Special Wildfire Reports

Firefighter Burned, Dozens of Homes Damaged in Reno Fire

2011-11-18T23:40:00.001-07:00

Reno Fire

RENO, Nev. (AP) -- A cloud of grayish-white smoke settled over upscale homes and horse pastures at Reno's edge Friday as firefighters from across Nevada came close to taming a sudden wildfire that sent 16 people to hospitals and destroyed or damaged 25 houses.

The unexplained blaze also gave a firefighter first- and second-degree burns and was blamed for the death of a 74-year-old man who had a heart attack while trying to flee, but authorities said the worst was likely over as growing snow flurries and falling temperatures stoked hopes that the remaining showers of ember and ash would die down.

Reno Fire Chief Mike Hernandez said firefighters had largely contained the blaze that sent nearly 10,000 people from their homes in the middle of the night and sent flames licking the edges of the region's mountain roads.

"We are actually backtracking and going over areas that have burned and extinguishing hot spots," Hernandez said.

The cause of the blaze wasn't known, but a downed power line or homeless encampments in the area might be to blame, Hernandez said. He said the region is also a popular area for teenagers who might have started the fire to stay warm.

At least 400 firefighters from as far as 260 miles away flocked to Reno early Friday as multiple fires roared from the Sierra Nevada foothills in northwestern Nevada and spread to the valley floor. Flames reached 50 feet high and embers pushed by the wind traveled up to a mile.

Police went house-to-house, pounding on doors and urging residents to evacuate in the dark of the night.

Hernandez said residents ran from their homes dressed in pajamas, frantically trying to grab as many possessions as possible. One elderly man dressed in his underwear ran out with a blanket wrapped around his body.

"The people are in a state of shock and are hanging in there," Gov. Brian Sandoval said.

Dick Hecht said that when he escaped from his home with his wife, "the whole mountain was on fire," and it was so windy he could barely stand.

"It was so smoky, you couldn't hardly see," Hecht said. The couple tried to return to their home before morning, but they were turned back by high winds and erupting flames. As they made their way back down the mountain roads, flames burned less than 40 yards from their vehicle.

Gusts of up to 60 mph grounded firefighting helicopters and made it difficult for firefighters to approach Caughlin Ranch, the affluent subdivision bordering pine-forested hills where the fire likely began after 12:30 a.m.

The strong winds, combined with the area's dry terrain, helped the fire spread from 400 acres to 2,000, or more than 3 square miles. Firefighters said their efforts spared 4,000 homes but that the disaster would likely cost many millions of dollars.

The gusts were comparable to the Santa Ana winds that often aggravate and spread wildfires in the hills surrounding Los Angeles, officials said.

"The wind is horrific," said Reno spokeswoman Michele Anderson. "We just watched a semi nearly blow over on the freeway."

More than 150 people had filled two shelters set up at area high schools by midmorning.

John and Maggie Givlin were among those watching a television at Reno High School, scanning the screen for details on whether the home they left behind was safe. They already were preparing to flee when a police officer knocked on their door at about 1:30 a.m.

"I smelled smoke and got out of bed, and the electricity was out," said John Givlin, a retired civil engineer who has lived there about eight years. "I looked out the front window and saw the glow over the hill before us."

He and his wife made their way out of their home with a flashlight. Outside, flames billowed in every direction.

More than 4,000 NV Energy customers lost power as poles and electrical wires were scorched and knocked down, said spokeswoman Faye Andersen. Utility workers were not allowed into the fire area.

Roughly 100 Nevada National Guard members assisted local law enforcement in checking homes and keeping people out of the evacuated region.

"These next 24 hours, with all the power lines down and everything else, it is still a very, very dangerous area," Reno Mayor Bob Cashell said.

Evacuees could return to their homes at noon Saturday, Cashell said. A number of local hotel-casinos were also offering discounted rooms to displaced residents.

At least 90 schools were closed for the day to clear the roads of school traffic and make way for emergency workers.

The U.S. Postal Service suspended delivery to the area for the day, and the state high school athletic association moved its football playoffs from Friday night to Monday.

Most of the 16 people who went to hospitals were treated for smoke inhalation. Health officials urged residents to stay inside and reduce physical activity, warning that the dust and smoke could cause health problems for those in the affected regions and downwind neighborhoods.

My Fox Phoenix

Nevada declares state of emergency as wildfires continue to spread

2011-11-18T14:35:00.000-07:00

One dead and nearly 10,000 evacuated overnight as fears mount that flames will spread to heavily populated areas

A firefighter tries to keep back the flames, whipped by strong winds, in Reno. Photograph: Tim Dunn/RGJ/AP

Nevada's governor declared a state of emergency on Friday because of a wildfire burning out of control outside of Reno that has destroyed 20 structures, forced 9,500 people from their homes and was blamed for the death of one man.

The Caughlin Fire in northern Nevada broke out overnight and has already blackened more than 400 acres as it moves toward heavily populated areas, said Michele Anderson, spokeswoman for Reno mayor Bob Cashell.
"The firefighters are battling with extremely high winds right now that are also extremely erratic," Anderson said. "Additionally you've got obviously embers sparking additional fire and so that's why the main focus of firefighters right now is making sure homes are protected."

Anderson said two evacuation centers had been set up for affected residents, and several people had been treated for smoke inhalation.

An elderly man died during the evacuation process, said Chris Good, a spokesman for the city of Reno. The city said the fire was burning uncontrolled.

Governor Brian Sandoval requested and received approval for federal assistance from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, he said in a statement.

"Our thoughts and prayers are with those who have been and are being affected by this fire," Sandoval said on his website.

Air quality readings were elevated and residents are encouraged to stay indoors, Anderson said.

Blood type may affect stroke risk, study finds

2011-11-17T19:28:00.000-07:00

Blood types A, B and AB tied to more risk of blood clots in the legs and heart attacks

By Marilynn Marchione

Associated Press

ORLANDO, Fla. — Your blood type might affect your risk for stroke. People with AB and women with B were a little more likely to suffer one than people with O blood — the most common type, a study found.

The research can't prove such a link. But it fits with other work tying A, B and AB to more risk of blood clots in the legs and heart attacks. Blood type O also has been tied to an increased risk of bleeding, which implies less chance of clots, the cause of most strokes.

"There's increasing evidence that blood type might influence risk of chronic disease," said one of the study leaders, Dr. JoAnn Manson, chief of preventive medicine at Harvard's Brigham and Women's Hospital.

"It's not at the level where we want to alarm people and we want to make that clear. But it's one more element of risk that people would want to know about," and it could give them one more reason to keep blood pressure and cholesterol in line, she said.

The study, led by Brigham's Dr. Lu Qi, was presented Wednesday at an American Heart Association conference. It involved 90,000 men and women in two observational health studies that have gone on for more than 20 years.

Looking at the 2,901 strokes that have occurred and taking into account other things that can cause them, such as high blood pressure, researchers found:

—Men and women with AB had a 26 percent increased risk of stroke compared to those with type O.

—Women but not men with B blood had a 15 percent greater risk compared to those with O.
What's the explanation?

Blood type depends on proteins on the surface of red blood cells. A pattern of immune system responses forms early in life based on them. Certain blood types may make red cells more likely to clump together and stick to the lining of blood vessels, setting the stage for a blood clot, Manson said.

"You can't change it, and we don't know if it's the blood type per se or other genes that track with it" that actually confers risk, said Dr. Larry Goldstein, director of Duke University's stroke center.

"There are other things that are more important" than blood type for stroke risk, such as smoking, drinking too much and exercising too little, he said.

About 45 percent of whites, 51 percent of blacks, 57 percent of Hispanics and 40 percent of Asians have blood type O, according to the American Red Cross. Such people are called "universal donors" because their blood can safely be used for transfusions to any other blood type.

AB blood type is the least common type, present in 4 percent of whites and blacks, 2 percent of Hispanics and 7 percent of Asians.

B is second least common overall, in 11 percent of whites, 19 percent of blacks, 10 percent of Hispanics and 25 percent of Asians.

A is in 40 percent of whites, 26 percent of blacks, 31 percent of Hispanics and 28 percent of Asians.

Smoke now, or more later

2011-11-17T19:24:00.000-07:00

By John Marshall

Many of us chose to live in North Central Washington because of natural features, forests among them. Today our forests are facing serious issues having to do with fire and insects. We are not moving nearly fast enough to address these problems, and one primary reason is how people feel about smoke.

Fire is full of contradictions. It is kind of like oxygen. It is essential, but it can also be harmful. At the right intensity, fire is a really good thing for the forest. It rejuvenates plants, returns nutrients to the soil and keeps trees from becoming crowded. When fire is too intense, trees are killed over vast areas, and nutrients are cooked out of the soil.

Under nature’s scheme, fire was frequent in much of our forest. The lower elevation forests were kept open, because few of the small trees escaped the frequent flames. Nevertheless, some timber was damaged or destroyed, causing early foresters to see fire as a problem instead of an asset. A 1910 fire in Idaho which killed many people initiated a Forest Service policy to attempt putting out all forest fires. Now a century later we have thickets of scrawny trees surrounding a few remaining large trees. The forest floor is littered with many years’ accumulation of dead branches and needles. If a fire does happen it is likely to be severe.

Eventually every place on the forest will burn. We have a choice as to how it will burn. Either it will burn at a carefully chosen time, or by fate. Prescribed burning is fire by design. The fuel situation is studied in advance, and often thinning precedes fire. A highly experienced professional, the burn boss, takes into account fuel moisture, relative humidity, temperature and wind before giving the signal to ignite. Compare that with someone walking away from their campfire.

Unfortunately far too little prescribed fire is happening. We cut the government entities that burn no slack in the rare situations where something goes awry and fire burns where it was not intended. Most of all we don’t like smoke. Smoke is annoying, and for some people it is a serious health issue. We don’t take into account the fact that the forest will eventually burn, and a wildfire will put out far more smoke.

Shortsighted policy has chased prescribed fire into a corner. In Washington, the Department of Natural Resources, a state agency that does very little prescribed burning, has been put in charge of permitting. Even the U.S. Forest Service has to seek permission from DNR. Approval is not given until 8:30 a.m. the day of a planned burn. Denial on the basis of how much smoke will be generated and where it will go is common. I recently observed smoke policy get in the way of hard work and good intentions at the Sinlahekin Wildlife Area in Okanogan County near Loomis. The state department of Fish and Wildlife had laid 4,000 feet of hose connected to a pump on a lake. On the morning of the planned burn, the assembled crew of 10 was told that approval was denied by DNR in Olympia on grounds that the smoke might settle on Loomis, a two-gas-pump town. The next day Fish and Wildlife was given approval, and a portion of the planned area was burned.

I am going to assume DNR is just following the law, and it is the lawmakers and we citizens who need to be taken to task. In any event we are not doing what we need to do for ourselves or for the forest on a meaningful scale.

John Marshall, Wenatchee, is a nationally recognized and often-published photographer who has spent years documenting the longterm effects of the 1994 wildfires on the forests of Washington.

Wenatchee World

Fires smoke across northwest Wyoming

2011-09-08T15:42:00.000-07:00

Written by Gib Mathers

There are more fires than you can shake a cinder at in Yellowstone National Park and the surrounding area, but only two are relatively big in this neck of the woods.
Yellowstone’s Heart Complex

Under the umbrella of the Heart Complex fires burning in Yellowstone is the Point Fire burning at an estimated 1,100 acres on the eastern side of Yellowstone Lake.

Lightning lit it Aug. 25.

As a precautionary measure, the Thorofare trail has been closed from the Nine Mile trailhead to one mile south of the fire area. The trailhead is about one mile west of Lake Butte Drive on the East Entrance Road.
The National Park Service is working with outfitters to help them re-route their pack trains, said park spokesman Al Nash.

People can still enter the Thorofare from the Eagle Creek trailhead to the east, the Heart Lake Trail from the west or the South Boundary trail from the south, Nash said.

The forecast is for no significant wind or rain in the next few days, so neither increased nor decreased fire activity is expected, Nash said.

He said he would not be surprised if there was some continued fire activity until a significant snow storm smothers the fire.

The Point Fire is the biggest fire in Yellowstone this year, with the roughly 18-acre Gibbon Fire the second-largest, Nash said.

Yellowstone’s three other current wildfires are the Ouzel, Huckleberry and Pitchstone fires, all one acre or less in size.

Thus far, Yellowstone has had 18 fires this year — a typical fire season, Nash said.

Hole in the Wall Fire

The threat to Clark from the Hole in the Wall Fire — seven miles to the west — is minimal, although firefighters will not consider locals completely safe until the fire is fully enclosed.

The 6,098-acre fire was 95 percent contained Wednesday.

“There is still a potential threat to residents in both Clark and Red Lodge (Mont.),” said Barb Pitman, Hole in the Wall fire information officer.

Pitman said the risk is very, very small, but managers won’t consider those folks totally safe until the fire is 100 percent contained.

The fire is burning timber and brush at higher elevations. Pine beetle-killed Douglas fire and lodgepole pine, juniper and sagebrush are burning in lower elevations, said a Wednesday update from fire managers on Inciweb.

The fire increased by 92 acres between Monday and Tuesday evening. It is burning primarily in Custer National Forest, but there are a few isolated hotspots in the Shoshone Forest, Pitman said.

The Type III Team is concentrating on monitoring the fire, including the northeast edge in the rugged terrain below the Beartooth Plateau, said Inciweb.
Burning continues in the northwest arm below Line Lake.

More than 1,500 feet of hose has been laid with gravity-fed sprinklers along the northeast portion of the fire. Pitman said the system was installed because it’s not safe to deploy firefighters in the extremely rugged and hazardous terrain.

One helicopter remains available to make water bucket drops as needed and to ferry firefighters to and from the fire, Pitman said.

Two engines, one Type I 21-person Hotshot crew, and 10 overhead support staff totaling 60 personnel are also on the fire, said the Inciweb update.

Line Creek Plateau, Corral Creek Trail 9, Maurice Creek Trail 6, North Grove Trail, Face of the Mountain 7, Robertson Draw 5, Forest Road 123, Line Creek Road and South Grove Road are closed. All other trails remain open at this time, said Inciweb.

A Burned Area Emergency Response team began assessing the fire area Wednesday. They will survey the area for potential threats to the land and wildlife after the fire is out. For example, the team will assess the potential danger of erosion or downstream sediment buildup, threats to fish, other aquatic species and endangered species, archeological impacts and the threat of invasive weeds, Pitman said.

Other fires

Other fires based on data gleaned from Inciweb are:

• Norton Point Wildfire in the Shoshone National Forest was at 19,300 acres as of Wednesday. Lightning ignited the fire July 22, 24 miles north of Dubois.

• Red Rock Fire Wildfire in the Bridger-Teton National Forest was at 8,555 acres Wednesday. Lightning ignited the fire 20 miles northeast of Jackson.

• Nowlin Fire Wildfire in the Teton National Forest was at 1,970 acres as of Sunday. It is burning in the Teton Wilderness on the Buffalo Ranger District. Lightning was the cause but the date of the fire’s ignition is unknown.

• Reservoir Fire in the Bighorn National Forest was at 1 acre Sept. 2. Lightning ignited the fire about one-half mile northwest of Shell Reservoir Aug. 28.

The fire danger in Custer National Forest, which includes the Pryor Mountains, is rated high while the danger in Yellowstone and the Shoshone and Bighorn National Forests is rated at very high.

POWELL TRIBUNE

Wildfire risk heightens as CalFire expects lightning, wind

2011-09-08T15:31:00.000-07:00

By Dispatch Staff

In anticipation of dry lightning and strong winds moving into Northern California, CalFire warns of fire danger and has increased their staffing as a result.

According to a recent CalFire new release, an upper level low is approaching the California coast drawing monsoonal moisture, which is predicted to trigger dry lightning across California counties: Lassen, Modoc, Siskiyou and Shasta.

In response, CalFire moved engines and resources into areas expected to see an increased fire danger.

CalFire is also staffing all reserve fire engines, additional inmate fire crews 24-hours a day and plans to hold all personnel on duty. They're in close communication with local, state and federal partners including the U.S. Forest Service, the California National Guard and the California Emergency Management Agency.

"The forecasts indicate weather conditions could be similar to the lightning siege we experienced in 2008 when the state saw nearly 2,000 lightning sparked fires," said Chief Ken Pimlott, director of CalFire.

"CalFire's firefighters are ready to respond if more fires do break out, but we especially need the public to be extremely cautious, because we don't need any additional fires."

CalFire urges Californians to be safe and help prevent new fires.

DISPATCH

East Texas now center of raging wildfires

2011-09-08T15:22:00.000-07:00

By CINDY HORSWELL, HOUSTON CHRONICLE

Montgomery Fire Firefighter, Reed Griffith crosses the fire south of Todd Mission, Texas in Waller County on Wednesday, Sept. 7, 2011. Firefighters gained ground Wednesday against one of the most destructive wildfires in Texas history even as the number of homes lost reached almost 800, and an elite search team set out to find any victims in the smoking ruins. (AP Photo/Houston Chronicle, Mayra Beltran) MANDATORY CREDIT Photo: MBO, Mayra Beltran / © 2011 Houston Chronicle

Despite four days of exhaustive work to stamp out the wildfire burning across three counties north of Houston, it continues to rage and gain ground today.

Texas Forest Service reported the blaze had consumed at least 12,000 acres in Montgomery, Grimes and Waller counties, incinerated 75 structures and remained 60 percent contained.

In fact, most of the state's wildfires are now concentrated in East Texas.

"There were 176 fires burning in Texas on Wednesday and 120 of them were in East Texas," said Warren Bielenberg, Texas Forest Service spokesman. "Of 20 new fires in Texas on Wednesday, we found 19 of them in East Texas."

Firefighters departments in Fort Bend County attempt to extinguish a large grass fire at Foster School Road and Brinkmeyer Rd. in Needville, Texas. (For The Chronicle/Bob Levey) Photo: Photographer, Bob Levey / ©2011 Bob Levey

The leading edge of the fire near Houston began moving into the parched, dry forests of Waller County late Wednesday. Fire authorities have pulled out all the stops, using helicopters, bulldozers and all kinds of fire vehicles to fight the stubborn blaze.

But as the scope of the fires expanded, resources were being stretched too thin and reinforcements were being called in to help, authorities said.

That's why a "type one" incident management team was flown in from the West Coast today to manage the fire here, said Bielenberg.

"These teams are specially trained in handling complex situations," he said.

In addition, the U.S. Forest Service announced it is working with Texas officials to see if its aircraft, which includes a giant air tanker with a capacity for 12,000 gallons, can be of assistance along with various federal firefighters.

A barn next to a home is on fire and Magnolia Firefighters control extinguish fire south of Todd Mission in Waller County on Wednesday, Sept. 7, 2011, in Todd Mission. ( Mayra Beltran / Houston Chronicle ) Photo: Staff, Mayra Beltran / © 2011 Houston

A flare up in Montgomery County was announced late this afternoon, and a voluntary evacuation was given for those living in the area of Shady Oaks Blvd south to Sandy Hill off of FM 1486 north of FM 1774. Fire crews are working to extingthish this fire and bring it under control.

Meanwhile, Houston school officials temporarily turned off the air-conditioning at Halpin Early Childhood Center, 10901 Sandpiper, because of outdoor smoke contamination. Crews have been sent to test the air quality there and other school facilities to see if similar action is needed.

Smoky conditions also caused the Lamar High School sub-varsity games set to take place in Brenham to be rescheduled, and the Jones High School versus Montgomery High School game for tonight to be canceled.

Fire consumed a home in the Ranch Crest subdivision near Magnolia, Texas on Wednesday, Sept. 7, 2011. Firefighters gained ground Wednesday against one of the most destructive wildfires in Texas history even as the number of homes lost reached almost 800, and an elite search team set out to find any victims in the smoking ruins. (AP Photo/Houston Chronicle, Mayra Beltran) MANDATORY CREDIT Photo: MBO, Mayra Beltran / © 2011 Houston Chronicle

As of Wednesday afternoon, about 8,000 homes and businesses just east of the Texas Renaissance Festival grounds near Magnolia were under evacuation orders. The Riley Road fire, which started in Grimes County on Monday, has destroyed at least 80 homes and was about 80 percent contained, officials said.

Some residents in Montgomery County who fled their homes were allowed to return to their neighborhoods today.

Residents in the Ranch Crest subdivision could return to the area beginning at noon today, according to Montgomery County Emergency Management. They will need to provide identification.

Firefighters departments in Fort Bend County attempt to extinguish a large grass fire at Foster School Road and Brinkmeyer Rd. in Needville, Texas. (For The Chronicle/Bob Levey) Photo: Photographer, Bob Levey / ©2011 Bob Levey

People should be aware that no running water and electricity may be available and hazards - such as downed power lines, damaged utility poles, downed or charred trees as well as smoky air - are possible.

Officials said portions of the blaze in Montgomery County are about 85 percent contained while areas burning in Grimes County are about 60 percent contained.

Smoke from the wildfires north of Houston drifted above portions of the city this morning.

Northerly wind at about 10 mph pushed the smoke toward Houston, according to the National Weather Service. The smoky haze was draped above several areas, including southwest and west Houston as well as near the Galleria.

Ericka Mellon and Dale Lezon contributed to this report.
dale.lezon@chron.com
Dan Botelho, views the smoke coming form behind his subdivsion Ranch Crest where two homes were destroyed on Wednesday, Sept. 7, 2011, in Todd Mission. There is still an active fire line near the subdivision, and its the reason why residents are not allowed back home at this moment. ( Mayra Beltran / Houston Chronicle ) Photo: Staff, Mayra Beltran / © 2011 Houston Chronicle

Officials triple number of homes charred in Texas fire

2011-09-08T15:12:00.000-07:00

Bastrop county hardest hit by recent fires
* More than three dozen fires burning across Texas

By Karen Brooks

AUSTIN, Texas, Sept 8 (Reuters) - Some 1,386 homes have been destroyed in a monstrous fire burning for the past five days southeast of Austin, Texas, that has been only 30 percent contained, county officials said on Thursday.

The devastating new number -- nearly triple what officials had said earlier in the week and more than any blaze in Texas history-- is the county's "best estimate" of the 35,000-acre fire that's been ripping through this rural, historic community since Sunday, said Bastrop County Emergency Coordinator Mike Fisher.

"This is based on everything we had in (the count) before, plus a house-by-house and driveway by driveway count we did last night," Fisher said.

Officials said that number is likely to increase as the count continues.

The blaze has killed two people, forced the evacuation of 5,000, officials said.

The Bastrop County fire is the biggest, but it is far from the only wildfire burning in Texas right now. Forest service officials say more than three dozen fires are burning across the state, consuming 120,000 acres and driving thousands of people from their homes.

More than 3.6 million acres in Texas have been scorched by wildfires since November, fed by a continuing drought that has caused more than $5 billion in damage to the state's agricultural industry and that shows no sign of easing.

Bastrop County, with a population around 75,000 and an average income of $27,499 a year per resident, has been particularly hard hit. The region has been declared a federal disaster area and officials from the Federal Emergency Management Agency have been on the ground since Tuesday doing damage assessments.

County Judge Ronnie McDonald warned residents not to return to their neighborhoods until re-entry plans were announced later Thursday.

The footprint of the fire, according to the Texas Forest Service, is a massive 20 miles by 24 miles, and the flames have turned entire neighborhoods into blackened moonscapes of burned out vehicles and crusts that used to be homes.

"We had a lovely home, and we had a nice neighborhood, and it's gone. We just have to accept that," said Betty Porterfield, who was anxiously scouring lists of destroyed homes posted at a Bastrop area shelter.

Another fast moving fire started Wednesday night on Camp Stanley, a military training ground northwest of San Antonio, quickly jumped the fence and forced evacuations in the upscale suburb of Fair Oaks Ranch.

Residents were allowed to return to their homes when helicopters dumped fire retardant on the fires, containing them. But Bexar County Fire Marshal Ross Coleman says one of the things stretching fire departments thin is the need to keep crews on the scene of extinguished fires, to make sure they do not flare up again.

Coleman said the fire Wednesday night was a rekindle of a previous fire which had been extinguished the night before.

An impressive array of aircraft has been called in to fight the fires, including six heavy air tankers, three 1500 gallon scoopers, 15 single engine air tankers, 12 helicopters, and 12 aerial supervision aircraft.

Eight Blackhawk and three Chinook helicopters from the Texas National Guard have been providing aerial support. Ten Tanker, a retrofitted DC-10 aircraft which can dump 12,000 gallons of flame retardant or water at a pass will be activated for use in Texas blazes on Friday.

So far, four people have died in fires the broke out across the state over the Labor Day weekend , including a mother and infant daughter who died in northeast Texas on Sunday. (Additional reporting by Jim Forsyth;

Editing by Greg McCune and Jackie Frank)

RUETERS

Firefighters contain Camp Bullis-area fire

2011-09-08T03:36:00.000-07:00

Fair Oaks Ranch residents allowed to return after 150-acre grass fire prompts evacuations.

By Eva Ruth Moravec and Jazmine Ulloa
emoravec@express-news.net

Brush trucks look for hot spots as several fire departments battle a wildfire in Camp Stanley off Ralph Fair Road, Wednesday, Sept. 7, 2011. The fire forced the evacuation of a small area of Fair Oaks Ranch but was under control by early evening.
Photo: Jerry Lara/glara@express-news.net, JERRY LARA / SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS

A helicopter flies over Ralph Fair Road and Pimlico Lane as several area fire department battle a wildfire in Camp Stanley, Wednesday, Sept. 7, 2011. The fire forced the evacuation of a small area of Fair Oaks Ranch but was under control by early evening.
Photo: Jerry Lara/glara@express-news.net, JERRY LARA / SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS

Photo: Express-News Graphic

Melissa Land evacuates a friend's horse named Diamonds Desoto, as several area fire department battle a wildfire in Camp Stanley off Ralph Fair Road, Wednesday, Sept. 7, 2011. The fire forced the evacuation of a small area of Fair Oaks Ranch but was under control by early evening.
Photo: Jerry Lara/glara@express-news.net, JERRY LARA / SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS

Brush trucks look for hot spots as several fire departments battle a wildfire in Camp Stanley off Ralph Fair Road, Wednesday, Sept. 7, 2011. The fire forced the evacuation of a small area of Fair Oaks Ranch but was under control by early evening.
Photo: Jerry Lara/glara@express-news.net, JERRY LARA / SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS

Fair Oaks Ranch residents drive in smokey conditions as several area fire department battle a wildfire in Camp Stanley off Ralph Fair Road, Wednesday, Sept. 7, 2011. The fire forced the evacuation of a small area of Fair Oaks Ranch but was under control by early evening.
Photo: Jerry Lara/glara@express-news.net, JERRY LARA / SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS

Hanging out at the Messiah Lutheran Church, Mel Goldstein holds his dog, Misty, after being evacuated from an area in Fair Oaks Ranch as several area fire department battle a wildfire in Camp Stanley off Ralph Fair Road, Wednesday, Sept. 7, 2011.
Photo: Jerry Lara/glara@express-news.net, JERRY LARA / SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS

Flames are seen in Camp Stanley as several area fire department battle a wildfire off Ralph Fair Road, Wednesday, Sept. 7, 2011. The fire forced the evacuation of a small area of Fair Oaks Ranch but was under control by early evening.
Photo: Jerry Lara/glara@express-news.net, JERRY LARA / SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS

Smoke obscures the late afternoon sun on Wednesday, Sept. 7, 2011 as grass fires burned at Camp Bullis and Camp Stanley. About 150 acres were scorched on the military installation. About 55 percent of the fire was contained by 8 p.m.
Photo: Kin Man Hui/kmhui@express-news.net, KIN MAN HUI / kmhui@express-news.net

Brush trucks look for hot spots as several fire departments battle a wildfire in Camp Stanley off Ralph Fair Road, Wednesday, Sept. 7, 2011. The fire forced the evacuation of a small area of Fair Oaks Ranch but was under control by early evening.
Photo: Jerry Lara/glara@express-news.net, JERRY LARA / SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS

A plane drops fire retardant as several area fire department battle a wildfire at Camp Stanley off Ralph Fair Road, Wednesday, Sept. 7, 2011. The fire forced the evacuation of a small area of Fair Oaks Ranch but was under control by early evening.
Photo: Jerry Lara/glara@express-news.net, JERRY LARA / SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS

A helicopter drops water as several area fire department battle a wildfire at Camp Stanley off Ralph Fair Road, Wednesday, Sept. 7, 2011. The fire forced the evacuation of a small area of Fair Oaks Ranch but was under control by early evening.
Photo: Jerry Lara/glara@express-news.net, JERRY LARA / SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS

Smoke filled the air on Ralph Fair Road near Dietz Elkhorn Road as a grass fire that rekindled on Camp Bullis property burned.
Photo: Jazmine Ulloa, Julloa@express-news.net.

About a dozen area fire departments fought a rekindled grass fire that prompted evacuations Wednesday afternoon in Fair Oaks Ranch. By nightfall, officials said residents were to be allowed back.

It was the third day in a row of all-out efforts by area firefighters to prevent damage to homes.

Flames erupted on Camp Bullis about 4:15 p.m. in an area where a grass fire had previously ignited Tuesday afternoon, said Phil Reidinger, public affairs spokesman for the base.

San Antonio Fire Chief Charles Hood said the fire had burned about 150 acres, but no structures were damaged.

County spokeswoman Laura Jesse said late Wednesday that the fire was 70 percent contained.

Aircraft were dropping retardant on the eastern portion, Hood said, and fire crews were preparing to fight the rest of the blaze overnight.'

He predicted it would take four days to fully contain.

“It's been real crazy,” Hood said. “It's been a real challenge for us this week.”

Jesse said residents were evacuated from about 100 homes in Fair Oaks Ranch within a quarter-mile of Wednesday's fire, along Ralph Fair Road, Pimlico Lane and Ruffian Drive.

They were asked to go to Messiah Lutheran Church, at 9401 Dietz Elkhorn Road, where Pastor Rick Pfaff learned about an hour later that his church had been designated a shelter.

It was shortly before power was restored to the building, and he and other staff members and volunteers scrambled to get it ready.

“This is what community is all about,” Pfaff said.

Charlotte Nolan, 55, one of a handful of evacuees arriving, said authorities drove through her neighborhood urging residents to get out. She grabbed her purse, two cats and clothes and rushed out.

“It was nerve-wracking. I was very scared,” she said. “I left the sprinkler system on.”

CPS Energy spokesman Victor Robledo said the utility had to reduce power at the Fair Oaks Ranch substation to allow firefighters to continue working, affecting about 4,500 customers.

Although Camp Bullis has its own fire department, firefighters from San Antonio, Bexar County and numerous other agencies were quickly asked to assist. The Texas Department of Transportation closed Ralph Fair Road from the Bexar County line to Dietz Elkhorn Road while emergency vehicles sped to the scene.

Residents who had lost power at the Stonehaven subdivision were out along Ralph Fair Road watching smoke billow in the distance and fire trucks go screaming by.

Betty Heffernan said her family called her at work and urged her to get to her home on five acres near Pimlico and Ralph Fair but she was stopped by the roadblock.

“I've lived out here for 28 years and I've never seen anything like this,” she said.

Tim Corley, a Marine based in San Antonio, left his car in front of the subdivision, put on running shoes and said he was going to try to reach his house on foot. His residence was near the area that was burning.

“I'm trying to get out there. I have some pumps that they can use for water,” he said. “I don't care. It's not scary.”

Reidinger said the fire was in a pasture near the north gate of the Camp Stanley section of Camp Bullis.
“They do use it for a firing range, but there wasn't anybody out there and there are no ammunition storage facilities,” he said.

Hood said Wednesday's task was made easier by the “great working relationship” SAFD has with smaller fire departments in Bexar County.

A spectacular warehouse fire Tuesday afternoon on Perrin-Beitel Road actually was easier to fight than the numerous grass fires that have erupted this week, including three major ones Monday, Hood said.

“Wildfires are a lot more challenging. The extreme drought, low humidity, rugged terrain, the wind, all of those are factors that we just can't control,” he said.

Wildland Firefighter Foundation to receive $9,000 contribution

2011-09-08T01:18:00.000-07:00

Join The 52 Club..Donate Today

SPEARFISH -- North Zone Fire Management is giving The Wildland Firefighter Foundation $9,026.75 from the proceeds of the 2nd Annual Wildland Firefighter Benefit Series.

In the wake of the Coal Canyon Fire, which took the life of South Dakota State Forestry firefighter Trampas Haskvitz and injured four other firefighters, this donation will help the foundation continue serving the families of injured and fallen wildland firefighters.

A check presentation will be at 10:30 a.m. Tuesday at the Northern Hills Ranger District Work Center.
The Wildland Firefighter Foundation focuses on helping families of firefighters killed in the line of duty and to assist injured firefighters and their families. They provide assistance including financial aid, emotional support, patient advocacy and recognition of those killed in the line of duty. For more information, go to www.wwfoundation.org.

Monetary donations can be made at www.wffoundation.org, or by calling 208-336-2996 or by sending a donation to Wildland Firefighter Foundation, 2049 Airport Way, Boise ID 83705.

Amid optimism, 19 new fires spring up in Texas

2011-09-07T19:38:00.000-07:00

(CBS News)

They're still fighting fires in Texas, with 19 new fires springing up on Wednesday. Each time firefighters get some control over one, another springs up.

Texas has spent more than $61 million fighting wildfires since June.

CBS News correspondent Dean Reynolds reports that officials say the big Bastrop fire is 30 percent contained now, as more and more firemen from out of state pour into Texas to help out.

The fires are moving so fast, that some neighborhoods had less than 15 minutes to evacuate. An elite search and rescue team has been brought in to look through the ruins for trapped homeowners -- or bodies.

Slideshow of fire

"This is not a one-day ordeal. This is going to be a long process," said Ronnie McDonald, Bastrop County judge.

Roadblocks are up at major intersections in an attempt to give firemen the best shot at surrounding the blaze.

Waiting at one checkpoint, local resident Julia Hickman said: "We just want to see our home, you know, we just want to see where it was."

A neighbor snapped a picture of where their two storey brick home used to stand and where their dog Annie died.

"There are many, many, many of our friends that don't have homes and many people out here that don't have anything," Julia said.

Fire crews make gains against Texas blaze
"No containment" of Texas wildfire
Video: Winds whip up Texas wildfires

The only thing left for many residents to do is to start searching for a place to live. Finding a place to live is an issue for thousands. The Bastrop Middle School is a temporary shelter. Ken and Lynn Conner arrived with only the clothes on their backs. Their house burned down Monday.

"We're going back. That's our house, our property, our life out there," Lynn said. "We are going to rebuild."

With the fire at least 30 percent contained, there was some tentative optimism voiced by the firefighting teams. One official said there's been pretty good progress, and expressed the hope that by the end of the day he'll be able to say this fire won't be getting any bigger.

The fires have been too big and numerous for just local firefighters to handle. While there's no definitive tally, there have been firefighters arriving from as far away as Nevada and North Dakota.

CBS NEWS

DC-10 to drop retardant starting Friday

2011-09-07T13:21:00.000-07:00


Arizona Wallow fire photo AP

Special plant must be assembled before operations

A DC-10 tanker is on the ground at Austin Bergstrom International Airport and is expected to be ready to begin dumping fire retardant on the Central Texas wildfires on Friday.
Why the delay?

April Saginor of the Texas Forest Service said a special facility must be manufactured on site to develop the material that will be dropped from the aircraft.

"They are setting up a retardant plant to mix the retardant," Saginor said. "It involves hoses and tanks and won’t be operational until Friday. The DC-10 has been flying fires in California and has mandatory days off for safety purposes on Wednesday and Thursday."

The aircraft, which can hold about 12,000 gallons of retardant, is owned by a private company that contracts with U.S. Forest. The Texas Forest Service ordered it.

Texas Wildfires

2011-09-07T12:59:00.001-07:00

2 lightning-caused fires burning near Globe Arizona

2011-09-06T20:42:00.000-07:00

GLOBE, Ariz. (AP) — One of the lightning-caused wildfires burning near Globe has increased in size.

The U.S. Forest Service said Tuesday the Frio Fire is now 2,300 acres, up from 2,100 acres Monday. There was some rain on the Frio fire Monday evening which reduced its activity. Fire crews plan to set some intentional fires Tuesday around power lines on the Frio fire in the Pinal Mountain range.

Meanwhile, the 650 fire remains at 3,800 acres and is showing little activity. The 650 fire began Aug. 28, about seven miles north of Superior on Montana Mountain in the Superstition mountains wilderness.

Visitors and residents may see light-to-moderate smoke throughout the day, with the possibility of smoke drifting toward and settling in Globe and Miami.

Favorable winds help effort against Calif. fire

2011-09-06T20:36:00.000-07:00

A DC-10 airplane drops gallons of retardant to help put out the wildfire in Tehachapi, Calif. on Monday, Sept. 5, 2011. Officials now say the wildfire burning near Tehachapi in Kern County has destroyed a dozen homes and doubled in size. The fire was sparked Sunday when a single-engine Cessna plane crashed. Ground crews are working to clear a fire break between the fire and the trailer, ranch and vacation homes in communities south of Tehachapi, a city of 8,000 south of Bakersfield. Photo: Dave Mills / AP

TEHACHAPI, Calif. (AP) — Winds directed a 20-square-mile fire toward already charred land in California, authorities said Tuesday, but the blaze remained a threat to 650 homes and 200 homes were under evacuation orders.

From the air and on the ground, firefighters extinguish hot spots on a fire that broke out in Mandeville Canyon in the Brentwood district of Los Angeles Monday, Sept. 5, 1011. Photo: Reed Saxon / AP

The fire, which has blackened more than 13,000 acres, started Sunday when a single-engine Cessna crashed in a remote area of Kern County, killing two people on board. Since then, 12 homes and 18 outbuildings have been destroyed and two firefighters have been injured.

Gusts on Tuesday moved the fire near the town of Tehachapi away from a rugged, fuel-dense area to the northwest, fire spokesman Ian MacDonald said.

Gov. Jerry Brown has asked the Federal Emergency Management Agency for financial assistance to offset firefighting costs. MacDonald said 1,255 personnel have been deployed to battle flames, which are burning about 90 miles north of Los Angeles.

A fire burns near the desert floor of the Antelope Valley in Tehachapi, Calif. on Monday, Sept. 5, 2011. Officials now say the wildfire burning near Tehachapi in Kern County has destroyed a dozen homes and doubled in size. The fire was sparked Sunday when a single-engine Cessna plane crashed. Ground crews are working to clear a fire break between the fire and the trailer, ranch and vacation homes in communities south of Tehachapi, a city of 8,000 south of Bakersfield. Photo: Dave Mills / AP

In neighboring Los Angeles County, a blaze that started Monday had charred more than 500 acres in Aqua Dulce, near Newhall. It was 80 percent contained Tuesday.
It started in a trailer and barn, but no other structures were lost, county fire Inspector Quvondo Johnson said. One firefighter suffered heat exhaustion and a civilian sustained a minor injury, Johnson said.
In Los Angeles, a 40-acre fire near Interstate 405 at the Sepulveda Pass also was 80 percent contained, Los Angeles Fire Department spokesman Matt Spence said.

Firefighters pass statuary as they climb uphill to extinguish hot spots on a fire that burned near homes in Mandeville Canyon in the Brentwood district of Los Angeles Monday, Sept. 5, 1011. Photo: Reed Saxon / AP

A helicopter makes a water drop on a burning ridgeline behind one of hundreds of power-generating wind turbines after the Canyon Fire in the Tehachapi Mountains destroyed a dozen homes and other structures and had consumed over 13,000 acres near the town of Tehachapi, Calif., Tuesday, Sept. 6, 2011. Photo: Reed Saxon / AP

A trailer is destroyed from the wildfires in Tehachapi, Calif. on Monday, Sept. 5, 2011. Officials now say the wildfire burning near Tehachapi in Kern County has destroyed a dozen homes and doubled in size. The fire was sparked Sunday when a single-engine Cessna plane crashed. Ground crews are working to clear a fire break between the fire and the trailer, ranch and vacation homes in communities south of Tehachapi, a city of 8,000 south of Bakersfield. Photo: Dave Mills / AP

San Diego Sends Firefighters to Texas

2011-09-06T19:35:00.000-07:00

SDFD is sending a few crew members to assist in the Texas wildfires

Texas has asked the nation's fire departments for help in fighting the 180 wildfires across the state.

The San Diego Fire Department will send five people to Texas this week to assist in the overwhelming wildfire situation.

SDFD is awaiting orders as to when they will leave, said spokesperson Maurice Luque.

About 1,200 firefighters battled the blazes, including members of local departments from around the state and crews from such places as Utah, California, Arizona and Oregon, many of them arriving after Texas put out a call for help.

The Texas wildfire outbreak is one of the most devastating in history. More than 1,000 homes have been destroyed and roughly 180 fires have erupted in the past week across the rain-starved Lone Star State.

Copyright NBC San Diego/Associated Press

Source: San Diego Sends Firefighters to Texas | NBC San Diego

Most destructive wildfires in recent Texas history

2011-09-06T19:31:00.000-07:00

The Associated Press

The Texas Forest Service said 600 homes destroyed in Bastrop County was the worst damage by a single wildfire since the late 1990s, which is as far as the state's records go back. The four worst:

- September 2011: 600 homes destroyed in Bastrop County
- April 2011: 168 homes destroyed in Palo Pinto County near Possum Kingdom Lake
- December 2005: 116 homes destroyed in Callahan County
- April 2009: 69 homes destroyed in Montague County

Texas Resident on Wildfires: It's Like a War Zone

2011-09-06T15:06:00.000-07:00

By Audrey Barrick | Christian Post Reporter

Texas wildfires, now numbering around 60, are scorching hundreds of homes and leaving much of the Lone Star State looking like a war zone, as some residents described.

(Photo: REUTERS/Mike Stone)
Flames engulf a road near Bastrop State Park as a wildfire burns out of control near Bastrop, Texas September 5, 2011. An estimated 1,000 homes are being threatened in Bastrop County, just east of
Austin, as a 14,000-acre (5700-hectare) wildfire rages out of control, causing evacuations.

One Steiner Ranch resident repeated "oh my God" seven times as he filmed his neighborhood burning to the ground.

"There's nothing left of these houses," the man in the video, posted on CNN, is heard saying as he names his neighbors' houses. "John's house is on fire now. Lance's house is gone. ... David and Heather's house is about half gone."

"This is insane."

Texas is experiencing the worst fire season in state history as extreme drought conditions continue to plague the state. Already more than 3.5 million acres have burned since the beginning of the wildfire season last November and Texas Gov. Rick Perry has reissued his disaster proclamation nine times.

Strong winds and low humidity from Tropical Storm Lee have caused the wildfires to spread rapidly. So far, two people, a mother and 18-month-old child, have been reported killed.

Texas Gov. Rick Perry was scheduled to speak at the Palmetto Freedom Forum in South Carolina Monday along with other Republican presidential candidates but the severity of the disaster prompted the governor to cancel his participation and return to his state early.

"The wildfire situation in Texas is severe and all necessary state resources are being made available to protect lives and property," Perry said in a statement.

"Our thoughts and prayers are with the first responders who are working around the clock to keep Texans out of harm's way, and with the families across our state who are threatened by these wildfires."

Over the weekend, there were 63 new fires – 22 of which were large – that burned approximately 32,936 acres. The Texas Forest Service has been responding with air tankers and helicopters.

In total, there have been more than 20,900 fires in Texas since November, which have destroyed more than 1,000 homes.

The Christian Post

Wildfires rage in Texas

2011-09-06T15:01:00.000-07:00

BASTROP, Texas, Sept. 6 (UPI) -- Hundreds of people were forced out of their homes Tuesday as wildfires still burned in central Texas.

Two fires in Bastrop County southeast of Austin remained totally uncontained, the Austin American-Statesman reported. Melissa Yunis, a spokeswoman for the state Forest Service, said the Bastrop County fire had grown to close to 29,000 acres, while the smaller Union Chapel fire had charred 750 acres.

She said the main fire was about 2 miles from the Bastrop city limits on Tuesday morning.

"Numerous subdivisions, a local hospital, residents, outbuildings such as barns and sheds, ranch land, infrastructure such as power lines and 25 historical cabins at Bastrop State Park are threatened," she said.
Another fire killed a mother and her 18-month-old child who were unable to escape their mobile home near Gladewater, east of Dallas. KETK-TV said the fire, which spread to 1,300 acres, had burned six homes and 15 other buildings.

Texas has been having one of its worst wildfire seasons ever. Since December 2010, 20,900 fires have been reported and more than 1,000 homes burned, 700 of them in the past week, the American-Statesman reported.

Gov. Rick Perry, who temporarily gave up his presidential campaign because of the fires, said at a news conference Monday that firefighters still had "a long way to go to contain this thing," the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported.

Southwest Oklahoma wildfire brought under control

2011-09-06T03:01:00.000-07:00

INDIAHOMA, Okla. (AP) — Firefighters brought under control a large grass fire in the Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge that forced the evacuation of 14 homes and a job training center near Indiahoma, authorities said Monday night.

Some crews remained at the scene to monitor for any areas that continued to smolder, Comanche County spokesman Chris Killmer said. No injuries were reported and no homes were lost with the fire in the Charons Garden Wilderness Area of the refuge in southwestern Oklahoma, Killmer said.

The blaze originally began Thursday and destroyed 11 homes and affected 30,000 acres before cooler temperatures and rain helped firefighters contain it Sunday near Meers, located on the north side of the refuge.
The flare-up occurred when winds shifted north and blew the fire's remnants south toward Indiahoma, Killmer said. The homes that were evacuated are north of the town, he said.

Neither the homeowners nor the 125 people who were at the Treasure Lake Job Corps Center were immediately allowed to return to the area. The Job Corps participants were moved to a school in Indiahoma.
Meanwhile, firefighters put out a fire in Logan County, north of Oklahoma City. No injuries were reported and no homes were damaged when the blaze broke out Monday afternoon about six miles north of Guthrie, Fire Chief Eric Harlow said.

Four homes were evacuated while crews worked to contain the fire, but residents were allowed to return about a half-hour later.

"We had 20 to 25 hay bales lost — that was the only monetary damage in the fire," Harlow said. "It was caused by an equipment malfunction on a hay baler."

A lingering drought, exacerbated by nearly two months of triple-digit heat, has left grassland, trees and other vegetation dry and susceptible to wildfires this year in Oklahoma.

Last week was particularly active, with large grass fires in central and southern Oklahoma.

In Oklahoma City, a fire charred more than 5,000 acres, damaged or destroyed about 30 homes and injured five firefighters. In Noble, three firefighters were hurt while helping tackle a fire that consumed about 300 acres and forced the evacuation of Noble High School.

Authorities say at least one home was burned in Shawnee in Pottawatomie County last week. Fires also were reported in Caddo, Coal, McClain, McCurtain and Pontotoc counties.

A strong cold front that blew through the state late Saturday and Sunday brought an end to the triple-digit heat, but didn't drop much precipitation in most areas.

Budget cuts leave California with fewer hands to fight wildfires

2011-09-06T02:56:00.000-07:00

By Peter Hecht
phecht@sacbee.com

Just north of Highway 180 in Fresno County, a wildfire in mid-June ate through thick grass, burning into oak woodlands and roaring up steep hills.

For firefighters, it appeared to be a routine event. Six engine teams, including five from Cal Fire and one from Fresno County, attacked from two sides. Firefighters carrying heavy, 300-foot hose extensions ascended the rocky terrain. They doubled back for additional hose, stretching their water lines and attempted to circle the fire before it leaped a ridge.

But, under state budget cuts, Cal Fire was battling the blaze with three firefighters per engine instead of the normal four-man crews used in the wildfire season. They couldn't get water around the fire in time. It jumped the ridge and devoured the next canyon.

The incident on what one fire captain called "a standard wildfire" stoked fear over whether staffing cuts are affecting first-strike capabilities of firefighters to stave off severe wildland events.

"I really thought we could catch it," Cal Fire Capt. Doug Freeman said. "Basically, with the fatigue factor (of using a three-man crew), we just couldn't."

Freeman summoned reinforcements as the blaze that he thought could have been kept to less than 10 acres spread to 133 acres and cost $300,000 to put out.

As California closed a gaping budget deficit this year with sweeping cuts to numerous agencies, it saved $34 million by cutting 750 seasonal Cal Fire firefighters. That means one less person per engine unit to haul thousands of feet of hose lines and share the exhausting physical rigors of battling wildfires.

In the Sacramento region, the cuts mean a total of 29 fewer Cal Fire firefighters in El Dorado and Amador counties and 44 fewer firefighters assigned to the Nevada, Yuba and Placer County region.

Cal Fire's Madera, Mariposa and Merced county region lost 37 seasonal firefighters, and Fresno, Kings and Tulare counties are operating with 50 fewer firefighters in the peak fire season.

State lawmakers also shifted $50 million away from the Cal Fire budget for protecting 31 million wildland acres. Gov. Jerry Brown signed legislation, Assembly Bill 29, in a bid to recoup that money and help Cal Fire's budget by billing rural property owners $150 each for fire suppression.

In a July 7 letter to the state Assembly, Brown said "there has been a significant increase in state costs associated with fire protection" due to increased population and building in fire-danger areas. He said "a portion of the costs" should be funded by landowners in these areas."

Yet there is no mechanism in place to collect money from property owners for state firefighting and Brown warned the revenue he seeks "may not materialize" without additional legislation.

Budget cuts also did away with the permanent availability of a stand-by air tanker plane – meaning Cal Fire may have to scramble to summon aircraft from other agencies or states in major fires.

"Certainly tough budget times call for difficult decisions and fiscal measures," said Ken Pimlott, director of the agency long known as the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. "The men and women of Cal Fire will rise to the challenge."

Pimlott said the public will be protected from fire danger as Cal Fire exercises mutual aid agreements to bring in equipment – and manpower – as fire and weather conditions require. He said the agency will maintain its tactical philosophy of aggressive initial attacks on fires.

A San Diego State University professor who has studied physical stress on firefighters and the performance of smaller engine crews said there is cause for concern, nevertheless.

In simulated exercises, firefighters unraveling and coupling up to 2,000 feet of hose, common in a wildfire, were more than one-third faster operating in four-man teams than three-man crews.

Moreover, the heart rates of firefighters accelerated to markedly higher levels among three-man crews. "The results … unequivocally show that lower levels of staffing result in higher physical stress and significantly lower efficiencies for initial (fire) attack effectiveness," wrote Matt Rahn, who directed the study, partly funded by Cal Fire and its firefighters union.

In an interview, Rahn said California is gambling that it won't be burned by bigger fires and higher costs in the end. In particular, he said, cutting Cal Fire engine crews from four firefighters to three could undercut the agency's standard of trying to keep about 95 percent of wildfires to 10 acres or less.

"Anytime you reduce crew size you're rolling the dice on whether you're going to see an unexpected (major) fire event and whether you're going to be understaffed," Rahn said.

California's firefighting budget traditionally was protected in the Legislature. Cal Fire's base budget actually grew from $326.6 million in the 2002-2003 fiscal year to $629.5 million in 2010-11.

But additional emergency costs for firefighting vary wildly. In 2005-2006, for example, the state spent an extra $104 million in emergency contracts for firefighting resources, equipment and manpower.

Three years later, when lightning strikes lit fires across Northern California, the state's added emergency firefighting tab was $446.8 million.

Cal Fire also relies extensively on mutual aid agreements with hundreds of local fire districts and municipalities that call upon engine teams, firefighters and equipment in major emergencies.

But the local agencies have faced their own budget cuts. An informal survey by the California Fire Chiefs Association concluded that local districts averaged a 20 percent reduction in firefighting resources.

"With Cal Fire (also) dropping their staffing, that theoretically means they'll rely more on local resources coming in on fires," said Demetrious Shaffer, a deputy fire chief in Alameda County who is president elect of the California Fire Chiefs Association. "And there are a lot less resources that are probably going to go out more often."

Cal Fire battalion chief Cameron Todd, part of a Tuolumne-Calaveras unit, said he already sees the effects of shrinking a firefighting force from 170 to 127.

"The endurance level of the people out there is critical," Todd said. "You basically lost a quarter of your workforce."

Fires ravage rural Caddo Parish

2011-09-06T02:50:00.000-07:00

Residents of Arkansas Pump Station Road watch as the fire jumps the road Monday afternoon near Oil City. / Henrietta Wildsmith/ The Times

Written by

Mary Nash-Wood

More than 500 acres of north Caddo Parish spent most of the Labor Day weekend burning, forcing hundreds of people to evacuate their homes and leaving firefighters exhausted, with little relief in sight.

Emergency workers from at least three Caddo Fire Districts sought help from nearby counties in East Texas and southern Arkansas. Crews also came from Shreveport, Greenwood, Bossier City, Benton and Haughton, as well as the Louisiana Department of Forestry.

Firefighters battled the flames since Sunday afternoon, but thought part of the blaze to be under control by Sunday night. Caddo Sheriff Steve Prator said winds from Tropical Storm Lee dealt a tough blow to emergency workers with Sunday's fires crossing fire lanes to spread to the hundreds of acres ablaze. Three separate wildfires stretched from state Highway 1 to state Highway 2; the causes remain under investigation.
Peggy Richardson, spokesperson for Caddo Fire District 7 and wife of Fire Chief Danny Richardson, said that while some structures had been destroyed, there were no known injuries as of late Monday.
The crews battling the fires are getting exhausted, she said.

"Many of them have not eaten or slept since Sunday afternoon," she said. "They've had very little water because it has been so hard to get that to them and there hasn't been a safe way to get food to them. You hear them on the radio and they are so tired and you hear moments of panic when it picks up, but they are so strong. They must be going on nothing but adrenaline by now."'

Richardson said in addition to the 35 mph wind that caused the fires to pick up so much speed, the greatest hindrance to firefighters has been a lack of gear.

"They need more equipment. They need more manpower and they need our prayers."

Late Monday, Gov. Bobby Jindal deployed four Louisiana National Guard helicopters to help against the wildfires.

The helicopters are equipped with helibuckets, or large buckets suspended by a cable carrying water for aerial firefighting.

Two additional Louisiana National Guard helicopters will join the effort today. The Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry is the lead agency in the fight.

"We are quickly deploying the National Guard to provide aerial support in fighting these wildfires," Jindal said. "We want to ensure that these fires are suppressed as quickly as possible and that our people and property are out of harm's way."

Keeping people out of harm's way has been the primary job, Prator said. Deputies controlled highway access and helped people evacuate; no firm number of people or homes evacuated was available late Monday, but Richardson said the numbers were in the hundreds.

Rev. Ronald Dunn and his family were one such family. Dunn said he and his wife had just returned from a weekend vacation to Hot Springs, Ark., to find that they were not allowed to go home.

"It's not only our family affected, though," he said. "We've talked to so many who can't get into their homes, either, or have had to leave their homes."

Dunn said the local community center where his church, Fresh Oil Worship Center, operates now will become a shelter for displaced families.

"This is very fine community with the finest families. It's unfortunate something like this is happening."
Prator said this weekend's fire is unlike any in his career.

"I've seen a lot of house fires and several grass fires, but nothing comes close to this. We're talking hundreds of acres. It's a pretty severe fire, but everyone is doing whatever we can to contain it."

Caddo's wildfire is not the only large blaze Louisiana firefighters have had to tackle recently.
A fire in Natchitoches Friday destroyed 10 homes before it was contained Saturday.

The full damage of that fire will not be known for several more days, state officials said.

And across much of Texas, firefighters are still contending with raging wildfires. One east of Austin has destroyed more than 500 homes, burned nearly 33,000 acres and forced evacuation of at least 5,000 people.

Shreveport Times

Huge wildfires spread across Texas

2011-09-06T02:45:00.000-07:00

Dramatic images of wildfire near Austin, Texas

2011-09-06T02:31:00.000-07:00

Larry W. Smith / EPA

A wildfire burns out of control in Bastrop State Park near Bastrop, Texas, on Sept. 5. The fire has burned over fourteen thousand acres and destroyed hundreds of homes. With much of the state of Texas under severe drought wildfires continue to spring up burning thousands of acres.

Mike Stone / Reuters

Clarence Hoffman, left, and his son, Allen Hoffman, battle ground flames as they try to prevent the fire from advancing to the home of Patrick McAlister as a wildfire burns out of control near Bastrop on Sept. 5. An estimated 1,000 homes are being threatened in Bastrop County.

Mike Stone / Reuters

Extreme heat rises from the ground as a wildfire burns out of control near Bastrop, on Sept. 5.

Larry W. Smith / EPA

Allen Hoffman runs down the driveway of Patrick McAlister's house as fires move closer and smoke covers the house as wildfires burns out of control near Bastrop on Sept. 5.

Larry W. Smith / EPA

A wildfire burns out of control in Bastrop State Park near Bastrop on Sept. 5.

Larry W. Smith / EPA

A wildfire burns out of control near Bastrop on Sept. 5.

The AP reports from BASTROP, Texas:

A wildfire burning southeast of Austin, Texas, destroyed about 300 homes and was advancing unchecked on Monday through parched ranchland along a 16-mile front, authorities said.

The fire, one of dozens that crews were battling throughout the drought-stricken state, had blackened some 17,500 acres but was not threatening the state capital, as it was about 30 miles from the city and headed the opposite way. But the ferocity and speed with which it was moving made it unsafe to fight from the ground, Texas Forest Service spokeswoman Jan Amen said.

"It's a monster, and it's zero percent contained" Amen said.

BASTROP, Texas — A roaring wildfire raced unchecked Monday through rain-starved farm and ranchland in Central Texas, destroying nearly 500 homes during a rapid advance fanned in part by howling winds from the remnants of Tropical Storm Lee.

At least 5,000 people were forced from their homes in Bastrop County about 25 miles (40 kilometers) east of Austin, and about 400 were in emergency shelters, officials said.

Huge clouds of smoke soared into the sky and hung over downtown Bastrop, a town of about 6,000 people along the Colorado River that has many tall pine trees. The blaze consumed as much as 25,000 acres (10,000 hectares) along a line that stretched for about 16 miles (26 kilometers), Texas Forest Service officials said.

Firefighters lined up a state highway outside Bastrop and converged around homes as they caught fire, hoping to save them. Helicopters and planes loaded with water could be seen making laps to and from the fire. When winds increased, flames would flare up and pop out over the tops of trees.

The wildfire destroyed 476 homes, and about 250 firefighters were working around the clock, using bulldozers and pumper trucks against the fire, Bastrop County Judge Ronnie McDonald said.

There were no immediate reports of injuries, and officials said they knew of no residents trapped in their homes.
On Sunday, however, about 200 miles (320 kilometers) to the northeast in Gladewater, a 20-year-old woman and her 18-month-old daughter died when a fast-moving wildfire gutted their mobile home. That fire was out Monday, although several other major blazes continued to burn in at least four other counties in Central and North Texas.

Mike Fischer, the Bastrop County emergency management director, said the fire is "nowhere near controlled," and that a separate, smaller blaze south of the city was growing larger.

"I wasn't going to evacuate, but then the smoke got blacker and blacker and it was like: 'OK, time to go,'" said Gina Thurman, 47, an analyst for the Texas Workforce Commission.

"Waiting is the most frustrating thing," she said, choking back tears as she sat by herself in the shade on a curb outside Ascension Catholic Church, one of several shelter sites. "You're sitting there and you don't know anything but your house is probably burning."

The new outbreak led Gov. Rick Perry to return home to Texas, cutting short a visit to South Carolina where he was campaigning for the Republican nomination for president. He also canceled a trip to California.

Perry viewed the fire from the air and conferred with local officials. He said seeing the fire was a "surreal" experience.

"I've seen a number of big fires in my life," he said. "This is as mean looking as I've ever seen, particularly because it was so close to the city."

Since December, wildfires in Texas have claimed 3.5 million acres (1.4 million hectares), an area the size of Connecticut, Perry said. The fires have destroyed more than 1,000 homes, he said.

Perry said it was too early to say whether he would attend Wednesday's Republican presidential debate in California.

"I'm not paying attention to politics right now," he said. "There will be plenty of time for that. People's lives and their possessions are at stake, and that's substantially more important."

Authorities mobilized ground and air forces to fight the largest of at least 63 fires that broke out in Texas since Sunday as high winds from what was then Tropical Storm Lee swept into the state, which has endured its worst drought since the 1950s.

"It's still putting up a lot of smoke and it's scary," Jan Amen, a Texas Forest Service spokeswoman said.

GRIMES COUNTY TEXAS..Evacuations ordered due to wildfires

2011-09-05T21:24:00.000-07:00

GRIMES COUNTY, TX (KTRK) -- The fire burning through structures and parched land in Montgomery, Waller and Grimes counties is growing. At least 1,600 acres have burned and thousands have been forced to flee their homes to a safer place.

In a matter of a hours, the smoke and haze drifted dozens of miles and settled over the city of Houston on Monday night.

The wildfire started burning around 3pm along the Montgomery County-Grimes County line off FM 1774 east of Todd Mission community. We're told at least 1,600 acres have burned and that the blaze is moving fast due to high winds.

The fire has been burning in a south/southwest direction.

Authorities say the head of the fire south of FM 1488 in Montgomery and Waller Counties is contained. Other areas of the fire are still being battled to insure containment.

The Grimes Co. Sheriff's Office Monday afternoon evacuated about 60 homes in the Lake Holley Hills subdivision. The sheriff's office is staging at the location of the Texas Renaissance Festival. The Red Cross is also setting up a canteen for firefighters/rescuers at the Texas Renaissance Festival. They say no structures have been affected on the Grimes Co. side.

Montgomery County deputies say about 8,000 people are being told to evacuate their homes in the Magnolia area on the Montgomery County-Waller County line. Authorities told people who live south of FM 1774 to leave.

DPS says FM 1774 from CR 302 to FM 1487 is closed due to fire.

Magnolia ISD says all schools will be closed for Tuesday, September 6 due to the wildfires. Magnolia High School has been setup as an evacuation center. If necessary, further details will be posted at www.magnoliaisd.org.

A shelter has been set up in the Magnolia area. The Red Cross says it has been asked to staff the evacuation center set up at Magnolia High School at 14350 FM 1488.

In Grimes County, shelter is at the Grimes County Expo Center; and for Waller County the shelter is at the First Baptist Church in Hempstead at 5th and Main Streets.

Here is a list of neighborhoods evacuated:

Grimes Co.
Lake Holley Hills

Montgomery Co.
River Park Ranch
Ranch Crest

Waller Co.
Fox Crest
Remington Trails
Oak Hollow
Clear Creek Forest
Twin Oaks
Lakeside Estates

Things quickly got out of control

The smoke was high, the fire wide and it caught many off guard Monday afternoon.

"No, I don't have anything. I just came to pick up dinner. My mom and my husband are still down at the house," said Sandra McDonough.

More than 1,600 acres burned and 20 structures destroyed. And as hard as they fought it, the blaze jumped FM 1488.

"At this point in time, be as cooperative as possible. And calling 911 is not helping matters any right now," said Chief Domingo Ibarra of the Magnolia Police Department.

One firefighter was injured and at least one fire truck lost as 8,000 residents evacuated and waited and worried.

"I'll tell you we left our house and about 30 minutes later, we couldn't even get back to it. So it's moving probably eight or ten miles across the ground. So God help us," said Terry Dorundo.

Some of the first ordered out recalled the scene.

"It was the blackest sky I'd ever seen, blacker than any thunderstorm I'd ever seen. We heard a propane tank explode some hundred feet off. It was just very hot and heavy," said Kevin McNully.

And it's not letting up leading to a very sleepless night near Magnolia.

"Hopefully they get it out before it gets close to us," said McDonough.

The mandatory evacautions of Montgomery County and Grimes County neighborhoods began late Monday afternoon. As families fled their homes, many didn't know what would happen to their houses or their neighbors.

In southeast Montgomery County, the Department of Public Safety says voluntary evacuations were underway Monday afternoon in the Sleepy Hollow subdivision in the Shenandoah area. DPS says people who live from Sleepy Hollow northward to Forest Lane and from Post Oak to Main are being asked to leave. So far no homes or structures have been burned and no injuries reported there.

This started out as the Labor Day holiday which meant a lot of people were home. That may have be the only fortunate thing about this fire -- that most people were able to get what they could and evacuate, helping neighbors along the way.

A Valero station is not an official evacuation center, but it functioned as one from the afternoon on.

Those who live in the Lake Holley Hills subdivision gathered a few miles from the homes they were advised to leave. Jo Jo Sanchez was among them. His life started to change just after two this afternoon when he smelled smoke

"Met up with another neighbor and he goes, 'I know where it's coming from, let's go.' And we took off from the area and immediately helped a lady who lived there evacuate all her animals and water her house down," said Sanchez.

He and his wife left with their pets. That's all they were able to take.

"There was an upside to it. I did hear from one of the neighbors that our houses might not be burnt down," said Sanchez.

As they waited, emergency crews raced down the road toward Magnolia where hundreds of acres of dry brush burned. Not far from the place Barry Mongonia calls home.

"I had a chihuahua and they just got it a few minutes ago- thats what these tears are for," said Mongonia. "You have things one day that can be taken away from you the next day."

An ABC13 viewer called to say if there is anyone in need for a place to keep their animals, he has 45 acres fenced for cows, horses, etc. off Nichols Sawmill Road in Magnolia and is willing to help for no charge. Call Bob at 713-857-6772.

And 'Hooves and Hearts' wants people in the fire zone to know that they have stables available for horses that need to evacuate. They are offering their services for free, but if people drop off their animal, they're asking people to bring their own feed if possible.

Stay with Eyewitness News and abc13.com and we'll bring you the latest information as we get it.

(Copyright ©2011 KTRK-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.)

Parched Conditions Fuel Southern California Wildfires; 650 Homes Threatened

2011-09-05T21:12:00.000-07:00

Associated Press

TEHACHAPI, Calif. – At least three wildfires burned across tinder-dry Southern California on Monday, including one that had destroyed a dozen homes, officials said.

By far the largest of the blazes was the so-called Canyon Fire, burning near Tehachapi in Kern County. It was sparked Sunday when a single-engine Cessna plane crashed.

The blaze had chewed its way through 8,600 acres -- about 13 square miles -- of summer-scorched terrain and destroyed 12 residences, said Ron Oatman, a spokesman with the California Department of Fire and Forestry Protection. Additionally, the fire claimed 15 outbuildings and three recreational vehicles.

About 600 firefighters, backed by a DC-10 jumbo jet tanker and more than a dozen other aircraft, were battling the fire and about 10 percent of the blaze was contained.

At least 650 homes in three rugged communities were ordered to evacuate, Kern County fire department spokesman Cary Wright said.

Ground crews were focused on creating a break between the fire and the trailer, ranch and vacation homes in communities south of Tehachapi, a city of 8,000 south of Bakersfield, Wright said. Firefighters were also working to protect the nearby wind farms threatened by the blaze.

Authorities didn't know how many people were on the plane that crashed, but two people have been confirmed dead. Their names weren't immediately released.

National Transportation Safety Board investigators reached the site of the wreckage Monday to investigate the cause of the crash, Wright said.

To the south, a barn fire grew to more than 400 acres of desert brush in northern Los Angeles County on Monday afternoon, county fire inspector Don Kunitomi said. The fire was burning close to several ranch homes in Agua Dulce and was about 30 percent contained.

A firefighter and a resident suffered minor injuries, Kunitomi said. The fire was burning near the Vasquez Rocks county park, whose other-worldly, slanting rock monoliths have served as the backdrop for many Hollywood films and TV shows, including "Star Trek."

The biggest unknown was the weather, county fire Capt. Mark Savage said. Around this time of year, fast and hot winds can blow in from the desert and wreak havoc on any fire containment plans.

"Winds could be the X-factor," he told KABC. "We just don't know what could happen."

In Los Angeles, another fire broke out around 4 p.m. close to Interstate 405 at the Sepulveda Pass, causing southbound lanes to slow to a crawl. Footage from television news helicopters show flames burning up a hillside in Mandeville Canyon, which is above the freeway, and away from sprawling homes. Arnold Schwarzenegger owns a house in the area.

Gov. Jerry Brown said he had asked the Federal Emergency Management Agency for financial assistance to offset costs of fighting the Canyon Fire.

ASSOCIATED PRESS

Fire from plane crash menaces California homes

2011-09-05T20:49:00.002-07:00

Steve Gorman Reuters

11:34 p.m. EDT, September 5, 2011

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A brush fire ignited by a fatal small-plane crash near the mountain town of Tehachapi, north of Los Angeles, forced hundreds of homes to be evacuated on Monday and left some 8,600 acres charred by nightfall in its second day.

Although the fire nearly doubled in size on Monday, some 600 firefighters backed by water-dropping helicopters and bulldozers managed to extend containment lines around 10 percent of its perimeter in steep, rugged terrain, up from 5 percent earlier in the day, fire officials said.

At least one large tanker plane dumping payloads of fire-retardant chemicals also joined the aerial assault on the blaze, said Captain Mark Whaling, a spokesman for the fire management team.

California Governor Jerry Brown asked for federal emergency funds to help pay for firefighting efforts, and that application was approved on Monday, his office said.

The so-called Canyon Fire was sparked late Sunday morning when a single-engine plane crashed near Tehachapi, about 150 miles north of Los Angeles, killing the pilot and a second person aboard, Whaling told Reuters.

The ensuing blaze quickly engulfed one nearby home, and by Monday was threatening about 650 dwellings and some 150 outbuildings, Whaling said.

Hundreds of those residences were placed under evacuation orders in an area of rural canyons and ranches to the south and west of Tehachapi, said Daniel Berlant, spokesman for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.

Those homes remained off-limits by dark, and "the fire this evening made another run, so we're in the process of evacuating an additional 15 to 20 homes," Berlant said.

Only one person, a member of the firefighting team, was reported injured, Whaling said, but he had no further details.

He said the fire, fanned by erratic winds, was burning through a wide variety of vegetation in the area, ranging from grass to scrubland and old-growth timber.

The blaze was one of at least eight major wildfires burning out of control in California on Monday, according to CalFire and the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise, Idaho.

"But this is really our main concern because of the number of homes that are threatened," Berlant said.

Whaling said the Canyon Fire was also especially fierce, with firefighters observing flames leaping 200 feet to 300 feet in the air as the blaze topped some ridges Sunday.

(Editing by Peter Bohan and Bob Tourtellotte)

Parched conditions fuel California wildfires

2011-09-05T20:04:00.000-07:00

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Tinder-dry conditions are providing fuel for at least three wildfires in Southern California as firefighters launched a massive aerial assault to try to halt their spread.

The largest fire was burning near Tehachapi in Kern County. It was sparked when a single-engine plane crashed.

As of Monday night, the blaze had chewed its way through more than 4,700 acres of rugged brush and pine.

California Department of Fire and Forestry Protection spokesman Tom Piranio said about 600 firefighters were backed by a DC-10 jumbo jet tanker and more than a dozen other aircraft.
At least 650 homes were ordered to evacuate.

To the south, a barn fire grew to more than 400 acres of desert brush in northern Los Angeles County Monday afternoon.

In Los Angeles, another fire broke out close to Interstate 405 at the Sepulveda Pass.

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press.

Fires near Houston force evacuations, strain resources

2011-09-05T18:52:00.000-07:00

By ZAIN SHAUK, HOUSTON CHRONICLE

About 150 homes were evacuated Monday between Montgomery and Grimes counties as two wildfires, fanned by strong, dry winds, rapidly expanded.

A third fire broke out late Monday in Montgomery County, but no resources were available to respond to it, said April Saginor, a spokeswoman for the Texas Forrest Service.

The fire that forced the most evacuations, located off of FM 1774, north of Todd Mission in Grimes County, threatened "numerous homes," Saginor said.

The U.S. Forest Service had allocated some resources to the fire, including fire engines, she said. The size of the fires was unknown, she said.

"I think we're probably still trying to assess that," Saginor said.

Montgomery County officials were encouraging evacuations from the intersection of FM 1774 and FM 1486, about 42 miles northwest of Houston, up to the Grimes County line, an official said.

A fire near Nacogdoches that started Sunday night raged to 300 acres Monday and forced 60 families to evacuate their homes, said Ralph Cullom, a spokesman for the Texas Forrest Service. That fires grew with strong gusts of winds and fed off of dry conditions on the ground.

"This drought we're having is just unprecedented," Cullom said.

zain.shauk@chron.com

Message From Austin Fire Department..TEXAS On Horse and Animal Evacuations

2011-09-05T18:43:00.000-07:00

Horse/animal evacuations still stands

Confirm Austin FD - 512-974-0150.

City of Austin Homeland Security and Emergency Management website.

Video Report From Austin Texas

2011-09-05T18:38:00.001-07:00

Deadly Texas wildfires rage unabated, stoked by Tropical Storm Lee

2011-09-05T18:36:00.000-07:00

A mother and her 18-month-old child were killed when flames engulfed their east Texas trailer amid a wildfire stoked by the Tropical Storm Lee.

A mother and her 18-month-old child were killed when flames engulfed their east Texas trailer amid a wildfire stoked by the Tropical Storm Lee.

Firefighters are struggling to contain the 16-mile-wide blaze southeast of Austin has razed more than 14,000 acres and has reportedly jumped the Colorado River twice. NPR reports:

"When it first started we were out there, we got overran, we had to get out. We had to evacuate and it just burned everything in its path. Forest, houses, everything, cars, anything that was there was burned," says Carolyn Laird, who is a firefighter — along with her daughter Devan — for the Bastrop Fire Department.

The worst of up to 60 smaller wildfires that make up the blaze is in Bastrop County, according to NPR, where 300 homes have been destroyed.

Black Hawk helicopters trying to douse the fire, which Texas Forest Service spokeswoman Jan Amen called "a monster," adding that it was "zero percent contained," Time reports.

High winds and drought conditions are fueling fires across Central and East Texas, forcing Texas Gov. Rick Perry to cancel his Labor Day appearance in Columbia, S.C. on Tuesday and events in California on Wednesday, ABC News reports.

"Our state has got wildfires that are running quite wild at zero containment right now and the winds are supposed to pick up again," Perry reportedly said.

By late Monday, Tropical Storm Lee — which made landfall Sunday — had turned into Tropical Depression Lee and was moving up the East Coast after drenching parts of the deep South and leaving thousands without power, ABC reports.

Meanwhile, Hurricane Katia was moving across the Atlantic Ocean.

Austin-area wildfire burns a record 476 homes in Texas

2011-09-05T18:31:00.001-07:00

By Karen Brooks

AUSTIN, Texas

(Reuters) - A massive wildfire east of the Texas state capital of Austin has destroyed 476 homes since Sunday and is still burning out of control, state officials said on Monday.

"I'm still seeing no containment," said April Saginor, public information officer for the Texas Forest Service, who confirmed that the Bastrop County Complex Fire has scorched more than 25,000 acres and burned 476 residences so far.

"That's a record in Texas for a single fire," she said of the homes destroyed.

The Bastrop fire is one of more than sixty fires which have kindled across Texas since Sunday afternoon, fueled by the gusty winds generated as Tropical Storm Lee pushed by in the Gulf of Mexico as it made landfall in Louisiana.

"The winds and the number of fires that are happening around Central Texas has caused a real strain on firefighters around this area," Bastrop County Judge Ronnie McDonald told reporters.

The Bastrop County area about 30 miles east of Austin is no stranger to wildfires, with rural brush common, residents said. But the speed the fire showed in spreading took everyone by surprise, and 19 subdivisions in the county of about 70,000 people saw evacuations in the last 24 hours.

Many people who were evacuated said they left with only the clothes on their backs, while others managed to escape with a handful of family photos.

"There was a policeman that started hollering through a big megaphone, telling us to get out of our houses immediately, now!" said a woman who lives in one of the Bastrop County subdivisions.

"This fire is nowhere near being under control," Bastrop County Emergency Management Coordinator Mike Fisher said.

Fisher said a second fire has broken out southwest of the main fire, in southwestern Bastrop County. But he said crews were finally been able to contain the main fire north of the Colorado River, and he was confident it is not likely to move into more populated areas west of the main fire zone.

Saginor said more than 250 firefighters were working on the Bastrop fire, which stretches for 16 miles with a breadth of six miles in some spots.

The Texas Forest Service said heavy air tankers have been brought in from as far away as South Dakota, and all day they have been dumping tons of water on fires all day long.

"We are also using bulldozers to create firebreaks, we are using many fire engines, we are attacking the fire directly, and we hope to have aircraft working all day," Fisher said.

Additional mandatory evacuation orders have been issued for various parts of Bastrop and also Travis County, where the city of Austin is located and is the scene of the 150 acre Steiner Ranch Fire, which had destroyed 25 homes by Monday and prompted the evacuation of more than 1000 homes.

"We know that this is tough on people who have been evacuated," said Austin Mayor Lee Leffingwell. "Especially since there is no set time for people to return."

Schools have been canceled tomorrow in the fire zone, and the Red Cross has opened several shelters to house evacuees.

"This is far from over," Leffingwell said.

(Additional reporting by Jim Forsyth. Editing by Peter Bohan)

Fire in Los Angeles county grows to 500 acres

2011-09-05T18:27:00.000-07:00

The Associated Press

LOS ANGELES

A brush fire sparked by a barn and trailer blaze in northern Los Angeles county has spread to at least 500 acres.

County fire inspector Don Kunitomi (KOO-nee-toe-mee) says Monday the fire is burning close to several ranch homes in Agua Dulce (ah-gwah duhl-say) but there are no evacuation orders.

Kunitomi says a firefighter and a resident suffered minor injuries. The fire is burning near the Vasquez Rocks nature center, which has served as the backdrop for many Hollywood film and TV shows.

Within the city of Los Angeles a fire broke out about 4 p.m. close to Interstate 405 at the Sepulveda Pass, causing southbound lanes to slow to a crawl. Footage from television news helicopters show flames burning up a hillside in Mandeville Canyon, which is above the freeway, and away from homes.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.

Calmer weather on Monday was aiding firefighters battling a wildfire that was ignited by a deadly plane crash and has forced residents in about 650 homes in this mountain community to flee.

Forecasters had predicted 10- to 15 mph winds similar to conditions that fanned the blaze after the single-engine Cessna went down near Tehachapi on Sunday. However, winds were fairly calm and favorable for crews at the fire, which has burned more than 7 square miles or 4,700 acres, Kern County fire department spokesman Cary Wright said.

"It's nothing comparable to yesterday," he said Monday. "If the weather stays the way it is today, it would really help our effort."

Wright said that 650 homes in three rugged communities were ordered to evacuate. At least one structure was destroyed, but that number was expected to go up.

About 600 firefighters, backed by a DC-10 jumbo jet tanker and more than a dozen other aircraft, were battling the fire, said Nick Schuler, a California Department of Fire and Forestry Protection spokesman. About 5 percent of the blaze has been contained.

Ground crews were focused on creating a break between the fire and the trailer, ranch and vacation homes in communities south of Tehachapi, a city of 8,000 south of Bakersfield, Wright said. Firefighters were also working to protect the nearby wind farms threatened by the blaze.

Authorities did not know how many people were on the plane that crashed, but two people have been confirmed dead. Their names were not immediately released.

National Transportation Safety Board investigators reached the site of the wreckage Monday to investigate the cause of the crash, Wright said.

To the south, a barn fire grew to more than 400 acres of desert brush in northern Los Angeles County Monday afternoon, county fire department inspector Matt Levesque told KNX-AM.

Video captured by a KCAL-TV news helicopter showed the fire burning close to several homes near the Vasquez Rocks Natural Area and Nature Center in Agua Dulce. The park's rock formations have served as the backdrop for many films and television series, including "Star Trek," "The Lone Ranger" and "Blazing Saddles."

Meanwhile, a nearly 2 square-mile or 1,100-acre wildfire along the main interstate between Southern California and Las Vegas was fully contained Monday.

The fire broke out in the center divider of Interstate 15 on Friday at the start of the holiday weekend, forcing the temporary closure of all lanes and snarling the getaway traffic.

About 1,500 homes were evacuated but residents were allowed to return home by Saturday. The flames destroyed two mobile homes and damaged two other structures.

ASSOCIATED PRESS

PEOPLE NEEDED IN BASTROP,TEXAS FOR HELP WITH HORSE TRANSPORT AND OTHER DUTIES

2011-09-05T17:57:00.000-07:00

PLEASE REPOST TO ALL TEXAS AND SURROUNDING STATE CONTACTS.

CALL NUMBER BEFORE MOBILIZING

URGENT NEED for HORSE TRANSPORT for evacuation in BASTROP COUNTY TX

Barns that were used to house evacuees are now in the fire's path. Rt 304 still open both ways. Anyone in the area who can help, please call Beth at 512-467-4893 or Rachel at 512-581-2940 . There at least 43 horses in immediate need at their rescue, surely there will be more.

Please keep this going and maybe it will reach someone who can help

MORE INFO: http://blue-dot-blues.blogspot.com/

0% CONTROLLED - 0% CONTAINED

As of Monday afternoon, the fire – which was 16 miles long and 6 miles wide—had scorched more than 25,000 acres and destroyed at least 476 homes. Officials evacuated 5,000 people from 19 subdivisions in the area, and at least 600 people were staying in shelters Monday. The county’s emergency management director, Mike Fischer, said the fire is “nowhere near controlled” and that a separate, smaller blaze to the south of the city is growing larger.

INCIDENT UPDATED Incident Overview
Consistent Fire Numbers as of 9/5/11
http://www.inciweb.org/incident/2315/

http://www.khou.com/news/local/Massive-wild-fire-in-Bastrop-still-not-contained-129243858.html

Wildfire Precautions

2011-09-05T17:40:00.000-07:00

When fire breaks out near your community, it is critical to monitor media and to obey evacuation orders.Eighty percent of wildfires occur within two miles of residential neighborhoods and suburbs. When wildfires are moving at extreme speeds, they cannot be controlled. When advised to evacuate, do so immediately. Choose a route away from the fire hazard and be alert to changes in the speed and direction of fire and smoke.When weather conditions make wildfires more likely, prepare by taking the following precautions:

Keep firefighting tools handy, such as: ladder long enough to reach the roof, shovel, rake and buckets.

Place connected garden hoses on all sides of the house for emergency use.

Know all emergency exits from your house.

Learn all routes leading out of your neighborhood.

As fires actually approach, take the following actions:

Park your car facing the direction of escape.

Shut off gas at the meter. Only a qualified professional can safely turn the gas back on.

Turn off propane tanks.

Place combustible patio furniture inside.

Seal vents with pre-cut plywood or commercial seals.

Wet down or remove shrubs within 15 feet of your residence.

Place lawn sprinklers on roof and near above-ground fuel tanks. Wet down the roof.

Close windows, vents, doors, blinds and non combustible window coverings. Remove flammable drapes and curtains.

Close interior doors and windows to prevent drafts.

For more information on fire danger and advisories, visit the Texas Forest Service Website.

Perry says Texas wildfire ‘as mean looking’ as he’s ever seen, federal disaster relief sought

2011-09-05T17:28:00.002-07:00

By Associated Press, Updated: Monday, September 5, 4:19 PM

BASTROP, Texas — Texas Gov. Rick Perry says the wildfire burning in the central part of the state is “as mean looking” as he’s ever seen.
Perry left his presidential campaign Monday in South Carolina to return to Texas and deal with the fire, which covers 25,000 acres near Bastrop and has already destroyed nearly 500 homes.

Perry said at a news conference that wildfires have claimed 3.5 million acres in Texas since December.
He said the Federal Emergency Management Agency likely would arrive Wednesday and that Texas would seek federal disaster relief. He also said officials were considering seeking military resources from nearby Fort Hood.
Perry said it’s too soon to tell whether he’ll miss Wednesday’s GOP debate in California. He added that he’s “not paying attention to politics right now.”

Copyright 2011 The Associated Press.

Two local men charged with causing Wallow Fire

2011-08-24T12:25:00.000-07:00

Two Southern Arizona cousins have been charged for causing the largest wildfire in Arizona history. The Wallow Fire burned more than 538,000 acres in Arizona and part of Western New Mexico before it was contained.

According to a media release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the office has charged Caleb Joshua Malboeuf, 26, of Benson, Ariz.; and David Wayne Malboeuf, 24, of Tucson, Ariz., in connection with the Wallow Fire, that sparked started on May 29. The man are scheduled to make an initial appearance in federal court in Flagstaff, Ariz. on Sept. 19.

The men were charged with five counts of causing timber to burn, leaving a fire unattended and unextinguished, leaving a fire without completely extinguishing it, causing and failing to maintain control of a fire and building a campfire without removing all flammable material from around the campfire adequate to prevent its escape.

Investigation into Wallow Fire indicates the fire started when an unattended and unextinguished campfire in the Bear Wallow area spread out of its fire ring. Caleb and David Malboeuf had gone on a hike. When they noticed smoke from the direction of their campsite, the cousins attempted to get back to their campsite where they had left their gear. As they approached their campsite, the smoke and flame has become too intense.
A conviction for each of the offenses charged in the complaint against Caleb and David Malboeuf carries a maximum penalty of six months in prison, a $5,000 fine or both.

The Wallow Fire destroyed 32 residential structures, four commercial structures and 36 outbuildings and cost over $79,000,000 to fight.

Los Alamos evacuation order lifted; 12,000 go hom

2011-07-04T08:42:00.000-07:00

By P. SOLOMON BANDA, Associated Press

LOS ALAMOS, N.M. (AP) — Honking horns and waving to firefighters, residents of a New Mexico city threatened by a massive wildfire rolled back into Los Alamos nearly a week after flames forced an evacuation and the closure of a nearby major nuclear weapons laboratory.

Summer showers gave a boost to firefighters battling the blaze and provided authorities enough confidence Sunday to allow the 12,000 residents to return home.

"Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" yelled Amy Riehl, an assistant manager at the Smith's grocery store, as she arrived to help keep the store open for returning residents.

"It's scary, but all of the resources here this time, they were ready. They did a magnificent job," said Michael Shields, his eyes tearing up as he returned to his apartment in the heart of the town.

The fire erupted June 26 when a tree fell onto powerlines, officials announced Sunday. Fueled by an exceptionally dry season in the Southwest and erratic winds, the fire has mushroomed to 189 square miles. It was 19 percent contained as of Sunday night.

Although the threat to the community and the Los Alamos National Laboratory has waned, the wildfire still menaced sites held sacred by American Indian tribes.

The blaze, the largest ever in New Mexico, reached the Santa Clara Pueblo's watershed in the canyon last week, damaging the area that the tribe considers its birthplace and scorching 20 square miles of tribal forest.

Fire operations chief Jerome Macdonald said it was within miles of the centuries-old Puye Cliff Dwellings, a national historic landmark.

Hundreds of firefighters were working to contain the fire as it burned through a canyon on the Santa Clara reservation and caused concern about other pueblos on the Pajarito Plateau.

Tribes were worried that cabins, pueblos and watersheds could be destroyed.

Los Alamos residents fled en masse last week as the fast-moving fire approached the city and the nation's premier nuclear research lab, located northwest of Santa Fe.

The town was last evacuated because of a devastating fire in 2000 that destroyed 200 homes and several businesses and damaged utilities and other county enterprises.

This time, residents returned to a town that is completely intact, although the fire scorched 63 homes west of town along with 37 outbuildings and other structures.

"We're confident that we'll be able to keep the fire out of the community," Los Alamos County Fire Chief Doug Tucker said. "We've done so far, and we'll continue to do so."

He added that's it's a bittersweet moment because of all the residents in surrounding areas that lost their homes

Many lab employees returned to prepare operations and thousands of experiments for the scientists and technicians who were forced to evacuate. Among the work put on hold were experiments using two supercomputers and studies on extending the life of 1960s-era nuclear bombs.

Thunderstorms that dropped rain Sunday also brought wind that made the fire burn more aggressively in some areas but pushed the 121,000-acre fire back on itself in the north, said Brad Pitassi, a spokesman for the fire command.

The blaze remained in Los Alamos Canyon, which runs past the old Manhattan Project site and a 1940s-era dump site of low-level radioactive waste, as well as the site of a nuclear reactor that was demolished in 2003.

For Leo and Lorene Beckstead, their first stop in town was the grocery store as they prepared to heed officials' request that residents stay at home as crews worked on the fire surrounding the town on three sides.

"They did a great job. I think because of the Cerro Grande fire, they learned a lot," Leo Beckstead said, referring to the blaze in 2000.

Other residents turned back and left as soon as they got home.

"A lot of them are coming in, checking their houses and then leaving because the smoke is so bad," said Tucker. "They're turning around and leaving Los Alamos."

High humidity pushed the smoke down into towns and kept it close to the ground, Tucker said.

Los Alamos fire could become the largest in New Mexico history

2011-07-04T08:40:00.000-07:00

Big fires have happened before in New Mexico, but scientists see a recent pattern that may be the most severe since the last Ice Age. Among the causes: fuel buildup due to fire suppression, a decline in the annual snowpack, and warmer climate.

The Las Conchas Fire burns through a canyon June 29 in Los Alamos, N.M. The government sent a plane equipped with radiation monitors over the Los Alamos nuclear laboratory Wednesday as a 110-square-mile wildfire burned at the lab's doorstep, putting thousands of scientific experiments on hold for days.

Morgan Petroski/The Albuquerque Journal/AP

By Pete Spotts, Staff writer / June 30, 2011

The Las Conchas fire, burning its way through the mountains and canyons around Los Alamos, N.M., is about to join Arizona’s Wallow fire as a state record-breaker.

As of noon local time Thursday, the Las Conchas blaze had consumed 92,710 acres near the city of Los Alamos and the Los Alamos National Laboratory, one of the nation's three nuclear-weapons labs. That's roughly 23,000 acres more than the fire had claimed Wednesday. Most of the additional growth in the past day came as the western section of the fire, driven by southerly winds, moved north from the Los Alamos area.

By midday Friday, Las Conchas is expected to capture the dubious title of largest single forest fire on record in the state. The previous record-holder was the Dry Lakes fire, which burned 94,000 acres near the Gila National Forest in southern New Mexico in 2003.

IN PICTURES: New Mexico wildfires

Combined with another fire in the Gila National Forest that ignited this past April and burned nearly 90,000 acres, three of the state's largest forest fires have occurred within the past 10 years, according to data from the forestry division of the state's Energy, Minerals, and Natural Resources Department.

From the standpoint of geological history, "these big, severe fires are not unprecedented" in hot, dry intervals the region has experienced during the past 10,000 years, says Grant Meyer, a geologist at the University of New Mexico in Albuquerquewho studies the interaction of climate and weathering processes – which can be affected by wildfires – on the landscape.

"But recent experience down here suggests that what we're looking at in the last few decades is at least as severe and maybe more so than anything we've seen since the last Ice Age," he adds.

A build-up of fuels from forestry practices that emphasized fire suppression is partly responsible, he says.

"But part of it as well – and the data are very good on this – it's climatic warming" as human industrial activity and land-use changes have pumped increasing amounts of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, he says.

Long-term decline in annual snow pack

A long-term average decline in annual snow pack, which provides the bulk of the region's water, along with rising average temperatures have lengthened the fire season and dried out the fuel.

New Mexico, along with much of Texas (which has had a record fire season), and the southeastern US is in the throes of extreme to exceptional drought conditions, according to data published jointly by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the US Department of Agriculture, and the University of Nebraska.

The Wallow fire in Arizona, which has consumed more than half a million acres and is some 93 percent contained, and the Los Conchas fire, are "an indication of what kind of fire season this has been," says Jerome McDonald of the Southwest Area Incident Management Team, an interagency task force overseeing the firefighting efforts.

"Our team was on the Wallow fire as well," he continues. "As firefighters we're seeing extreme fire behavior and the kind of [fire] growth we haven't seen in our careers."

The Las Conchas fire has displayed some of that odd behavior.

'It's really aggressive'

"We have seen fire behavior we've never seen down here, and it's really aggressive," says Los Alamos fire chief Donald Tucker.

Fire crews were hoping to use the burn scars from the 2000 Cerro Grande fire – recolonized with grasses and shrubs that represent less abundant fuel than the Ponderosas and other conifers the fire has fed on so far – to help anchor their fire breaks.

Instead, when the Las Conchas fire reached the burn scar, the grass and shrubs burned, as expected. But the region is so dry – 0.19 inches of rain since Jan. 1 – and the fire has been so hot that it also has reignited the downed, blackened trees that lie around the landscape "like match sticks," Chief Tucker says.

Backfires set to establish fuel-free zones to the south and west of Los Alamos and the national laboratory so far have proven effective, Tucker says.

"Our piece of the puzzle looks good," although areas to the north are not so fortunate, he acknowledges.

To date, firefighters have been able to contain just 3 percent of the fire, which has destroyed 13 homes and damaged 3 others that were in sparsely populated areas.

Glendora Fire Team Join Effort to Fight Arizona Wildfires

2011-07-04T08:35:00.000-07:00

A team from Engine Company No. 24 of the Angeles National Forest station in Glendora helped fight one of the worst series of wildfires in Arizona history.

As five major wildfires raged through Arizona last month, a fire team of the San Gabriel River Ranger District of the Angeles National Foreststation based in Glendora assisted dozens of fire engines from several states in battling the Arizona blazes.

In immense desert heat that reached up to 112 degrees, the fire team of Engine Company No. 24 – Wendy Verlinde, Vincent Moyer, Mauricio Ramirez, Jeff Stitt and Jim Mireles – joined the 193 firemen of the Arizona All Incident Hazard Management Task Force in containing the furious fires.

Pamela Mathis, the public information officer for the task force, said the fires –

the Monument Fire in the Coronado National Forest, the Wallow fire in eastern Arizona, the Horseshoe Two Fire in southeastern Arizona and the Black Mesa Ranger District and Wash fires northeast of Payson – began around Memorial Day weekend and were nearly contained by the end of the June. Investigators are still determining the cause of the fires, but they believe the fires were “man-made.”

With dozens of homes lost and nearly 800,000 acres burned, many are calling the wildfires one of the worst in the state’s history.

The emergency task force, initiated in 2005 and supported by Arizona Department of Emergency and Military Affairs, allows other fire engines from various states to assist in emergency situations. As the recent wildfires in Arizona burned, many of the small towns were overwhelmed and lacked enough resources to battle the fires.

“The task force allows fire engines from surrounding states to provide support and back up to the fire teams already in the area,” said Mathis.

The experience battling the wildfires was both physically and emotionally demanding, said fire engineer Jim Mireles.

“We were gone away from our families for 14 days, fighting fires in high-90 degree to 112 degree heat,” said Mireles, whose team arrived back in Glendora on Thursday. He said heat conditions and the intensity of the fires were a challenge for even some of the more experience firefighters of the crew.

But assisting in the effort was a mission the members of Engine Company No. 24 were happy to take on.

“These teams came and provided a great deal of support, including moral support,” said Mathis. “They deserve a hero’s welcome home.”

Crews Battle 7,500 Acre Wildfire Near NV Town

2011-07-03T14:27:00.001-07:00

WADSWORTH, Nev. -- Fire officials say shifting winds and inaccessible terrain are hampering efforts to contain a 7,500-acre wildfire burning out of control in northern Nevada.

Spokesman Mark Struble says while the blaze poses no immediate threat to buildings, it represents a potential threat to structures in the town of Wadsworth.

He says the fire has burned within four miles of Wadsworth, which is located near Fernley along Interstate 80 about 30 miles east of Reno.

Struble says the south side of the fire remains the most critical as down-slope winds are pushing the fire to the south toward Wadsworth.

The fire, which broke out Saturday afternoon, is burning grass and brush in valleys and ranges largely owned by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management.

More than 200 firefighters are battling the fire.

Los Alamos evacuation order lifted allowing 12,000 to return home

2011-07-03T14:25:00.000-07:00

Although the threat to Los Alamos and the nation's premier nuclear research lab has passed, the mammoth wildfire raging in northern New Mexico still threatens sacred sites of American Indian tribes.

Denise Lane, center, owner of the Hill Diner in Los Alamos, and volunteer waitress Martha Waters, right, speak with firefighters. The Hill Diner has provided 1200 meals a day to firefighters, emergency workers, and the media free of charge.

Newscom

N.M. fire rages unchecked

2011-07-02T21:53:00.000-07:00

Los Alamos Canyon fills with smoke from the Las Conchas fire in Los Alamos, N.M., on Friday

Jae C. Hong / The Associated Press

By Dan Frosch / New York Times News Service

Published: July 02. 2011 4:00AM PST

LOS ALAMOS, N.M. — Driven by a relentless drought and surging summer winds, a wildfire continued to burn virtually unchecked in the Jemez Mountains near Los Alamos National Laboratory on Friday, having scorched tens of thousands of acres in its path and leaving firefighters scrambling to keep up.

The Las Conchas Fire, now the largest in New Mexico’s history, has not spread to the laboratory, which was one of the birthplaces of the atom bomb and still conducts nuclear research, and officials said Friday that they remained confident the blaze would not reach its confines.

So with the laboratory seemingly safe, attention shifted to the nearby Santa Clara Pueblo, which the fire raced toward late in the week, and where concerns were mounting over the safety of the tribe’s cultural sites.

With more than 6,000 acres of tribal land already burned, the pueblo’s governor, Walter Dasheno, issued a declaration of emergency Thursday.

“We are devastated to witness the destruction of our precious homeland,” he said in a statement. “From time immemorial to this day, our community has been stewards of this land, have fought to regain portions taken from us and have invested millions of dollars in restoring the forest and resources.”

Speaking at a news conference in Los Alamos on Friday, Sen. Tom Udall, D-N.M., said the patchwork of Indian pueblos throughout Northern New Mexico would bear the brunt of the fire.

“They have taken a real hit,” he said. “The watersheds are hurt. Their sacred sites have been hurt by the fire. There is going to have to be a big massive effort to try to help them restore their lands.”

As of Friday, the Las Conchas Fire had burned more than 103,000 acres and was only 3 percent contained. Still, officials said Friday that they were optimistic about controlling more of the blaze in the coming days.

Up until now, the largest wildfire in New Mexico had been the Dry Lakes Fire, which charred 94,580 acres of the Gila National Forest in 2003.

“This is a very complex fire, which started quickly and has been difficult to control,” said Lawrence Lujan, a fire information officer for the U.S. Forest Service.

Wind gusts and brittle conditions have made the blaze especially difficult to contain, officials say, prompting evacuations of the town of Los Alamos on Monday and initial fears that it could reach the radioactive waste stored at the legendary laboratory.

With mandatory evacuation orders still in effect, Los Alamos was eerily quiet Friday, save for the rumble of emergency vehicles patrolling the streets. Smoke hung heavy over the town.

As the Las Conchas fire blazed, smaller wildfires were burning across New Mexico, forcing firefighters to divert manpower and resources.

The Pacheco Fire has been burning for two weeks through the Pecos Wilderness, not far from Santa Fe, scorching more than 10,000 acres. Fires also began this week in Mora County in the north and in southeastern New Mexico, where a portion of a large wildfire burned on a ranch owned by television newsman Sam Donaldson.

At night, pockets of flames licking up from the wildfires were visible from commercial flights flying into Albuquerque.

At a converted banquet hall at the Cities of Gold Casino in the Pojoaque Pueblo, evacuees waited for word of when they might be able to return to Los Alamos, passing the time napping, reading and watching television.

Robert Trujillo, a radiation control technician at the laboratory, sat on a cot and considered the magnitude of the situation.

“Everybody knows it’s dry,” he said. “Everybody knows there hasn’t been any rain. The winds have gotten really bad. How are you going to stop that?”

Wildfires close Okefenokee refuge over holiday

2011-07-02T21:49:00.002-07:00

By: The Associated Press | The Associated Press | 07/02/11 6:12 AM

Wildfires burning in southeast Georgia are forcing rangers to keep the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge closed to the public during what's typically a busy holiday weekend.

Art Webster, the refuge's supervisory ranger, says the Okefenokee normally sees a noticeable bump in visitors over the Fourth of July as summer tourists head outdoors for boating, fishing and nature watching.

This year the refuge has been closed for about two months because of the vast Honey Prairie fire that's burned about 450 square miles in the Okefenokee Swamp. While firefighters have successfully protected many of the refuge's manmade structures, flames severely damaged the popular boardwalk built by refuge staff in the 1960s.

The Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge covers more than 620 acres near the Georgia-Florida line. About 400,000 people visit every year.

Tribes fear loss of sacred sites near N.M. fire

2011-07-02T21:47:00.000-07:00

SANTA CLARA PUEBLO, N.M. (AP) — A wildfire that forced federal employees to flee the desert birthplace of the atomic bomb neared the sacred sites of several American Indiantribes on Saturday, raising fears that tribal lands passed down for generations would be destroyed.

More than 1,600 firefighters were working to stop the fire in northern New Mexico as it burned through a canyon on the Santa Clara Pueblo reservation and threatened other pueblos on the Pajarito Plateau.

The area, a stretch of mesas that run more than 15 miles west of Santa Fe, N.M., includes the town of Los Alamosand the Los Alamos National Laboratory, the nation's premier nuclear weapons laboratory.

The blaze reached the Santa Clara Pueblo's watershed in the canyon this week, damaging the area that the tribe considers its birthplace and scorching 20 square miles of tribal forest. Fire operations chief Jerome MacDonald said it was within miles of the centuries-old Puye Cliff Dwellings, a national historic landmark.

Tribes were worried that cabins, pueblos and watersheds could be destroyed by the 177-square-mile blaze, the largest wildfire in state history.

"We were also praying on our knees, we were asking the Creator in our cultural way to please forgive us, 'What have we done?'" Santa Clara Pueblo Gov. Walter Dasheno said. "Bring moisture so that the Mother Fire can be stopped. But that was not meant to be."

About 2,800 tribe members live in a dusty village nestled in New Mexico's high desert, near the mouth of Santa Clara Canyon where aspen and blue spruce forests provide relief from the dry desert and ponds provide water for irrigation. The canyon is north of the town of Los Alamos.

Pueblo Fire Chief Mel Tafoya said it was unclear whether cabins in the canyon or the ponds survived the blaze. Members of the state's congressional delegation have promised federal help for the tribe pending a damage assessment.

Dasheno said that despite the pain of losing an estimated 75 percent of the tribe's forest to three recent fires, "we are going to come back."

"We're going to tell the story of what occurred to our children and grandchildren. And yes, we're going to cry," he said.

The tribe also worried that 1.5 million trees planted after the 2000 fire have been destroyed, as well as work to restore the Rio Grande cuthroat trout to the upper headwaters of the Santa Clara Creek. The tribe called for emergency federal relief.

To Santa Clara's south, Cochiti Pueblo was also worried about damage to ground cover affecting its watershed.

Archaeological sites at the northern end of the blaze at Bandelier National Monument hold great significance to area tribes. About half of the park has burned, Bandelier superintendent Jason Lott said.

Authorities said the fire, in its seventh day, has been fueled by an exceptionally dry season in the Southwest and erratic winds. It surpassed a 2003 fire that took five months to burn through 94,000 acres in the Gila National Forest.

Crews have managed to keep the fire in Los Alamos Canyon several miles upslope from the federal laboratory, boosting confidence that it no longer posed an immediate threat to the facility or the nearby town. Crews were helped by rain on Saturday afternoon that slowed the fire.

"Hopefully we'll get two to three more days like this and we'll be fine," operations chief Jayson Coil said.

Los Alamos County Fire Chief Doug Tucker sent some firefighters home to rest so they could resume regular duties once residents return home. A boulder struck a firefighter working on a steep slope, breaking his leg, Coil said.

Hundreds of employees were returning to prepare operations and thousands of experiments for the scientists and technicians who were forced to evacuate days ago. Among the work put on hold were two supercomputers and studies on extending the life of 1960s-era nuclear bombs.

A small grass fire caused by a squirrel in an electrical transformer on lab property was quickly extinguished. The fire was at a substation that houses the Los Alamos Neutron Science Center, which is used for nuclear physics experiments including weapons research.

A fire on lab property earlier in the week raised concerns about contamination being released into the air. The Environmental Protection Agency sent a monitoring plane to augment air testing by lab and state health officials. Lab officials said nothing abnormal was in the smoke.

The blaze remained in Los Alamos Canyon, which runs past the old Manhattan Projectsite and a 1940s-era dump site of low-level radioactive waste, as well as the site of a nuclear reactor that was demolished in 2003.

Employees were checking filters in air handling systems to ensure they weren't affected by smoke and restarting computer systems shut down when the lab closed.

"Once we start operation phases for the laboratory, it will take about two days to bring everyone back and have the laboratory fully operational," Lab Director Charles McMillan said.

Authorities didn't say when they would lift an evacuation order that began Monday for the town of Los Alamos, home to 12,000 people.

Firefighters had planned to burn out areas near homes west of the town to remove combustible material and ensure the fire doesn't creep through an area burned in a 2000 blaze, but the rain kept the fire away, Coil said.

By Jae C. Hong, AP
A videographer records the Valles Caldera National Preserve burned by the Las Conchas fire Saturday near Los Alamos, N.M.

Enlarge

By Jae C. Hong, AP

A videographer records the Valles Caldera National Preserve burned by the Las Conchas fire Saturday near Los Alamos, N.M.

Fight against Sacramento fires ongoing

2011-07-02T21:42:00.002-07:00

Albuquerque Express
Sunday 3rd July, 2011
(Source: KASA)

HONDO, N.M. (KRQE) - Fire crews continue to battle two other major fires burning in the Sacramento Mountains in southern New Mexico.

More than 400 people are fighting the Donaldson Fire south of Hondo in Lincoln County where evacuation orders have been lifted.

More than 90,000 acres have burned in that blaze, which is about 10 miles east of Ruidoso.

The Donaldson Fire is 30 percent contained. Rain helped fire crews make major progress on the Little Lewis Fire southeast of Cloudcroft.

That fire burned more than 1,000 acres and is 70 percent contained. All evacuations have been lifted there, too. ...

Read the full story at KASA

Wildfire forces homes to be evacuated

2011-07-02T21:40:00.000-07:00

A helicopter heads toward Newnans Lake to fill the basket with water to fight a brush fire near Rochelle on Saturday. (Matt Stamey/Staff photographer)

By Cindy Swirko
Staff writer

Published: Saturday, July 2, 2011 at 11:12 p.m.

Last Modified: Saturday, July 2, 2011 at 11:12 p.m.

A brush fire that ignited Saturday afternoon near Rochelle forced the evacuation of several homes and burned an estimated 90 acres before it was contained, Alachua County Fire Rescue reported.

The fire was along County Road 325 in the vicinity of County Road 2082 south of Hawthorne Road.

Residents of several homes, primarily on Southeast 107th Boulevard off CR 2082, were told to leave. Many hurriedly packed photos, important papers and pets before leaving and gathering at Tim's Fast Nickel, a store on Hawthorne Road.

“It looked like it was coming close, so we just grabbed whatever we could. They said we had 20 minutes to get out,” said Jimmy Mansolo.

His mother, Vi Mansolo, threw whatever she could into a car while his father, Jimmy Mansolo Sr., drove his small tractor.

“It's very scary. I just grabbed our important papers and clothes and that's it. Everything else is (back at home),” Vi Mansolo said. “We've lived in that house 28 or 30 years. I don't want to lose that house.”

It appears the closest the fire got to a home was about two miles, said Gainesville Fire Rescue District Chief Ed Kennedy.

The fire was primarily on the east side of CR 325 but had jumped across the county road. The easterly winds were blowing it toward 107th Boulevard.

At about 7 p.m. Saturday, Kennedy said the fire was contained and that crews were being released.

The effort was aided by a state Division of Forestry helicopter that dropped water on the blaze and a spotter plane to alert firefighters on the ground of the fire's movement.

The cause of the fire was not known. Traffic was blocked on CR 325 and CR 2082 in the vicinity of the fire, and some anxious homeowners who had been away when the fire broke out were not allowed through.

Wildfires have burned thousands of acres in the region this spring and summer, but the recent rains had brought a lull. A burn ban had been in effect in Alachua County but it was lifted June 28 thanks to the rains.

Ocala.com

Wildland firefighters share bond created by blazes

2011-07-02T17:00:00.000-07:00

With 13 years under his belt, Michael Lisiecki says he worries most about keeping the 'new guys' on his team safe. (photo courtesy of Michael Post)

By ALEXANDRA SELTZER

When Jeff Radakovic is out in the middle of woods fighting brush fires, he talks to his wife on his lunch break. He knows it's her calling because the wildland firefighter's Droid sings a special hip-hop song.

But on the days the 27-year-old doesn't get a lunch break and holds a sandwich in one hand while driving his tractor, or his cellphone doesn't get a signal, he knows his wife is worrying.

Then there's 40-year-old wildland firefighter Michael Post, who stands over 6 feet tall, has arms decorated with tattoos and is as proud of the 18-page coloring book he created for elementary school kids as he is of his 11- and 9-year-old children.

Senior ranger firefighter Michael Lisiecki, 32, is the veteran of the trio. With 13 years under his belt, he says he worries most about keeping the "new guys" safe.

The three Florida Forest Service firefighters have different things on their minds and different things that make them tick, but they are bound together by a few things: the 20-hour shifts fighting brush fire after brush fire over the past month, the adrenaline rush when they get the call, and their passion for a job that recently claimed the lives of two of their own.

Fueled by record high temperatures and miniscule amounts of rain, the fires in some areas were so out of control they merged together.

"I look back and I go, 'how did I do that?' I've been in a position here where I can't even remember bringing the truck back to the station," Lisiecki said. "It's long hours. It's tough. But when I go to work, I have a smile on my face. I just love the job."

For the past five weeks, the three along with the other six men that make up the county's crew in the agency known until Friday as the state Division of Forestry have fought more than 56 fires that have burned almost 11,000 acres in Palm Beach County. Last year, there were five.

But now that the rainy season has kicked in and quelled the flames, the men are getting a much-needed break working regular 8-to-5 shifts.

"Now it's just getting our equipment back up. Regrouping. Debriefing and learning. I'm ready for a break," Lisiecki said. "It's been a lot more extreme than normal."

Radakovic added, "This is the busiest season we had in the past five years."

They agree the Trail 3 fire, near Beeline Highway and Indiantown Road, is the largest they fought, growing to almost 7,000 acres and putting Post and Lisiecki in what they call a "near miss."

The two were next to each other on their tractors when the fire came over them. Their tractors caught fire and they had to face the fact they "couldn't outrun" the blaze. Pumps on the tractor drenched the fire, and soon the smoke and chaos ended.

They had another near miss while fighting the Sikorsky Fire on Beeline Highway just weeks ago. With the flames closing in on hydrogen tanks at the Pratt & Whitney plant, the men were in a dangerous position. The tanks could have exploded.

Unlike Josh Burch, 31, and Brett Fulton of Hamilton County, 52, who died while fighting the Blue Ribbon fire, Lisiecki and Post lived to tell the story of their near misses and learn from it.

They say they've also learned from the tragic accident in Hamilton County, when two firefighters' tractors got caught on tree stumps and they were overcome by the fire.

"The scariest parts are when you do get stuck. Usually there's someone out there to pull you out but if you're out there by yourself that's the scariest time for me," Radakovic said.

For now, the scary moments are over. The rains helped to control all of the fires. But there's no guarantee that will last.

"We can't really talk to Mother Nature that well," Post said. "She don't listen."

Texas Forest Service states wildfires preventable

2011-07-02T16:55:00.000-07:00

Texas Forest Service has released a public service announcement featuring Commissioner of Agriculture, Todd Staples urging citizens to “stand strong for Texas,” and keep our state safe from wildfires.

Approximately 90 percent of wildfires in Texas are caused by people. Seemingly-harmless things like outdoor grilling, dragging safety chains behind a trailer, welding and building campfires can accidentally start a dangerous wildfire.

“If people are causing them – they can be prevented,” said Tom Boggus, director of Texas Forest Service.

With persistent dangerous wildfire conditions predicted throughout the summer and 97 percent of the state experiencing unprecedented drought, Texas Forest Service urges Texans to continue to exercise caution when it comes to any outdoor activity that could cause a spark.

The new public service announcement can be viewed on YouTube, and on the agency’s website. It is also available to media for download athttp://client.amspg.com/TFS/index.php.

Number of Arkansas wildfires sets June record

2011-07-02T16:51:00.000-07:00

TEXARKANA, Ark. (AP) — The state Forestry Commission says the number of wildfires in Arkansas in June set a record.

Commission spokeswoman Christina Fowler tells the Texarkana Gazette that since June 1, crews have suppressed 160 fires in the state that burned 1,163 acres. The previous record for June wildfires was 54 fires that burned 393 acres.

Fowler cites tinder-dry conditions that have led county judges in 14 Arkansas counties to issue burn bans.

A National Weather Service report says the drought-related fires are claiming hay crops as a casualty, with farmers in some areas of Arkansas harvesting about one-third of the normal amount of hay this year.

The report says the lack of hay has led some livestock producers to cull their herds.

___

Los Alamos lab prepares to reopen as fire threat eases

2011-07-02T16:45:00.002-07:00

A fire crew member is seen as fire crews are deployed in order to attack hotspots from the Las Conchas wildfire near Los Alamos, New Mexico June 30, 2011.

Credit: Reuters/Eric Draper

By Zelie Pollon

SANTA FE, N.M | Sat Jul 2, 2011 5:42pm EDT

(Reuters) - The Los Alamos nuclear weapons laboratory has ended a state of emergency and was taking small steps on Saturday toward reopening as the threat from a record New Mexico wildfire subsided.

But highlighting the need for continued vigilance, a squirrel sparked a small blaze on lab property on Saturday when it touched a transformer. That fire, which measured about an acre, was quickly extinguished, the lab said in a statement.

Officials have yet to set any reopening date for Los Alamos, but with the risk to the laboratory and adjacent town mostly passed, lab director Charles McMillan said employees were slowly being prepared for reopening the lab.

"We've assessed the risk to the lab to be lower so we've changed the status based on that assessment," McMillan told a news conference.

The Las Conchas Fire consumed an additional 9,000 acres on Friday, and now stands at 113,734 acres, burning primarily toward the north, and further onto the western flank and into the Valles Caldera National Preserve.

A firefighting force of 1,600 people working to douse the flames has now managed to carve containment lines around 6 percent of the fire's perimeter on its eastern and southern flanks, keeping the blaze from invading the lab complex.

Now ranked as the largest wild-lands blaze ever in New Mexico, the fire surpasses the previous record set in 2003 by the 94,000-acre Dry Lakes Fire in the Gila National Forest.

By comparison, the largest blaze in Arizona, the Wallow Fire, has blackened well over 500,000 acres since it erupted May 29 of this year. It is still burning.

At one point earlier this week, the fire's edge was reported just 2 miles from a collection of about 20,000 metal drums containing plutonium-contaminated clothing and other waste stored on a corner of the 36-square-mile lab property.

Nuclear watchdog groups and some citizens had raised concerns about the fire possibly unleashing residual ground contamination left from decades of experimental explosions and waste disposal in the area.

FOCUS ON OTHER AREAS

The first employees to return to the Los Alamos lab, one of the nation's top nuclear arms production facilities, would be checking on the facilities, including air handling systems to be sure there was no clogging from the smoke, and bringing IT systems back on line, McMillan said.

A lab spokesman, Kevin Roark, said select employees would start returning on Saturday and that process would continue throughout the week.

McMillan said the status change at the lab would allow resources to be moved away from Los Alamos to focus on other areas, particularly in the north of the state where the fire continues to grow.

Officials have set no time for lifting evacuation orders for the town of Los Alamos, whose 10,000 residents fled earlier this week. Thick smoke lingered over the area.

On Thursday, the blaze had encroached on an Indian reservation to the north, the Santa Clara Pueblo, burning at least 6,000 acres of tribal land, including a number of sacred sites.

But the leading western edge of the blaze remained about 6 miles from the nearest populated areas of the pueblo on Friday, fire officials said at the time.

Firefighters on Saturday were conducting burnout operations to protect cultural and historical sites near the reservation, and archeologists were working with fire crews to minimize damage to sensitive areas, fire information officials said.

Thunderstorms and gusty winds expected on Saturday could spark new blazes or pose a hazard to firefighters, while downdrafts could help the fire spread, they added.

About 150 miles to the south, a separate wildfire caused by lightning blazed in and around the Mescalero Apache Reservation. By Friday morning, the Donaldson Complex Fire had burned some 90,000 acres, including several thousand acres on tribal land, but was 30 percent contained on Saturday, authorities said.

(Editing by Cynthia Johnston and Greg McCune)

Las Conchas wildfire closes New Mexico’s Santa Fe National Forest

2011-06-30T16:44:00.000-07:00

Due to extreme wildfire conditions – as evidenced by the 90,000 acre Las Conchas and 10,000 acre Pacheco Fire - New Mexico’s 1.6 million acre Santa Fe National Forest was closed to public access Thursday, June 30, 2011. This follows the implementation on Friday, June 24 of Stage III Fire Restrictions due to severe drought conditions and extreme fire danger. This essentially made all areas of the Santa Fe National Forest off-limits to the public unless an area was specifically listed as open.The 89,000 acre Valles Caldera National Preserve - home to the Baca Ranch – and the Bandelier National Monument were closed to the public on Sunday, June 26th and the Kasha-Katuwe Tent Rocks National Monument was shuttered on June 29th.

In addition to the Santa Fe National Forest closure, the New Mexico Department of Game and Fish properties/recreation sites within the Pecos Complex Wildlife Area will be closed. These recreation sites include: Bert Clancy, Terrero, Jamie Koch, Mora River as well as Monastery Lake – a popular trout fishing destination. New Mexico State Parks will also be closing the 350-acre Hyde Memorial State Park, the 735-acre Fenton Lake State Park in the Jemez Mountains and the 45-acre Sangre de Cristo Mountain-based Morphy Lake State Park.

“It’s a difficult decision to close these parks just before the Fourth of July holiday, but public safety is and always will be our top priority,” said Tommy Mutz, Division Director for New Mexico State Parks. “We will reopen to the public when sufficient precipitation is received to adequately reduce extremely dry conditions and...the risk of wildfire.”

National Forest System Lands located north of NM 96 will remain open under Stage II Fire Restrictions. Open areas north of NM 96 include portions of the Coyote Ranger District and the northern part of the Cuba Ranger District. Forest lands west of Highway 550 will also remain open.

All campgrounds, day use picnic areas, and trails within the Jemez Ranger District, Espanola Ranger District, Pecos/Las Vegas Ranger District, Cuba Ranger District are closed although property owners and their guests will continue to have access to private lands within the Forest. The Forest and Preserve will reopen to the public when sufficient rainfall mitigates the extremely dry conditions and reduces the risk of wildfire to a manageable level.

Las Conchas Fire Update:

The Las Conchas firefighting efforts remain focused on two zones; the north zone and the south zone. In the north long-range spotting continued throughout the day and the northeastern perimeter of the fire grew larger.

To the east, firefighters successfully held the fire line along NM Hwy 4 whilst in the south and west fire lines were also successfully held in place.

An evacuation order has been issued for the City of Los Alamos and The Los Alamos National Laboratory, and a voluntary evacuation order for residents of White Rock remains in force.

Las Conchas Wildfire Road Closures:

NM Hwy 4 is closed at the Jemez Falls Campground and at NM Hwy 501.
NM Hwy 502 westbound into Los Alamos is closed to all motorists. Access is controlled and limited to official traffic until further notification.

You can get updated road closure information via the NMDOT

Las Conchas Fire Summary:

The Las Conchas wildfire broke out on Sunday June 26th, 2011 at approximately 01:00 PM approximately 12 miles southwest of Los Alamos off NM 4 at mile marker 35 and is currently 3% contained. According to the latest InciWeb report, 5 helicopters, 28 engines and 4 dozers and some 752 personnel - including 7 hotshot crews and 14 hand crews - are currently deployed. To-date 13 residences, 2 structures and an estimated 92,735 acres of mixed conifer and ponderosa pine forest have been destroyed. The origin of the fire is under the investigation.

New Mexico Articles: Santa Fe, New Mexico: Pueblo heaven on the Old Spanish Trail | Carlsbad Caverns & Guadalupe Mountains National Parks |

Julian Gothard

US attorney: Criminal consequences can come from starting wildfires

2011-06-30T16:18:00.002-07:00

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — The top federal prosecutor in New Mexico is just as worried about the dry conditions and potential for wildfire as the firefighters who are battling a series of blazes around the state.

U.S. Attorney for New Mexico Kenneth Gonzales says people need to think about their actions, especially when it comes to fireworks and the Fourth of July.

He says criminal consequences can stem from a wildfire, even if it was the result of someone being careless.

He says carelessness can result in destroyed homes, displaced families and enormous firefighting costs.

Gonzales made his comments Thursday as crews continued to battle the Las Conchas fire near Los Alamos. The blaze has charred nearly 145 square miles and is poised to become the largest forest fire in New Mexico's history.

Reporter

Lightning, dry weather spark fires across Boulder County

2011-06-29T21:36:00.000-07:00

By Mitchell Byars and Erica Meltzer,Camera Staff Writers

Posted: 06/29/2011 12:18:43 PM MDT

A single-engine tanker makes a slurry drop on the Coffintop Fire near Lyons on Wednesday. The blaze had burned 20 to 30 acres on Coffintop Mountain in the Hall Ranch area as of Wednesday night. (Mark Leffingwell)

Hot, dry weather and lightning strikes ignited numerous blazes Wednesday, keeping Boulder-area firefighters busy and prompting county officials to issue an open-fire ban.

Crews are still fighting one of the lightning-strike fires, which had burned 20 to 30 acres on Coffintop Mountain in the Hall Ranch area as of Wednesday night.

The Coffintop Fire, first reported at 4:30 p.m., is burning on public lands two to three miles from Colo. 7, according to Barb Halpin, a spokeswoman for Boulder County.

Halpin said helicopters have been called in for air support while hand crews work on containment. Residents of about 15 homes were told Wednesday to be on alert for possible evacuations, but Halpin said no structures were immediately threatened.

Another wildfire in Lyons, the Blue Mountain Fire -- off County Road 37 E and Blue Mountain Road -- burned about five acres before firefighters were able to contain it, according to John Schulz, a spokesman for the Larimer County Sheriff's Office.

Officials say they think both of those fires -- as well as several others in Boulder and Boulder County -- were started by lightning strikes during a dry storm that passed through the area.
Boulder firefighters also quickly extinguished a small fire at Eben G. Fine Park that burned trees and shrubs and sent up plumes of smoke visible across the city. Officials say that blaze may have been started by a discarded cigarette.

Maxwell Fire 95% contained

In Lefthand Canyon, the Maxwell Fire -- which began Sunday evening -- was 95 percent contained Wednesday night, and Lefthand Canyon Drive was reopened at 5 p.m., according to Elsha Kirby, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Forest Service.
However, the Lefthand Off-Highway Vehicle Recreation Area will remain closed through Monday and possibly longer due to heat within the fire perimeter.

Seventy firefighters and two engines remain at the scene of the Maxwell Fire, which was started by an abandoned campfire and burned 60 acres, officials say.

Fire ban enacted in Boulder County

In response to the fires and dry conditions, a ban on open fires and fireworks in unincorporated Boulder County will take effect at noon today.

The forecast for the rest of the week calls for temperatures to remain high, with possible spotty thunderstorms, said meteorologist Matt Kelsch.

Sheriff Joe Pelle said in addition to the heat wave, a shortage of resources because of large fires in the Southwest prompted the fire ban.

"There are not a lot of firefighting resources in the region because of the big fires down south," said Pelle, who added that all of the small fires across the county have stretched local firefighters thin. "We need to do whatever we can not to have fires."

Pelle also urged people to be smart while celebrating the Fourth of July this weekend, especially in open fields.
"It's really a dumb time to light up fireworks," Pelle said.

Anyone caught violating the fire ban faces a possible $500 fine.

According to the Sheriff's Office, the fire ban allows for liquid- or gas-fuel stoves and fires in maintained campgrounds.
Contact Camera Staff Writer Mitchell Byars at 303-473-1329 orbyarsm@dailycamera.com.

Arizona wildfire containment grows and new fires appear

2011-06-29T19:20:00.000-07:00

TUCSON, Ariz. -- Work on the Monument fire is finally wrapping up. It's now burned more than 30,500 acres or 47 square miles since June 12.

But it's 90% contained and crews are improving fire lines, putting out hot spots, and doing mop up work. The smoke columns will probably continue until the monsoon rains put them out.

Also Tuesday, a grass fire in the area caused temporary evacuations.

It erupted Tuesday afternoon between Three Canyons and Hereford roads, then spread toward a neighborhood before firefighters put out the flames.

Meanwhile, Coronado forest fire crew report zero containment on a new fire. The Copper Creek fire near Mammoth.

Most of the nearly 2,000 firefighters battling Arizona's largest-ever wildfire may soon be released.

And the Wallow Fire has burned more than 538,000 acres since it started May 29 near Springerville.

It's now 89% contained. Thirty-two homes and four rental cabins have been destroyed, but the fire isn't threatening any buildings now.

The dry conditions and wildfires throughout our state have led to the Hilton El Conquistador reschedule this year's Fourth of July fireworks display.

No word when it will be held.

The resort will instead hold a laser light show and concert July 3 at 9:00 P.M. on the Pusch Ridge golf course.

Fox 11

Scientists Monitor Air Near Nuclear Lab

2011-06-29T19:17:00.002-07:00

Associated Press

LOS ALAMOS, N.M.—As crews fight to keep a New Mexico wildfire from reaching the nation's main nuclear-weapons laboratory and the surrounding community, scientists are busy sampling the air for chemicals and radiological materials.

Their effort includes dozens of fixed-air monitors on the ground, as well as a "flying laboratory" dispatched by the Environmental Protection Agency. The special twin-engine plane is outfitted with sensors that can collect detailed samples.

Sen. Tom Udall of New Mexico requested the agency's help early on in the monitoring effort near the Los Alamos National Laboratory. EPA officials said the flying lab was set to make its initial data-collection fight Wednesday, and state and federal officials have vowed to make findings from all the monitoring efforts public.

"I know people are concerned about what's in the smoke," Mr. Udall said. He noted that the state, the Los Alamos lab and the EPA were all looking closely at air quality "so we can assure the public" there will be multiple layers of oversight.

The blaze had grown to more than 108 square miles by Wednesday morning, but firefighters managed to hold the line along the nuclear lab's southern boundary.

On its western edge, firefighters began targeted burns to rob fuel from the fire. Lab officials warned that people might see more smoke coming from the lab border, but they said there was no fire burning on the site as of mid-Wednesday.

Residents downwind have expressed concern about the potential of a radioactive smoke plume if the flames reach thousands of barrels of waste stored in above-ground tents at the lab.

Top lab officials and fire managers say there have been no releases of toxins. They say they are confident the flames won't reach key buildings or areas where radioactive waste is stored. As a last resort, foam could be sprayed on the barrels containing items that might have been contaminated through contact with radioactive materials to ensure they aren't damaged by fire, they said.

The site's manager for the National Nuclear Security Administration said he evaluated the precautions and felt comfortable. The agency oversees the lab for the Department of Energy.

"I have 170 people who validate their measures," Kevin Smith said. "They're in steel drums, on a concrete floor."

Despite the assurances, some residents remained concerned for the safety of their families and nearby communities.

"If it gets to this contamination, it's over—not just for Los Alamos, but for Santa Fe and all of us in between," said Mai Ting, a resident who lives in the valley below the desert mesas that are home to the Los Alamos National Laboratory.

The wildfire has already sparked a spot fire at the lab. The fire Monday was quickly contained, and lab officials said no contamination was released.

Lab Director Charles McMillan said the barrels contain transuranic waste—gloves, toolboxes, tools—and other items that may have been contaminated. Lab spokeswoman Heather Clark said Wednesday there are 10,000 drums stored there under fire-retardant tents. Los Alamos County Fire Chief Doug Tucker, whose department is responsible for protecting the lab, said the barrels are stacked about three high inside the tents.

Area G holds drums of cleanup from Cold War-era waste that the lab sends away for storage in weekly shipments, according to lab officials.

Flames were just across the road from the southern edge of the lab, where scientists developed the first atomic bomb during World War II. The facility cut natural gas to some areas as a precaution. The lab will be closed through at least Thursday.

The streets of Los Alamos were empty again Wednesday, with the exception of emergency vehicles and National Guard Humvees. Homeowners who had left were prepared: Propane bottles were placed at the front of driveways and cars were left in the middle of parking lots, away from anything flammable.

The wildfire has destroyed 30 structures south and west of Los Alamos, for many stirring memories of a blaze in May 2000 that destroyed hundreds of homes and buildings in town.

Favorable winds have helped firefighters, who were busy trying to keep the fire from moving off Pajarito Mountain to the west of Los Alamos and into two narrow canyons that descend into the town and the lab.

The lab, which employs about 15,000 people, covers more than 36 square miles and includes about 2,000 buildings at nearly four dozen sites. They include research facilities, as well as waste-disposal sites.

Some facilities, including the administration building, are in Los Alamos, while others are miles from the town. Most of the buildings from the Manhattan Project that developed the first atomic bomb in the 1940s were built on what is now the town and are long gone. The spot fire Monday scorched a section known as Tech Area 49, which was used in the early 1960s for a series of underground tests with high explosives and radioactive materials.

Lab spokesman Kevin Roark said environmental specialists were monitoring air quality, but the main concern was smoke. Lab personnel and the state environment department were monitoring the air for radioactivity and particulates.

Additional ground-based monitors were on their way, some of which would be placed in neighboring Espanola and Santa Fe.

Special Wildfire Reports

Firefighter Burned, Dozens of Homes Damaged in Reno Fire

Nevada declares state of emergency as wildfires continue to spread

Blood type may affect stroke risk, study finds

Blood types A, B and AB tied to more risk of blood clots in the legs and heart attacks

Smoke now, or more later

Fires smoke across northwest Wyoming

Wildfire risk heightens as CalFire expects lightning, wind

East Texas now center of raging wildfires

By CINDY HORSWELL, HOUSTON CHRONICLE

Officials triple number of homes charred in Texas fire

Firefighters contain Camp Bullis-area fire

Fair Oaks Ranch residents allowed to return after 150-acre grass fire prompts evacuations.

By Eva Ruth Moravec and Jazmine Ulloaemoravec@express-news.net

Wildland Firefighter Foundation to receive $9,000 contribution

Amid optimism, 19 new fires spring up in Texas

DC-10 to drop retardant starting Friday

Special plant must be assembled before operations

Texas Wildfires

2 lightning-caused fires burning near Globe Arizona

Favorable winds help effort against Calif. fire

San Diego Sends Firefighters to Texas

SDFD is sending a few crew members to assist in the Texas wildfires

Most destructive wildfires in recent Texas history

Texas Resident on Wildfires: It's Like a War Zone

Texas wildfires, now numbering around 60, are scorching hundreds of homes and leaving much of the Lone Star State looking like a war zone, as some residents described.

Wildfires rage in Texas

Southwest Oklahoma wildfire brought under control

Budget cuts leave California with fewer hands to fight wildfires

Fires ravage rural Caddo Parish

Residents of Arkansas Pump Station Road watch as the fire jumps the road Monday afternoon near Oil City. / Henrietta Wildsmith/ The Times

Written by

Mary Nash-Wood

Shreveport Times

Huge wildfires spread across Texas

Dramatic images of wildfire near Austin, Texas

GRIMES COUNTY TEXAS..Evacuations ordered due to wildfires

Parched Conditions Fuel Southern California Wildfires; 650 Homes Threatened

Fire from plane crash menaces California homes

Parched conditions fuel California wildfires

Fires near Houston force evacuations, strain resources

By ZAIN SHAUK, HOUSTON CHRONICLE

Message From Austin Fire Department..TEXAS On Horse and Animal Evacuations

Video Report From Austin Texas

Deadly Texas wildfires rage unabated, stoked by Tropical Storm Lee

A mother and her 18-month-old child were killed when flames engulfed their east Texas trailer amid a wildfire stoked by the Tropical Storm Lee.

Austin-area wildfire burns a record 476 homes in Texas

Fire in Los Angeles county grows to 500 acres

PEOPLE NEEDED IN BASTROP,TEXAS FOR HELP WITH HORSE TRANSPORT AND OTHER DUTIES

Wildfire Precautions

Perry says Texas wildfire ‘as mean looking’ as he’s ever seen, federal disaster relief sought

By Associated Press, Updated: Monday, September 5, 4:19 PM

Two local men charged with causing Wallow Fire

Los Alamos evacuation order lifted; 12,000 go hom

Los Alamos fire could become the largest in New Mexico history

Long-term decline in annual snow pack

'It's really aggressive'

Glendora Fire Team Join Effort to Fight Arizona Wildfires

Crews Battle 7,500 Acre Wildfire Near NV Town

Los Alamos evacuation order lifted allowing 12,000 to return home

N.M. fire rages unchecked

By Dan Frosch / New York Times News Service

Wildfires close Okefenokee refuge over holiday

Tribes fear loss of sacred sites near N.M. fire

Fight against Sacramento fires ongoing

Wildfire forces homes to be evacuated

Published: Saturday, July 2, 2011 at 11:12 p.m.

Last Modified: Saturday, July 2, 2011 at 11:12 p.m.

Wildland firefighters share bond created by blazes

Texas Forest Service states wildfires preventable

Number of Arkansas wildfires sets June record

Los Alamos lab prepares to reopen as fire threat eases

Las Conchas wildfire closes New Mexico’s Santa Fe National Forest

US attorney: Criminal consequences can come from starting wildfires

Lightning, dry weather spark fires across Boulder County

Arizona wildfire containment grows and new fires appear

Scientists Monitor Air Near Nuclear Lab

Associated Press

By Eva Ruth Moravec and Jazmine Ulloa
emoravec@express-news.net