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Fire Management Today, Vol 78, No. 2, August 2020

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Fire Management Today, Vol 78, No. 2, August 2020 United States Department of Agriculture AUGUST 2020 • VOL. 78 • NO. 2 Forest Service The Camp Fire Optimizing Firefighter Assistance to Tragedy of 2018 Nutrition Ukraine Following the in California and more ... Chernobyl Disaster Fire Management Today is published by the Forest Service, an agency in the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Washington, DC. The purpose of Fire Management Today is to share information related to wildland fire management for the benefit of the wildland fire community. Fire Management Today is available on the World Wide Web at https://www.fs.usda.gov/managing-land/fire/fire-management-today. Victoria Christiansen, Chief Forest Service Shawna A. Legarza, Psy.D., Director Kaari Carpenter, General Manager • Hutch Brown, Editor Fire and Aviation Management In accordance with Federal civil rights law and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) civil rights regulations and policies, the USDA, its agencies, offices, and employees, and institutions participating in or administering USDA programs are prohibited from discriminating based on race, color, national origin, religion, sex, gender identity (including gender expression), sexual orientation, disability, age, marital status, family/parental status, income derived from a public assistance program, political beliefs, or reprisal or retaliation for prior civil rights activity in any program or activity conducted or funded by USDA (not all bases apply to all programs). Remedies and complaint filing deadlines vary by program or incident. Persons with disabilities who require alternative means of communication for program information (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, American Sign Language, etc.) should contact the responsible agency or USDA’s TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TTY) or contact USDA through the Federal Relay Service at (800) 877-8339. Additionally, program information may be made available in languages other than English. To file a program discrimination complaint, complete the USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form, AD–3027, found online at How to File a Program Discrimination Complaint and at any USDA office, or write a letter addressed to USDA and provide in the letter all of the information requested in the form. To request a copy of the complaint form, call (866) 632-9992. Submit your completed form or letter to USDA by: (1) mail: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, D.C. 20250-9410; (2) fax: (202) 690-7442; or (3) email: [email protected]. USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer, and lender. Trade Names The use of trade, firm, or corporation names in this publication is for the information and convenience of the reader. Such use does not constitute an official endorsement of any product or service by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Individual authors are responsible for the technical accuracy of the material presented in Fire Management Today. AUGUST 2020 • VOL. 78 • NO. 2 www.fs.fed.us #forestservice On the Cover: Satellite image of the Camp Fire in northern California on November 8 about 4 hours after the fire broke out. Source: National Aeronautics and Space Administration; photo— Joshua Stevens. IN THIS AUGUST 2020 • VOL. 78 • NO. 2 ISSUE Anchor Point: Responding to Disasters Fire Tanker: Potential New Tool for Around the World Wildland Firefighting Shawna A. Legarza, Psy.D. ............ 4 Phil D. Sadler ....................... 29 Forest Service Assistance to Ukraine The Fourth-Tier Dispatcher: Following the Chernobyl Disaster A Personal Perspective Rich Lasko, Alan Ager, and Shelia Slemp . 5 Randall C. Thomas .................. 32 The Camp Fire Tragedy of 2018 in California Educational Tool: Hutch Brown ........................ 11 “Era of Megafires” Presentation Matthew Burks. 34 Optimizing Firefighter Nutrition: Average Glycemic Index of Fireline Meals The Smoke that You Shouldn’t Have Ben McLane ........................ 22 Randall C. Thomas .................. 36 Pardon Our Smoke Special Newsletter on Forest Service Pete Lahm ......................... 27 Fire-Related Research ............... 37 Firefighter and public safety is our first priority. GUIDELINES for Contributors Fire Management Today 3 TABLE OF CONTENTS ANCHOR POINT I am proud of the spirit of innovation and Responding discovery in the Forest Service and in the to Disasters broader wildland fire Around the community. World In November 2018, the Camp Fire was his issue of Fire Management Today By Shawna A. Legarza, Psy.D. the worst wildfire disaster in the United begins with articles related to Director, Fire States since the Cloquet Fire in 1918, major disasters—at Chernobyl and Aviation Management with 85 fatalities, nearly 19,000 buildings Tin Ukraine 34 years ago and in the Forest Service destroyed, and losses estimated at $16.5 northern Sierra Nevada of California just billion. In response, the Forest Service 2 years ago. In each case, Forest Service All this is part of a longstanding and our interagency wildland fire partners personnel have responded to the effects program of work that Forest Service mobilized thousands of firefighters of the disaster and its implications for International Programs has with within hours. Despite high winds and the future, and I am proud of the role we partners in the United States and extreme fire behavior, tens of thousands are playing in improving firefighter and around the world to sustain forests of residents were evacuated. Forest public safety, both at home and around and respond to wildfire-related and Service researchers have joined partners in the world. humanitarian disasters. Additionally, evaluating the effects of the Camp Fire to the Forest Service has had an ongoing highlight the importance of protecting the In April 1986, the worst nuclear reactor relationship with Australia and New wildland–urban interface. disaster in history occurred at the Zealand since the 1950s through joint Other articles in the issue highlight the Chernobyl power plant in Ukraine, near efforts and coordination between the historical and ecological context of the border with Belarus. Wildfires in North American Forest Commission’s wildland fire, firefighter nutrition, and radioactively contaminated zones near Fire Management Working Group smoke management. Innovations in fire the Chernobyl reactor can redistribute (which includes the United States, equipment and the use of a repurposed contaminants in the air, posing health Canada, and Mexico) and the Forest military vehicle during a natural disaster risks to firefighters and the general Fire Management Group (which round out the issue. I am excited to share public. In response, Forest Service includes Australia and New Zealand). with you the great contributions that International Programs mobilized Particularly since winter 2019, when the research is making in helping us rise to partners in Ukraine and Belarus as United States sent firefighters and other fire-related challenges, both here at home well as in Forest Service Research and resources to help Australia during an and around the world. I am proud of the Development to assess the potential risks unprecedented fire year, we recognize spirit of innovation and discovery we find to human health and the environment the global importance of conservation today, both in the Forest Service and in and work to mitigate the risks. and the interdependence of people the broader wildland fire community— around the world in responding to fire- our willingness to learn from experience related challenges. for the sake of a better future. ■ Fire Management Today 4 AUGUST 2020 • VOL. 78 • NO. 2 TABLE OF CONTENTS Forest Service Assistance to Ukraine Following the Chernobyl Disaster Rich Lasko, Alan Ager, and Shelia Slemp n April 1986, the worst nuclear reactor disaster in history occurred at the Chernobyl power plant in IUkraine, about 60 miles (100 km) north of the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv (near the border with Belarus) (fig. 1). An explosion and a 5-day fire released airborne radioactive contamination across large parts of Europe before the accident was finally contained. In 2005, responding to a request from the National Agricultural University Rich Lasko, now retired, was the Deputy Director of Fire and Aviation Management for the Forest Service, Washington Office, Washington DC; Alan Ager is a Research Forester for the Forest Service, Missoula Fire Figure 1—Location of the Chernobyl nuclear reactor in northern Ukraine. The map shows Sciences Lab, Rocky Mountain Research the extent of radionuclide contamination in 1986, when the accident occurred at the reactor, Station, Missoula, MT; and Shelia Slemp by radiocesium (137Cs) as well as the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone in Ukraine and the Polesie is the Eastern Europe Program Manager, Radioecological Reserve in Belarus. Both are restricted areas of heavy contamination. (kBq/m2 U.S. Forest Service International Programs, = kilobecquerels per square meter, a measure of radioactivity.) Source: Ager and others (2019). Washington Office, Washington, DC. Fire Management Today 5 AUGUST 2020 • VOL. 78 • NO. 2 TABLE OF CONTENTS of Ukraine, specialists from Forest Although much of the radiocesium has Service International Programs entered the mineral soil, radiocesium traveled to Ukraine to study natural in the duff layer is especially available resource issues and assess whether to combustion. Radionuclide half-lives Forest Service technical assistance range from 31 years (for radiocesium)
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