it. Wildland fires in the West thus lessened in frequency and the forests began to change. These changes continued at a relatively unstructured rate from the 1880s to 1910.
Beginning in about 1910, the federal government established a national policy to suppress all wildland fire in the United States. Since that national policy was established, the forests have grown or, more precisely, overgrown to what we see today. Our old growth open forests or parkland of 50 -100 trees per acre now sustain 800-1200 trees per acre and are still growing. Because we have grown up in this environment, we have accepted it as the natural state when it is anything but natural.
Our forests are unhealthy, and lessening in their beauty with each generation. Do we now actually see only the forest and not the trees? Our forests are full of non-native species and every day bearing an increasing fuel load that is out of man’s ability to control. Our forests are not healthy, they are stressed and calling out for some other form of management activity. Some will say it took 100 years for the forests to get that way and it will take a 100 years to change. I would suggest if we do not do something soon, it will take only 10 years to change, as we will go from unhealthy yet living, to burnt yet dead, within that short a time. How we make our forests healthy again is a subject many folks are addressing. Can they do it while we still have forests, and will we let them do it?
Many government reports have been written about the Cerro Grande Fire; the mistakes made have become the lessons learned, and I will not repeat the content of those reports. I would like to share personal observations on the fire. When did the Cerro Grande Fire begin? As I’ve indicated above, it was years ago with forest management policy. Why did it begin? Because all of us let it! Federal agencies such as the National Park Service (NPS) and the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) are not alien and intangible; reflect and you will see "us," -- "we" are the ones who make the difference and can change what it is we do not like!
Los Alamos was no stranger to fire before the Cerro Grande: in the past 20 to 30 years we have experienced 5 fires of a magnitude warranting USFS Type 1 teams and hundreds or thousands of firefighters to control or suppress those fires. It was one such fire
Lessons Learned from the Cerro Grande Fire 30 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium in particular which set the stage for mitigation efforts that paid big dividends during the Cerro Grande Fire devastation; that was the Dome Fire of 1996. It was the lessons learned and actions taken following the Dome Fire that led to the creation of the Interagency Wildfire Management Team (IWMT). The impact of that team on this area has been life saving.
The IWMT is comprised of the groups or agencies that have fire awareness, forest health, and other related big picture issues as their mission. In Los Alamos, the County of Los Alamos (“the County” or “LAC”), Los Alamos National Laboratory, Department of Energy, Pueblo of San Ildefonso, Bandelier National Park Service, USFS, State of New Mexico, and others meet bi-weekly to discuss policy; share information; plan; share common facilities; partake in joint mitigation projects; strategize and conduct drills and exercises to enhance the readiness, planning, and educational profiles for the agencies and the public as they relate to the fire awareness and forest health.
It was through the work of this team that certain threat reduction initiatives were undertaken prior to the Cerro Grande Fire. Efforts included cross-training between structural firefighting and wildland firefighting; fuel reduction projects (one of which saved an entire housing subdivision of Los Alamos during the Cerro Grande); evacuation planning with all agencies, and not just those responsible for evacuation; determining defensible space; emergency management planning; and emergency management exercises and drills. In short, the IWMT prepared on all fronts for the best possible outcome of any fire event. That preparation would turn out to be critical.
The Cerro Grande Fire
The Cerro Grande Fire began as a well-intended effort on the part of the National Park Service to protect the national laboratory and the community of Los Alamos. Unfortunately, much devastation resulted from those honorable intentions. In short, NPS touched this fire off, it quickly grew out of control, crowned and ran across the entire face of our mountain, became a part of the Urban Interface Zone, threatened a National Laboratory, took with it many homes, and affected the lives of more than just the folks who lost their prized possessions.
Los Alamos County Fire Department (LAFD) is an all-paid department of 100 plus, utilizing 6 stations, and providing fire, medical and emergency services to the Laboratory and to the community. We are lucky to have a genuinely functioning Incident Command System (ICS). From the beginning of the prescribed fire, LAFD Deputy Chief Doug Tucker was assigned as a liaison to the NPS team, and when that team made the transition to the USFS Type 1 team, Tucker was assigned to the USFS team, directly to their Operations (OPS) division. This assignment, which allowed a command officer from LAFD to participate from the beginning in USFS strategy and tactical sessions, and to communicate directly with the Type 1 Team, proved to be invaluable to the success of our mission to protect the Laboratory and the community during the Cerro Grande Fire.
Lessons Learned from the Cerro Grande Fire 31 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium
Strategic success during the fire resulted from pre-treating specific areas of the community by clearing out fuel, foaming property, early evacuation of parts of the community, activation of the Emergency Operations Center (EOC), calling for a local and state disaster declarations EARLY and then a National disaster declaration, and closing the Laboratory, schools, and county government prior to the fire affecting the community. Closures are not a step taken lightly: the Laboratory's daily payroll, not including any programmatic considerations, is approximately $4.5 million. The policy makers are to be commended for their ability to face the reality necessitating those decisions, especially when the USFS incident commander was confident that USFS fire suppression efforts would stop the fire before it reached the community. [Because the Cerro Grande began as a forest fire, it was not LAFD's fire until it came into the community; even then LAFD was considered only as a structural firefighting division of the USFS operation.]
Many departments look at ICS at only one level; however, for the purposes of this paper, I will break ICS into 4 components, as LAFD was represented at
1) the USFS command structure; 2) the County and the LANL emergency operations centers (EOCs); 3) the LAFD tactical operations center; and 4) the field commander and task force assignments and the company officer functional assignments.
USFS Command Structure -- The USFS command structure is a proven system; the Cerro Grande Fire was no different. The NPS established and followed the ICS from the beginning and as soon as the NPS prescribed fire was viewed to have deviated from the NPS prescription, LAFD was notified and we assigned a LAFD representative to their ICP. LAFD was constantly in contact with the NPS IC and this contact proved to be advantageous throughout the Fire. Too often I talk to fire chiefs around the nation who have not established those critical partnerships with agencies within or adjacent to their jurisdiction. There were no turf battles here during the Cerro Grande. Would there be any in your jurisdiction?
Emergency Operations Centers -- In Los Alamos we have two EOCs, one at LANL and one at the County. You would think that could present some communication difficulties and you would be correct. Aside from that, county management sought and obtained the disaster declarations early on. This was instrumental in the success of the EOC functional operations as this action brought in the State of New Mexico and all its resources. The Fire Chief at the EOC made the evacuation decisions. Through cooperation between the LANL EOC, the county EOC, and the state EOC, a Presidential Disaster Declaration was requested and granted. I cannot overemphasize how critical it was to get these declarations in place early in the event. You will already be behind the power curve and you do not need to be further behind because you have turf struggles occurring and for whatever reason decide not to call for help. Do not delay your calls for assistance! As a result of this Fire, LANL and the County will combine their respective EOCs; the new facility is scheduled to be completed and functional October 2003. This is but one of many positive
Lessons Learned from the Cerro Grande Fire 32 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium adjustments that has come from the hard work of many, especially Senators Pete Domenici and Jeff Bingaman.
Tactical Operations Center -- The next level of the ICS system was the establishment of the tactical operation center or TOC. This was done for many reasons; however, the most important reason is support of the Field Incident Commander. It is much too complicated to explain in a single paragraph; however, for the most part LAFD places key officers in a tactical operation center and facilities, and coordinates all operations from that vantage point. It is not a perfect system but it is absolutely critical. The success of the TOC during the Cerro Grande resulted from the folks assigned, both uniformed and civilian, and the fact that evacuation of the community had taken place and for the most part LAFD was not compromised with emergency calls from the community while fighting the fire.
Task Force Designations and Company Officer Functional Assignments -- Typical systems of management are established with assignments; however, one needs to remember this was anything but a typical situation as we had called for mutual aid from everywhere and the folks responding were not all familiar with the community, the system, or ICS. Again, it did not work perfectly, but if it was not for the systems implemented and a primary focus on safety we would have had lives lost. The lowest level, and perhaps the most vulnerable to misinformation, is the tactical assignment level or the company level. How does the Task Force Leader (TFL) track those assigned and how does the TFL address the assignment, not knowing the training and abilities of those assigned when they are from other departments? Abilities differed, but all were firefighters, all were doing their best, and the TFL and the Company Officers worked their way though the situations that arose.
There were thousands of firefighters fighting the Cerro Grande. LAFD was assisted by 66 fire departments from throughout New Mexico and the USFS had folks from all over the United States. I cannot emphasize enough the importance of establishing safety systems and accountability systems. No firefighter lost his or her life in this fire and I know in part that it was because of the safety systems put in place by the LAFD and the USFS. This is not to say that firefighters were not in peril, because they were risking their lives throughout their firefighting efforts. Many stories have been shared about firefighters dropping their hose lines and running for their lives, about explosions, about foreign objects whistling past their heads, about being surrounded by flames with nowhere to escape. There was life-threatening danger all around, yet "NO LIVES LOST."
Regarding evacuations, remember in your planning that all of those duties and responsibilities contained in your plans will just not take place. Here are but a few examples:
S Not everyone will leave the area when mandated; S Not all those folks who require evacuation assistance nor those assigned to take care of those folks will perform the tasks assigned; S Not everyone actually understands the community emergency plan;
Lessons Learned from the Cerro Grande Fire 33 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium
S Not everyone hears the same orders the same way and some not the way they were intended; S Not everyone has the same degree of commitment; S Not everyone wants to help as they state; and S Not everyone should be helping who wishes to help.
Remember the animals, too: We are a small community but the animal control folks rescued over 700 animals.
Still, whatever the problems, when it comes to assistance you will get more than you request regardless of what you request so be sure that what you request is what you want. Try to set some boundaries (“we need 300 blankets”) or you will receive 100 fold of what you need. There is much good in all who wish to help; those folks number more than you ever thought existed and you will be thankful for all of them.
Policy and Political
It is critical to understand that fires are not just about firefighting. On the most basic level, take the information exchange between yourself as fire chief and your boss, in my case the County Administrator. How, what, when, where, and why are you communicating with him or her? Is he or she in turn communicating with the policy group and managing those functional actions necessary to a successful outcome?
I suggest to you once more that management of the policy makers is critical to a smooth operation, as the policy makers are no different from the rest of us in that they want to assist in hands-on activity. Keep those folks focused on their portion of the hands- on activity: POLICY decision-making, not operational decision-making. Our decision- makers performed extremely well under the leadership of our manager; however, this is not to say it was an easy task defining operational and policy functionality. In short, prepare for the fact that most everyone wants to be involved in the hands-on side and make sure your boss is focused on the bigger picture that policy folks need to address.
Consider, too, the organizations to which the policy makers are members. Los Alamos is a member of the New Mexico Municipal League and our council contacted the League for assistance. I cannot say enough about the Governor of New Mexico, Gary Johnson, and his assistance to this community during the Fire. He was here from beginning to end and was key to acquiring needed resources from the state. From the federal side the entire New Mexico congressional delegation were doing everything they could to support the Laboratory and the county in the efforts to fight and recover from the fire, including the passage of legislation allocating $660 million to assist those affected.
Recovery
We began to recover from the fire while it was still burning. Prior to any demobilization of our firefighters they were mandated to attend a de-briefing session. Those folks who lost their homes, treasures, and identities were provided assistance from
Lessons Learned from the Cerro Grande Fire 34 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium mental health professionals while they boarded busses for the first visit to see what was left of their homes. Upon re-populating the community, town meetings were held to share information, and allow those folks who became known as the "Fire Survivors" the chance to express their feeling of gratitude, anger, hope, confusion, and emptiness.
As we were entering the monsoon/thunderstorm season, our efforts switched from fire to flood mitigation immediately. Every weekend hundreds of volunteers were on the mountainside raking and placing straw on the hydrophobic soils to lessen the risk of flooding. I was the Chief of the Sandbaggers two weekends running. Why was I Chief of the Sandbaggers and my Battalion Chief of Emergency Medical Services now Chief of the Rakers? Fire departments across the nation are the “go to” organization on these efforts. We have the command structure that makes these efforts successful. Be ready to organize, provide the structure, and then transfer responsibility as soon as possible, for there are many other things that need the attention of the fire department. The USFS brought in their recovery teams, the Laboratory brought in their folks, and other groups were providing assistance such that it became impossible to know what everyone else was tasked with, let alone what everyone was doing. Thousands of folks were trying to get as much recovery accomplished as possible before the rains. It was also very organized, and although there was disagreement on the actions to be taken the end result was definitely successful.
The County Council contacted their counterparts in Oakland, California, which had survived the Oakland Fire of 1991. A contingent arrived and assisted us toward recovery. Public meetings were held, questions were asked and answered. Some of the "fire survivors" have rebuilt; however, no more than 10% have yet completed the process. Approximately 240 homes were destroyed, and as some of those units were multi-family units, approximately 430 families lost everything. A large part of the recovery is the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). They have been present in Los Alamos since the fire and will remain for the next 3 years. Information about FEMA’s efforts, as well as a lot of other information about the fire, is available on the Internet.
LAFD was a major player in recovery activity in attempting to move forward with the adoption of the Uniform Fire Code section related to Urban Wildland Interface Code (UWIC). One might think that after an event such as the Cerro Grande Fire such code changes would be relatively easy to make. One would be wrong.
It is a long story so I will be succinct. After many public meetings with varying degrees of success, the public pressure not to implement any code changes was tremendous. I have to applaud our County Council for supporting the fire department in at least implementing the UWIC, albeit in a modified form. [Vegetation, for example, would be handled through education and not enforcement; nor could we get a sprinkler ordinance accepted.] Following Council action, there was a run on the building permit process to get permits prior to the effective date of the code. This surprised me. Homes had just been lost because they were not built to the new code, the federal government had stated it would pay for the additional cost to build to the new code, and yet homeowners ran to get a permit so they did not have to build to the new code. Are you shaking your heads? I was.
Lessons Learned from the Cerro Grande Fire 35 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium
Another part of our recovery effort is the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) Firewise program. I suggest you look it over. We are not quite recovered in any area. It would be difficult to measure recovery in the tangible facets, let alone the intangible; however, we are moving forward and sometimes backward depending on the day. The flooding that has occurred this monsoon/thunderstorm season has been devastating. One storm alone, which by weather standards was less than a 5-year flood, caused $5 million in damage. We no sooner get the channels armored and rip-rapped than the rains come and wash it all away.
Lessons Learned
There have been many reviews of the Cerro Grande Fire and many lessons learned published, by NPS, USFS, LANL, LAFD, LAC, and many others. Please take a moment to contemplate the lessons learned that I consider the most valuable:
1) Take Emergency Management seriously. It will lead to success. 2) Communicate, partner, and train with those who will be with you in the emergency event. 3) These issues and challenges are multi-generational; don't wait for generations to address them. 4) Past mitigation will pay off. 5) Communications in all areas will be challenging. Confirm and reconfirm. Use the amateur radio folks, they could accomplish many things we could not. 6) Address staffing and relief issues quickly. Most agencies do not have depth in relief assignments and fatigue is an issue. 7) Document. Document carefully. Assign folks to film and record activity. 8) Keep trying to educate the public of the need to address and take ownership of their property to help you help them. 9) Continue to plan, train, evaluate, drill and exercise, for as you train you will perform. 10) Review your emergency plans often. It pays off.
Conclusion
I have described the courage of the firefighters from all the agencies assisting during the Cerro Grande Fire countless times before. The emotions experienced by the firefighters and this community are impossible to convey. It may be that the folks in your community think such an event won’t happen to them, and it may be that they will challenge your attempts to make code changes or engage in fuel reduction efforts. However, the Cerro Grande Fire and the other wildland fires that have raged in the West are evidence that it is not a matter of WHETHER but WHEN a similar event will occur in your community. In some small way we were fortunate this was a government-caused fire, as our community would no doubt have burned regardless, if not that year some other year. At least the folks who suffered losses are being compensated monetarily as well as can be expected. I ask each of you: ARE YOU PREPARED? -- or are you one of the ones who believe it can't happen to you?
Lessons Learned from the Cerro Grande Fire 36 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium
If you would like to read a book on the fire there is a great one titled "Cerro Grande, Canyons of Fire, Spirit of Community." This book is full of pictures and information and I will wager you will not finish reading with a dry eye. I believe the website www.Rbooks.com will get you there.
Thanks, Chief MAC
About the Author
MacDoanld has been a member of the Fire Service for 30 years, and Fire Chief of the Los Alamos County Fire Department for the past nine years. Previously, he was Fire Chief of the Casper (Wyo.) Fire Department. He has been a member of the IAFC Accreditation Committee for 15 years.
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Lessons Learned from the Cerro Grande Fire 37 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium
Lessons Learned from the Cerro Grande Fire 38 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium
Can We Increase the Public Perception of Danger in the Urban-Wildland Interface?
By Norman Hamer Survivor of the Cerro Grande Fire Los Alamos, N.M.
My family’s home and possessions were totally destroyed in the Cerro Grande Fire that swept into Los Alamos, New Mexico on May 10, 2000. Am I firewiser now? Yes, I think I am. And, I am building a new house that will probably withstand a firestorm, which is basically what hit Los Alamos last year.
After the fire, I was asked to participate in a meeting with some staff of the United States Geological Survey (USGS) who were attempting to understand what it would take to make people aware of the dangers of fire in urban-wildland interface and to do something about it. I am not certain that we arrived at any knowledge that would be useful for future action. I do know that we need to do more to develop some means of educating people in these areas and motivating them to act. However, this is not going to be easy.
Let me explain my own situation. I am probably a reasonably cautious person. I have never had a traffic ticket because I don’t take chances while driving a potentially dangerous piece of machinery. However, in the case of fire I took a chance that was also encouraged by others around me. As an example, I had a number of small Ponderosa pine trees growing very close to my house. I mentioned to a friend who lived up the street that I thought I should get rid of these trees as they were not very good and were very close to my house. He became fairly agitated and said I shouldn’t touch any trees on my lot. Not wanting to offend a devoted preservationist, I said I wouldn’t touch the trees.
I don’t think the presence of these trees really made any difference between my house burning or not. However, there is a lesson here. We should encourage and defend those who wish to perform mitigation, to any reasonable level, on their property.
Another story, that will bring this point home, is that of a friend who has a vacation house on National Forest land. The roof of this house was composed of deteriorating cedar shakes. He proposed replacing the roof with a more fireproof membrane roof. The Forest Service said he needed to replace it with the same wood roof to keep his house consistent with the appearance of the houses in that area. Here we have the people who should be encouraging owners to perform mitigation refusing to allow someone to change to a more fireproof roof.
What does it take to encourage people to be firewise in the urban-wildland interface? Even though I was burned out, I don’t have the answer to this question. I know that after having my house burn to the ground once, I am going to always practice mitigation. What would it have taken to get me to do mitigation before the fire? I am not sure. I can only guess that maybe if people had brought in pictures, particularly videos to
Can We Increase the Public Perception of Danger in the Urban-Wildland Interface? 39 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium show what should be done, and what the consequences could be if mitigation steps aren't taken, I might have been pursued to do more to protect my house. Would this work with most people? I don’t know. In general, I think not.
I will tell you another story about why the best efforts at educating homeowners simply won't work. The preservationist that lived up the street, after he told me not to touch any trees on my lot, actually planted many Ponderosa pines in his front yard to the point that he had a dense forest. He also did not disturb the natural nature of his forest. He let the grass grow under the trees and did not trim the lower limbs to make the trees less susceptible to a crown fire. In fact, during the Cerro Grande Fire, the fire jumped the street and started burning in the grass under his trees. The trees would have eventually caught fire and, because of their density, would have crowned and taken out the other side of the street. Fortunately, a neighbor who had stayed behind put out the fire before it progressed too far.
After the fire, this person did clear the grass under his trees and trimmed the limbs up to about four feet. However, the last time I passed by his house, I saw that weeds had now grown under the trees and were at a height nearly to the level of the lower branches. I guess with our side of the street burned away, he didn’t have to worry about fire getting into his trees any more. So what does it take to interest people in fire mitigation? Again, I say I don’t know. Here is a person who couldn’t have been any closer to the effects of a fire without losing his house, and yet he has done little to protect his home afterwards.
I am not rebuilding on my burned lot. I am however rebuilding, but in an area of Santa Fe that is in an urban-wildland interface with plenty of trees to burn. In fact a year ago, before the appearance of the recent rains, this area was considered a tinderbox and one of the most fire-dangerous areas in the U.S. Are the homeowners in this area practicing fire mitigation? In general, no! In fact, I am going to have difficulties in developing defensive space around my new home, as I have to have the removal of each tree approved by the homeowner's association architectural committee.
At a meeting of the homeowner's association for this development, I mentioned my desire to remove trees to a distance of 30 feet (not anywhere close to the recommended 100 feet) from my house. This was not met with smiles, to put it mildly.
What will I build? I am building masonry exterior walls, metal windows with double pane tempered or fireproof (if I can afford it) glass, metal doors, cement and pitch metal roofs, and no combustible materials on any exterior features. I am also putting in two large water cisterns with a pump and gasoline fired generator. These last items are being included because the power failed in Los Alamos, and the water pressure was lost at one point. Fire fighters could only get water to the fire by bringing in tanker trucks. An important thing to consider is how effective will your fire fighters be when the infrastructure of your community loses vital elements.
I still think of the windows of my house as being the weak point. I am not sure how to balance cost, looks, and fire protection in this area. I would like to have an
Can We Increase the Public Perception of Danger in the Urban-Wildland Interface? 40 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium automatic shutter system, but these are very expensive. Here might be an area for young inventors. However, these young inventors might starve to death when you consider the lack of interest in making homes fire safe. However, I do think with planning where trees will be (not near windows, i.e. defensive-space) my home will be fairly firewise. I will probably keep hand-installable shutters in the garage and put them up if I have time before a big fire.
What else do I plan to do about being firewise? I plan to talk at every meeting of the homeowner's association and warn them of the dangers of the urban-wildland interface. These associations and their covenants are there to stop people from disturbing the wildlands in which they are building their homes. However, they need to understand that to save lives and property there needs to be a more realistic look at the potential dangers of not being firewise. People need to understand that at this interface, firefighters can do little but watch when the forces of nature combine with a good size fire and this comes into your neighborhood with more energy and speed than a dozen freight trains.
About the Author
Hamer is a systems engineer at Los Alamos National Laboratory, and specializes in decision and cost/benefit analysis. His home was destroyed in the Cerro Grande Fire, and he is a leader of the Cerro Grande Fire Survivors Association. He received a Ph.D. in Theoretical Chemical Physics from MIT and taught for 18 years in the Chemistry Department of the Australian Defense Force Academy.
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Can We Increase the Public Perception of Danger in the Urban-Wildland Interface? 41 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium
Can We Increase the Public Perception of Danger in the Urban-Wildland Interface? 42 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium
Firewise Public Education
By Nancy Porter Regional Fire Prevention Specialist U.S. Forest Service Mather, Calif.
Public education has been a key component of successful programs such as the anti-drunk driving, seatbelt safety, and fire prevention campaigns. Public education is the passing on of technical knowledge carried out through a variety of methods. No one method reaches everyone. Population demographics are constantly changing and the public education methods used to reach baby boomers are not what you would use to reach today’s new millennium generation.
Through public education and other mitigation measures, we have successfully reduced the number of human-caused fires in the U.S., even with an increased population. Through raised awareness and reinforced education, the public is engaged in the solution.
Firewise public education blends existing fire prevention public education with Firewise Communities concepts. The Firewise public education program coordinates, collaborates, and does not reinvent.
The number of high risk wildland urban interface communities is growing every day. Through Firewise public education we deliver a call to action to community homeowners, giving them tools and ideas to be a part of the solution for their fire protection.
State and wildland agencies are currently working together to deliver the Firewise message. Fire agencies and emergency managers are working with communities to share what has been learned about the wildland urban interface. Through communities sharing their success stories, other communities can learn the actions needed to make their communities Firewise. Some of the methods used to deliver Firewise education are:
S Workshops, S Fire Prevention Education Teams, S Displays & Kiosks, S Public Service Announcements, S Celebrity endorsements, and S The Firewise website www.firewise.org
Firewise is not a program, product, or single organization. It’s a concept for many disciplines working together. The Firewise concept becomes an integral part of a community initially through education about the need to share responsibility. Then, the actual on-the-ground practice is a continual education process through Firewise landscaping and maintenance.
Firewise Public Education 43 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium
There are many different local models used to implement on-the-ground Firewise activities. In Bend, Oregon, for example, a program called Fire Free has been used to educate the public to follow 10 steps to reduce the risk of wildfire:
1. Define your defensible space. 2. Reduce flammable vegetation, trees, and brush around your home. 3. Remove or prune trees. 4. Cut grass and weeds regularly. 5. Relocate wood piles and leftover building materials. 6. Keep it clean. 7. Provide signs, addresses and access. 8. Rate your roof. 9. Recycle yard debris and branches. 10. Know what to do when wildfire strikes.
In California, the Fire Safe Council Model has been effective in engaging community members in fire protection issues. Fire Safe Councils adapt and implement Firewise concepts. The Fire Safe Council model can be thought of as a pyramid.
At the top of the pyramid rests the smallest unit of the targeted audience: the household. This is where “Crawl low in smoke,” “Stop-Drop-and-Roll,” and other messages of personal safety are appropriate. Down one level on the pyramid is the structure. Stronger structures are the result of adequate and enforced building codes. In the realm of wildfire, the structure would not be allowed to have untreated wood shake shingles, exposed underdecking, or narrow driveways. Next is the subdivision. It is here that design standards -- such as NFPA 299 Standard for the Protection of Life and Property from Wildfire -- help developers and builders collaborate with fire officials to provide built-in protection on a larger scale.
Then, moving down to the base of the pyramid, we reach the foundation of the community. This level is the culmination of the “doing the right thing” on each of the other levels. This is the 100% submersion point for the Firewise concept. Homeowners take personal responsibility for their property. The political entity assumes proper responsibility for adopting and enforcing meaningful codes. And builders and developers follow sound codes and practices and the community provides the infrastructure and freedom for people to act and live in a Firewise way.
The heart of the Firewise concept and message is to strengthen the community and neighborhood infrastructure and organization so as to allow for installation of transparent safety and mitigation measures -- such as wider roads, green spaces, landscaping, siting, and so on. It also encourages the development of highly visible public education programs such as Fire Free and Fire Safe Councils.
Of course, there are many models that can be used, but the key in public education is to engage communities at the local level. People learn differently, are at different stages of learning when you present information to an audience, and learn best through
Firewise Public Education 44 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium demonstrations and hands-on projects. People need to be actively encouraged and have a reason to change their behavior and to expend time, energy, and money to accomplish something. Firewise offers communities different methods they can use to achieve their community goals. We see consequences of doing nothing to reduce fire hazards in communities almost daily in the summertime in the news. Here are some of the things you can do as an individual homeowner to protect your home from wildfire:
1. Choose a Firewise location. 2. Design and build firewise structures. 3. Stay on guard with Firewise landscaping and maintenance.
Here are some of the things you can do as a community to make your community Firewise:
1. Recognize fire hazards on your property, around your neighborhood, and in your community. 2. Design and maintain Firewise homes and landscaping, expect others to do the same (see the Firewise Landscaping and Firewise Construction Checklists at www.firewise.org/pubs/checklists/fwlistsz.pdf ) 3. Incorporate Firewise community land use planning into existing and developing areas of communities. 4. Collaborate on issues of public safety with those involved in the creation of those hazards and those who live in hazardous areas.
About the Author
For the past 10 years, Porter has been the Regional Fire Prevention Specialist for U.S. Forest Service Region 5. She has worked toward building educational partnerships and community involvement in wildland/urban interface issues. She is currently serving on the International Urban-Wildland Interface Code Development Committee, the NFPA Nominating Committee for the NFPA Board of Directors, and the NFPA Public Fire Educator Professional Qualifications Technical Committee. She is a member of the National Firewise Communities Planning Team. Porter has been with the Forest Service since 1977
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Firewise Public Education 45 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium
Firewise Public Education 46 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium
Wildland-Urban Fire: Beware the Home Ignition Zone
By Jack D. Cohen Research Physical Scientist Missoula Fire Sciences Laboratory Rocky Mountain Research Station USDA Forest Service Missoula, Mont.
Wildland-urban fire occurs when a fire burning in vegetation fuels gets close enough with its flames and/or firebrands (lofted burning embers) to potentially create ignitions of residential fuels. Residential fire destruction is the principal problem during wildland-urban fires, but homes that do not ignite do not burn. Recognizing the potential for wildland-urban home ignitions and preventing home ignitions is the principal challenge.
Understanding how homes ignite during wildland-urban fires provides the basis for appropriately assessing the potential for home ignition and thereby effectively mitigating wildland-urban fire ignitions.
Fires do not spread by flowing over the landscape, and high intensity fires do not engulf objects, as do avalanches and tsunamis. All fires spread by meeting the requirements for combustion—that is, a sufficiency of fuel, heat, and oxygen. In the context of severe wildland-urban fires, oxygen is not a limiting factor so this type of fire spreads according to a sufficiency of fuel and heat. Homes are the fuel and the heat comes from the flames and/or firebrands of the surrounding fires. How close flames are to the home and whether or not firebrands contact the home determines how much heat the home receives.
Home ignition research over the last several years has exposed wall sections to crown fires. Wall sections were placed at 33, 66, and 98 feet from the forest edge. Ignition of the 33 ft. wall section occurred during 3 out of 7 crown fires. No ignitions or significant scorch occurred on wall sections at 66 ft. and 98 ft. during any crown fire. Recent research indicates that the potential for home ignitions during wildfires, including those of high intensity, principally depends on a home’s fuel characteristics and the heat sources within 100-200 feet adjacent to a home (reference wildland-urban fire research at www.firelab.org). This relatively limited area that determines home ignition potential can be called the home ignition zone.
During a wildland-urban fire a home ignites from two possible sources: directly from flames (radiation and convection heating) and/or from firebrands accumulating directly on the home. Even the large flames of high intensity crown fires do not directly ignite homes at distances beyond 200 feet. Given that fires adjacent to a home do not ignite it, firebrands can only ignite a home through contact. Thus, the home ignition zone
Wildland-Urban Fire: Beware the Home Ignition Zone 47 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium becomes the focus for activities to reduce potential wildland-urban fire destruction. This has implications for reducing home ignition potential before a wildfire as well as implications for emergency wildland-urban fire response strategy and tactics.
One might argue that preventing the occurrence of wildfires would prevent wildland-urban fire destruction. However, our current understanding indicates that wildland fire is an intrinsic process in nearly all North American ecosystems. Wildland fire will always occur in the forest and rangeland landscapes and will always have an impact on people, property and resources.
Thus, it is not reasonable to form agency and public expectations for the non- occurrence of wildfires. This implies that communities will be impacted by wildfire; that is, we must assume that wildfires will continue to encroach on communities. This suggests an approach that minimizes the impacts, not one that necessarily eliminates the impacts. This implies an approach of community compatibility with wildland fire and the previously mentioned research substantiates the possibility for such an approach.
Wildland-urban fire emergency strategy and tactics differ from either the standard wildland or the standard urban fire suppression practices. Wildland fire suppression largely attempts to keep a fire from spreading beyond its current location. That is, keeping the wildfire away from a valued area protects the values at risk. Urban fire suppression initially addresses life safety (principally building occupants) and then fire containment within a portion of the structure and/or prevents adjacent structure involvement. Neither of the wildland or the urban suppression practices typically provide for home ignition potential reduction given an encroaching wildfire.
Wildland-urban strategy and tactics assume the wildfire may pass through the residential area without wildfire containment. The wildland-urban strategy and tactics principally focus on preparing the home for the wildfire by reducing the potential for home ignition within the home ignition zone. Because of time constraints, most preparation should occur before a wildfire occurs. Major changes to the home ignition zone (the home and its immediate surroundings) such as replacing a flammable roof and removal of vegetation -- such as forest thinning -- cannot occur during the approach of a wildfire. Removal of firewood piles, dead leaves, conifer needles, dead grass, etc. from on and next to the home should also occur seasonally before severe fire conditions.
The ignition potential of the home ignition zone largely influences the effectiveness of protection during a wildfire. Given low ignition potential and enough time, homeowners and/or wildland-urban suppression resources can make significant reductions in the little things that influence ignition potential before wildfire encroachment. Then, if possible, homeowners and/or wildland-urban firefighting resources can suppress small fires that threaten the structure during and after the wildfire approach.
Agencies need to recognize that wildland-urban fire strategy and tactics are fundamentally different from their traditional tasks. The principal efforts for reducing ignitions focus on the home ignition zone before the wildfire occurrence. Since
Wildland-Urban Fire: Beware the Home Ignition Zone 48 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium homeowners largely own and control the home ignition zone, agencies must function as partners and facilitators for implementing wildland-urban mitigations. During the wildfire, wildland-urban protection activities continue to focus on the home ignition zone for the prevention of home ignitions.
Even with ignition resistant homes, protection effectiveness relies on an understanding of how homes ignite during wildland fires, along with recognizing operational and logistical fire suppression limitations. These differences suggest the need for wildland-urban fire specialists both before a wildfire and during a wildfire. Before the wildfire, the wildland-urban fire specialist uses home ignition expertise to identify vulnerable residential areas and facilitate community efforts to reduce home ignitability. During wildfires, the specialists work with homeowners and multi-agency wildland-urban fire protection teams to identify and implement effective actions for reducing home destruction during wildfires.
About the Author
Cohen has been involved in fire management and fire research since 1972. His current research involves understanding and modeling structure ignitions during wildland fires, and he is developing the Structure Ignition Assessment Model (SIAM), a method for assessing wildland fire threat to homes. He has developed or had a hand in developing the National Fire Danger Rating System, the hand-held Fire Danger/Fire Behavior Calculator (TI-59), and the FIRECAST interactive wildland fire behavior information system. He is one of the principal scientists involved in the International Crown Fire Modeling Experiment, NWT, Canada, where hi is investigating the thermal characteristics of crown fires related to structure ignitions and fire spread.
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Wildland-Urban Fire: Beware the Home Ignition Zone 49 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium
Wildland-Urban Fire: Beware the Home Ignition Zone 50 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium
Wildland - Urban Fire Hazard Issues, GIS Solutions
By Ron Montague Firewise Communities National Management Team Vice President, Firewise 2000, Inc.
The purpose of this paper is to discuss the relationship of proactive wildland fire protection planning, hazard mapping, and geographical information systems. Six discussion points will illustrate the ethical and problematic issues in developing effective fire hazard maps. The discussion points will include:
1) Reactive versus Proactive Fire Planning, 2) Role of GIS Database (Pre-Fire Management), 3) Risks, Hazards, and Values at Risk, 4) Scale/Accuracy, 5) Liability, and 6) New GIS Technology.
Reactive versus Proactive Fire Planning
The primary purpose of wildland fire protection is to protect the wide range of values at risk within and adjacent to our nation’s communities or wildland areas. Among these assets, life and property are commonly identified as the top two priorities in the missions of our fire agencies. The protection of resources (timber, range, recreation, water and air quality, wildlife habitats, biological diversity, ecosystem health, cultural, historic, visual/scenic areas, etc.) is listed as the third priority in the missions of most wildland fire agencies. Unfortunately, fire agencies are often overwhelmed under extreme fire weather conditions, forcing choices between these priorities. It is under these conditions where wildland/urban fire conflagrations produce the greatest loss of property and resources.
After most large wildland/urban conflagrations or devastating national fire seasons, the political and public awareness rallies support for increased funding to hire additional fire suppression personnel, purchase new equipment, implement fuel management projects, and enhance fire prevention activities. After the 2000 wildland fire season, the funding increased significantly for each of these solutions. Additional political efforts to streamline environmental constraints may place mitigation activities in conflict with local community values. Despite this approach, by August 2001 the national fire suppression resources reached Stage 5, where the number of wildland fires overwhelmed the existing fire suppression resources and large wildland fires spread throughout the western states.
The 2000 National Fire Plan also identified a proactive approach to fire protection known as Firewise Communities. This integrated planning approach provides a forum for local, state, and national fire agencies to input their expertise on how a community should be designed, built, and sustained. In addition, community leaders and representatives from community planning, land management, development, building industry, insurance, environmental protection, real estate, citizen groups and other key parties involved in the
Wildland-Urban Fire Hazard Issues, GIS Solutions 51 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium local planning are educated on fire protection issues, while serving as an integral component of the local fire protection planning system. The result of this approach is a process that “builds consensus for local fire protection needs,” while preserving local community values. When effectively planned, local communities will become ‘sustainable communities,’ able to effectively withstand natural disasters such as wildland fire on their own without requiring the intervention of the fire protection agencies. Critical fire suppression resources previously tied up suppressing structure fires can then be redeployed to contain wildland fires that destroy valuable watershed and consume valuable resources.
Role of GIS Database (Pre-Fire Management)
Despite extensive use of GIS software and data, fire managers overall have been under-utilizing this data management system. Fire managers have already discovered and utilized the emergency response and dispatch extensions of GIS- or CAD-based systems. Expanded utilization could include wildfire prevention, detection, presuppression activities, dispatching, suppression activities, and fuel management activities. In addition, many wildland fire or forestry agencies have utilized GIS to map administrative boundaries, topography, vegetation types, fuel loadings, timber types, sensitive wildlife habitats, wind profiles, soil composition, access routes, firebreaks (natural and man-made), power lines, and water corridors.
The proactive fire protection planning process can be an extremely complex set of integrated community values. A geographical information system (GIS) is required to effectively identify, organize, analyze and display these issues in a manner in which all disciplines can easily comprehend. When effectively displayed, spatial and tabular data within each GIS theme can be easily analyzed to develop effective constraints and opportunities maps for community development planning. In addition, the utilization of a GIS database also establishes a dynamic spatial planning tool that can be easily updated. Without this tool fire management plans are often outdated soon after completion.
Local Planning, Conversion of Risks, Fuel Hazard, and Values at Risk
When integrating fire management GIS themes with local planning GIS databases, it is critical that each fire management theme and terminology is clearly defined for the non-fire user. Terms such as mitigation often represent legal agreements relating to environmental planning.
Other disciplines often refer to risk as a threat or potential cost factor, therefore the use of ‘fire risk’ or fire occurrence is an effective method to communicate the “potential for ignition.” Fire risk or potential fire occurrence zones can be created by mapping the historical fire ignition locations, and projecting potential ignition causes by assessment of transportation corridors and existing land use activities. Recent advancements in GPS and GIS technology have enhanced the fire occurrence prediction models for lightning-caused fires. The resulting fire risk zone maps provide an effective spatial mapping tool to help determine patrol and prevention activities. High risk areas near or adjacent to high hazard areas rate as higher priority for treatment.
Wildland-Urban Fire Hazard Issues, GIS Solutions 52 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium
Hazard mapping has been an effective tool for government officials, land managers, land use planners, and the public in understanding the spatial dynamics of other natural disasters such as earthquakes, floods, hurricanes and tornadoes. Fire hazard mapping has not been as effective in communicating the issues of proactive fire protection activities.
As all vegetation is capable of burning, the critical factor to communicate to other disciplines is the severity or intensity that will result when an ignition occurs under various conditions. Therefore, effective fuel hazard maps will combine accurate fuel modeling with topographic features such as steepness of slope and geographic layout of the landscape. Fuel hazard mapping should also include all other components that can align to affect the flame length, rate of spread and burning intensity.
When identifying hazards it is equally important to accurately depict its actual condition and communicate that not all hazards need to be mitigated. Those hazards that require attention are those that represent a threat to identified community values, represent higher than desired burning intensities, and threats to wildland fire control.
The discussion of fire intensity often facilitates the consensus building for long- term management of wildland fuels. The exclusion of fire or harsh climate related factors (droughts, freezes, blow-downs, etc.) leads to fuel accumulation or increased decadence of the fine woody vegetation. These conditions will indicate a higher susceptibility to high intensity and stand-damaging wildland fire behavior. Identification of potential fire intensity builds consensus for proactive treatments such as prescribed burning or other methods of fuel treatment.
The discussion of potential fire intensity also effectively dissects the conservationist approach (management) from the preservationist approach (non- management). Enhanced fire hazard mapping can be easily adapted to detected changes in vegetative condition or seasonality by running fire prediction models under various weather and fuel moisture conditions. GIS mapping is an effective tool to visually display seasonal changes as the normal fire season progresses or when extreme fire weather conditions occur.
In many cases, the introduction of seasonality illustrates the gradual increase in the continuity of fuels which are susceptible to high fire intensity. In addition, some lower hazard fuels such as riparian or fuels located north, northeast, or east facing aspects may face a gradual decrease in the annual fuel moisture cycle and are then exposed to hot, dry, high intensity Foehn winds during extreme fire weather conditions. This process inverts low intensity fuels to high intensity.
“Values at Risk” mapping is the process of capturing all the issues, concerns, buffer areas, and constraints expressed by all other disciplines within the planning area. This determination requires a comparative analysis of value locations in relationship to fuel hazard and its susceptibility to various levels of fire intensity.
Wildland-Urban Fire Hazard Issues, GIS Solutions 53 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium
Scale and Accuracy
The scale of fire hazard mapping has created a number of issues at the local planning level. National, state, regional, and some county hazard mapping is often based on larger scale vegetation classifications where accuracy is sacrificed. Often, large scale mapping includes the use of satellite imagery or aerial photography and change detection processes that are effective in evaluating overall type, condition, and health of landscapes; however, the understory assessment is often sacrificed.
Two methods of statewide fire hazard mapping were developed after the Oakland/ Berkeley Tunnel Fire of 1991. The first was the statewide Bates Bill mapping process where communities were mapped as high fire severity areas. The second was the ISO’s FireLineTM software tool developed for the Insurance Services Offices, Inc. to help wildland fire underwriters. Both products were utilized by the insurance underwriters.
In the first case, homes were classified by their distance from high fire severity zones. Unfortunately, the local mitigation or hazard abatement considerations were not integrated with this analysis. In many jurisdictions, stricter fire development standards, hazard abatement activities, and fuel management plans are required within these areas that adequately address these fire hazard concerns. In other locations, homes within the low hazard areas are adjacent or near un-treated hazardous fuels. The City of Montecito, Calif. addressed this discrepancy by using GIS to map its mitigation projects within the high fire severity area. Insurance representatives were then brought to the field in a process to rectify this discrepancy.
The ISO’s FireLineTM software tool is far more detailed in the assessment of vegetative fuel, topography, and road access. This GIS-based tool provides detailed mapbooks of individual developments that evaluates each of these factors. Unfortunately, this product lacks the understory assessment modeling or the integration of hazard abatement activities to accurately assess site-specific locations. The promotional literature for the Fireline software states that underwriters:
“don’t even have to leave their desk to assess wildfire risks in California. ISO’s FirelineTM lets you do it with a click of the mouse. Fireline combines recognized risk factors and satellite imagery to help you pinpoint – down to the address; literally, down to an area 98 feet square – potential wildfire hazards to properties.”
While this tool could be an effective tool to build a GIS database that could serve as a foundation for community hazard mapping, without an effective method of assessing the site-specific understory condition or treatment activities, this tool can be misinterpreted.
Jack Cohen’s Structural Ignition Assessment Model (SIAM) is a detailed evaluation of the structural features which contribute to the ignition flammability of a structure. While this model is probably too detailed for community hazard mapping, it
Wildland-Urban Fire Hazard Issues, GIS Solutions 54 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium provides the scientific analysis to assess the susceptibility of structural features to wildland fire.
NFPA 299 Hazard Assessment System provides an excellent framework to identify the critical components of a community that represent a wildland fire hazard. The Frenchtown, Montana Fire Protection District is experimenting with the application of this standard as a GIS based community hazard mapping tool. Two issues of concern have been identified during this process. The first is that the fuel models were not specific enough to model local fuel conditions. The second issue was that homes with hazard abatement treatments continue to be rated in the moderate fire hazard classification. The district is currently developing adaptations to address both of these concerns. A home with survivable space can be reassessed as a low hazard, after utilizing their professional expertise to evaluate the ratings for each of the cumulative components.
Often the scale of local fuel hazard mapping depends on the scale of existing vegetation inventories or fuel model mapping. Many vegetation types do not convert easily into specific fuel models and require field truthing. In most cases, local fuel models are not represented by a specific fuel model but a combination fuel models, which captures the appropriate distribution of fuel types.
Liability
Liability has been identified as a significant area of concern for some local communities where fire and fuel hazard mapping has been identified. Legal staff have expressed the concern about publishing hazard maps based on the concerns of accuracy and potential liabilities if not adequately addressed.
Hazard assessment, fire risk mapping, and values mapping are the initial steps of the planning process. These maps will provide the necessary foundation for:
1) professional assessment of the current situation, 2) identification of the impacted parties and issues, 3) priority setting, 4) increasing community awareness, 5) facilitating cooperation, consensus, and coordination of local efforts, 6) fostering partnerships, and 7) providing access to expert analysis.
In contrast, inactivity due to liability concern paralyzes land use/fire management. In addition, preventing the publication of this information prevents the acquisition of the last four benefits while still exposing an entity to a hidden liability. In most cases, any evaluation of conditions will be discovered during the investigation of major incidents, and if funded by public funds, would be available through the Freedom of Information Act.
Wildland-Urban Fire Hazard Issues, GIS Solutions 55 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires -- A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium
New Technology
Recent GIS software extensions such as Spatial Analyst, 3D Analyst, ArcPad, and hardware tools such as handheld GPS units and Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs) greatly enhance the hazard assessment mapping process.
The Spatial Analyst extension provides the foundation for grid modeling and allows for the downloading of Digital Elevation Models and hillshades, while 3D Analyst can evaluate such issues as local wind modeling, solar exposure, and wildland fire spread.
ArcPad provides the software foundation for taking desktop GIS themes into the field utilizing PDAs. This process can be greatly enhanced with the ability to link GPS units and digital cameras with the PDA. Most recently, Trimble has developed a Media- Mapper software package for their hand-held GPS units that date-stamps each digital photograph with its geographic location. When multiple pictures are taken from the same location, the photos are arranged in date order.
The combination of these new technology advancements with improved GPS accuracy and greater access to satellite technology will greatly enhance the community fire hazard mapping and assessment process.
In summary, accurate hazard mapping using the advancements in GIS technology and hardware will greatly enhance the community awareness of the impacts of fire intensity on the watershed landscape. To meet all three stated missions of the fire protection agencies (the protection of life, property, and resources) a proactive community values based approach to fire planning will be required. When successfully implemented, Firewise Communities will improve life safety, building survivability, and enhance the quality of existing resources.
About the Author
Currently, Montague is a member of the Firewise Communities National Management Team and serves as the National Firewise Communities Support Coordinator. The National Management Team is currently conducting Firewise workshops across the United States. As Support Coordinator, Ron works directly with Firewise Communities to develop community values-based fire / land use management plans. Ron is the developer of the GIS training exercise, which serves as the base for the Firewise Communities workshops. This exercise is based on some of the primary concepts of the "Firewise Planning" model mentioned below. He is also the "Firewise Planning" spokesperson, and has been a speaker at planning, fire management, and urban forest conferences and workshops in the state of California. He has also given numerous presentations to wildland/urban communities on the subject of GIS-based Regional and watershed based Firewise planning.
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Wildland-Urban Fire Hazard Issues, GIS Solutions 56 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires - A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium
The Emerging Role of Emergency Management
By David Halstead, CEM, Government Analyst Florida Division of Emergency Management Tallahassee, Fla.
When wildfires occur across the United States, more and more are involving homes in the Wildland/Urban Interface (WUI). While statutorily most states have a state forester and state division of forestry that responds to and extinguishes wildland fires, most are unaware or have ignored the role of emergency management. A term that has been coined for the role of emergency management in these disaster events is consequence management: that is, dealing with the issues of individual or public assistance caused by the disaster event such as evacuations, sheltering victims, coordinating federal FEMA funding, etc. Emergency management’s role is certainly changing though it does not involve direct response to wildfires nor should it want to be a part of that overall operational response. What then is the role of emergency management in Firewise Communities and the concepts that can end the cycle of loss of homes and businesses by wildland fire?
Developing Firewise Strategies
Project Impact was the first national project that focused efforts of local and state agencies on pre-disaster mitigation strategies. Funding was directly tied to these early efforts; however, in the initial stages wildland fire was an after-thought and was not considered a main player. We must engage federal, state, and local emergency management officials and convince these officials at all levels that disasters may involve wind, water, earth, and fire. When real change is discussed with these officials, Firewise is truly an area where that real change can be made in the community. Wildfire is a disaster that has the greatest opportunity of being effectively mitigated as far as its effects on homes and structures.
Emergency management can assist in developing those local partnerships that are so important to the Firewise strategy. Often times the state and/or local emergency manager already has made the contacts with the insurance agents, planners, builders, homeowners associations, elected officials, and other key partners. So rather than starting from scratch, the local emergency manager can be enlisted to make these contacts to develop the partnerships necessary to make Firewise a success.
Funding Firewise Concepts
Work with local and state agencies to focus on key wildfire problems and to facilitate funding strategies for some of the initiatives. Most states have a State Hazard Mitigation Plan that is coordinated through the state office of emergency management. The question that should be asked of our wildland partners is this: Is wildland fire and the concepts of
The Emerging Role of Emergency Management 57 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires - A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium
Firewise a part of that planning document, and if not, the effort should be made to ensure its inclusion in the Plan
When wildland fire becomes a part of the local and state hazard mitigation and pre- disaster mitigation strategies, funding is often times available from a number of sources:
D Post-disaster mitigation funding from FEMA: 20% of the public assistance disaster relief is provided for mitigation. That is, an area that receives a Presidential Declaration and has $100 million of loss can expect $20 million back for mitigation projects. D Pre-disaster mitigation strategies through programs such as the soon to be renamed Project Impact. D States are provided funding via grants from FEMA for disaster related or hazard mitigation projects. Make wildland fire and the Firewise concepts a part of grant requests. D Some states, such as Florida, provide funding for mitigation projects through competitive grants that are available to city, county, and state agencies.
Firewise Planning, Planning, and More Planning
Each state has a comprehensive emergency management plan, but does each state have an element that addresses wildland fire and incorporates Firewise concepts? Many states have land use planning, comprehensive planning documents, or some other long- range planning tool that outlines future land-use. In the considerations for updating these plans, is wildland fire mentioned or referred to as an element for consideration? Have Firewise concepts been included in this planning process, and if not, can working through emergency management at the state level facilitate those efforts?
In local land-use amendments, the local planning board often gathers information from technical experts. Is Firewise one of those areas, so that prior to approving a development, considerations will be given to these concepts? Emergency managers often are asked to comment on the potential for flooding, wind events, or storm surge, and should be sought out as partners to include the wildland fire risk as one of the elements for consideration prior to approving new construction in the local community.
And the Rest of the Firewise Story
When wildfire experts speak to wildfire experts about the problems associated with the wildland/urban interface it is as if they are speaking to themselves in a mirror. The key to Firewise is convincing those who know little or nothing about wildland fire that there is a real problem, and to enlist their support. The strategy involves acknowledging that emergency managers work on this kind of team building and facilitation on a regular basis when dealing with emergencies as diverse as West-Nile virus infestations and Y2K. In making the Firewise concepts a true success, both from a funding and an implementation point of view, the expertise of the local and state emergency manager can help to complete the success story of Firewise Communities.
The Emerging Role of Emergency Management 58 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires - A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium
About the Author
Halstead directs the Emergency Services Branch at the Florida State Emergency Operations Center, and serves as the wildland fire liaison for the State of Florida Unified Command during state activation for wildfire events. His is responsible for coordination with the Florida Division of Forestry, the State Fire Marshals Office, the Florida Fire Chief's Association, and local fire and emergency management agencies. He serves as the vice-chair of the National Wildland Urban Interface Working Team that developed the national Firewise Communities program.
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The Emerging Role of Emergency Management 59 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires - A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium
The Emerging Role of Emergency Management 60 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires - A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium
Protecting Homes and Businesses – IBHS and the Wildfire Hazard
By Michele Steinberg Staff – IBHS Land Use Planning Committee Institute for Business & Home Safety
Wildfires are part of a natural cycle that helps to maintain the health of our forests. Increasing numbers of people are moving into remote areas, creating a wildland/urban interface, and as this happens, nature’s wildfires become disasters, threatening homes and businesses. The Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS) seeks to reduce deaths, injuries, property damage, economic losses and human suffering caused by natural disasters such as wildfire. IBHS does this by seeking to change how we build and where we build.
IBHS is a research, engineering, and communications nonprofit organization supported by property/casualty insurers and reinsurers doing business in the U.S. In addition to wildfire, IBHS seeks to reduce losses from earthquakes, windstorms (including hurricanes and tornadoes), hail, and floods. With its member insurers and partners, IBHS explores a variety of ways to motivate individuals, businesses, and communities to take steps toward disaster safety. What follows are some examples of projects and programs IBHS uses that can be particularly effective in reducing the wildfire threat over the long term.
How We Build
The materials used in building homes and businesses exposed to wildfire danger can make a significant difference in safety. Roof coverings, exterior walls, windows, vents, eaves, and chimneys are all places a firebrand or sparks from a wildfire could wreak havoc. Attached structures -- such as decks, balconies, porches, garages or wooden fences which can extend out over slopes or into heavily vegetated areas -- can be the first parts of the home to ignite, and can quickly carry the wildfire to the main portion of the structure.
IBHS makes specific recommendations for design and retrofit of homes in its publications “Protect Your Home from Wildfire Damage,” a tri-fold brochure, and its new “Is Your Home Protected from Wildfire Disaster? A Homeowner’s Guide to Wildfire Retrofit,” available electronically at www.ibhs.org. Insurance professionals, nonprofits, emergency management organizations, and many others use these publications to inform and educate their customers and constituents.
At the national level, IBHS works with code organizations including the National Fire Protection Association to promote the state-of-the-art with regard to disaster protection in the design and construction of new homes and commercial buildings. Sound building codes are the basis for building safer communities.
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Focusing on “how we build” new homes is the impetus behind a special program being piloted in Florida, a state with a history of devastating wildfires. Known as Fortified…for safer livingsm, this program provides builders and buyers of new homes with a set of criteria for optional upgrades that can help reduce the risks posed by wildfires, windstorms, and floods. Fortified is designed as an inspection-based program to allow potential homebuyers to be certain that important safety features are included. The program criteria for wildfire include building design and materials, but also emphasize landscaping and access – important considerations for wildfire safety.
Where We Build
In fact, a building’s location relative to fuel sources such as trees or brush, the slope of the site, and its accessibility to emergency response vehicles are at least half of the disaster safety equation. The IBHS homeowner guide helps readers assess the risk of wildfire by asking questions about the terrain, landscape, location of fuels such as firewood or propane tanks, proximity of fire hydrants and quality of access for firetrucks. Recommendations for protecting the home include creating a survivable space – an area of reduced fuels between the home and the wildland. Modifications to improve access for fire rescue are as simple as affixing visible street signs and numbers on the property. Additional measures include widening driveways and moving gates to allow vehicle access.
While these recommendations address locational issues for existing homes in the wildland/urban interface, IBHS is also encouraging communities to address natural hazard risks before they build. A Land Use Planning Committee made up of insurers, planning practitioners, and researchers has developed informational materials about the importance of community plans in reducing natural disaster losses. A city or town with a comprehensive plan can include hazards considerations in elements including land use, open space preservation, transportation, and capital improvements.
Communities that address hazards in local plans set the tone for future development and bring about an awareness that certain locations may be more or less desirable for certain uses due to their hazard potential. While such plans don’t necessarily prohibit new buildings or subdivisions in hazardous areas, they bring hazards into the balance along with other community needs and issues.
IBHS recently surveyed a sample of communities throughout the country using its Community Land Use Evaluation for Natural Hazards questionnaire. While many communities are using comprehensive plans for development, few include substantial data on natural hazards, policies that address natural hazards, or implementation strategies to avoid or minimize development and hazardous areas. IBHS will use the results of the survey to communicate the importance of planning for future loss reduction from wildfire and other natural hazards.
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Partnerships
In its quest to make homes and businesses safer from natural disasters, IBHS works with a variety of partners. In the wildfire arena, the National Fire Protection Association is a key ally. NFPA’s links to government agencies including the U.S. Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management have furthered wildfire mitigation through the Firewise Community concept. IBHS is one of many sponsors of the Firewise Community Workshops taking place throughout the country, and encourages its insurer members to participate. As losses from wildfire increase, insurance professionals need to understand the risks and loss prevention techniques.
As a comprehensive public-private partnership to reduce natural disaster losses, the IBHS Showcase State model for natural disaster resistance and resilience is gaining recognition in the wildfire loss reduction field.
Oregon is the most recent state to receive the Showcase State designation, and has one of the most substantial wildfire risks of any state in the nation. Partners in the Oregon Showcase State initiative include the State Fire Marshal, Oregon Department of Forestry, and other state agency members of the Governor’s Interagency Hazard Mitigation Team. Insurers are the lead private sector partners in the program. SAFECO Insurance Companies provided sustaining funding for the program, building on their success in establishing a partnership for wildfire loss reduction in Bend, Oregon. Their FireFree program helped the community and its citizens help themselves to reduce the risk from wildfire damage by establishing spring cleanups of brush and debris, and is now spreading to other communities and counties, and even other states.
Many other insurance members of IBHS joined the Showcase State effort under the auspices of the Insurance Information Service of Oregon & Idaho (IISOI), a consumer education association. For several years, IISOI has put on workshops and training on wildfire hazards, and its members staff a booth at the annual State Fair to educate consumers about the risk.
The University of Oregon Natural Hazards Workshop coordinates Oregon Showcase State activities with sustaining funding from SAFECO and the Public Entity Risk Institute (PERI). Partners and activities are described in detail at www.OregonShowcase.org.
IBHS will continue to work with a wide variety of partners to address how we build and where we build in the wildland-urban interface. IBHS and its partners know how to reduce losses, and will make the most of opportunities to communicate this knowledge through the media, trade publications, workshops, professional organizations, and other venues. It’s message is that safety is in everyone’s best interest.
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About the Author
Steinberg is a consultant to the Institute for Business & Home Safety (IBHS), a nonprofit initiative of the insurance industry. IBHS seeks to reduce natural disaster losses. With more than a decade's experience in the natural hazard arena, Steinberrg specializes in the areas of hazards and land use planning, floodplain management and flood insurance, and disaster safety marketing and outreach. She works with a variety of public and private entities on activities to reduce future potential disaster losses, including the IBHS Land Use Planning Committee. She is also a liaison to the Firewise Communities Initiative for IBHS, assisting in the delivery and facilitation of workshops nationwide.
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Protecting Homes and Businesses - IBHS and the Wildfire Hazard 64 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires - A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium
Learning From an Interface Fire
By John Granito Symposium Coordinator
The story goes that a new fire lieutenant asked his experienced chief how he could learn to make good decisions. The chief responded that good decisions come from experience. “How do I get experience?” asked the lieutenant. The answer came, “By making bad decisions!” But while experience may be the best teacher, learning from the experiences of others regarding interface fires is a much safer way. That’s why this Symposium presented more than our typical number of expert papers.
This last paper in the series mentions some of the resources available to you so that you, your colleagues, and your community can get additional information.
The most extensive source of assistance can be accessed easily through the Internet at WWW.firewise.org which lists a wide variety of topics and sources in its menu. Early next year that library of resources is scheduled to be expanded even more.
Several National Fire Protection Association standards relate directly to interface fire concerns, and the NFPA Fire Protection Handbook (Eighteenth Edition) chapter “Wildland Fire Management” is not only informative, but contains an extensive bibliography. Additionally, the NFPA maintains a Wildland Fire Management section for interested members. (NFPA, 1 Batterymarch Park, Quincy, MA 02189)
The International Fire Code Institute (5360 Workman Mill Road, Whittier, CA 90601) publishes the “Urban-Wildland Interface Code, 2000 which includes a model- adopting ordinance.
Several federal agencies, including the USDA Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management publish relevant materials, as do the environmental protection, conservation, and other agencies in most states.
Of course, the experiences of fire departments and communities which have gone through an interface fire are very useful. A very well done community report, Cerro Grand: Canyons of Fire, Spirit of Community, listed by Chief MacDonald in his Symposium paper (www.Rbooks.com) tells a complete story including initial recovery efforts. The various US Department of Energy reports, published in 2000 and 2001, such as Managing the Impact of Wildfires on Communities and the Environment, A Report to the President (9-8-2000, http://www.whitehouse.gov/CEQ/firereport.html are helpful.
Also very useful is Fire Management, Lessons Learned from the Cerro Grande Fire, published by the US General Accounting Office (GAO/T-RCED-00-257)
Of special interest to fire departments are the post incident action reports of interface fires, as prepared by the primary fire department. There are several types of post
Learning from an Interface Fire 65 Reducing the Community Risk of Wildland-Urban Interface Fires - A Public Entity Risk Institute Symposium incident analysis reports, including daily logs, fire progress descriptions, and accounts of the wildland suppression portion of the interface incident.
Unfortunately, typical municipal fire incident reporting forms are not designed to capture all that is necessary for a significant “lessons learned” section. And that section, of course, is where the important experiences emerge, so that plans, strategies, tactics, safety protocols, and mutual aid agreements can be improved.
Such interface fire reports as those of the Los Angeles County, Oakland, and Los Alamos County fire departments stress data and analysis of:
S Incident command arrangements S Safety, accountability, and rehab practices S Mutual aid availability S Task force operations S Staging S Logistics and support services operations S Branch operations S Initial attack chronology S Operational time periods S Various operating section chronologies S Interagency coordination S Injuries and deaths S EOC operations S Evacuation S Communications S Water supply
Of special interest may be the results of a survey of mutual aid structural fire departments, including their evaluation of task force command and operations, safety provisions, communications, welfare and rehab provisions, equipment and supplies, problems encountered, etc.
Because of the magnitude of some interface fires and the high number of mutual aid units, the usual fire department incident critique may be difficult or impossible to arrange. Therefore, a “lessons learned” document needs to be well composed and widely disseminated.
Interface fires are yet another example of the complex prevention, safety and suppression challenges our communities and protection agencies and organizations face. Mitigation education, planning, cooperation, and preparation for response appear to be the keys to success.
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Learning from an Interface Fire 66