The fire district board of directors will meet Monday, June 10. The meeting, as are all board meetings, is open to the public. Click on the agenda below.
Thursday, June 6, 2013
With the onset of warmer, dryer weather, Oregon State Fire Marshal Mark Wallace reminds Oregonians to be fire safe during barbecues and cookouts to avoid tragedy during summer activities. From 2008 through 2012, there were 203 grill-related fires in Oregon, resulting in nine injuries and more than $4 million in property loss.
"Cooking outdoors is a nice way to enjoy Oregon's wonderful summers with family and friends, and following a few basic outdoor cooking fire safety tips will help keep it safe," Wallace said.
The Office of State Fire Marshal offers the following safety tips:
The Office of State Fire Marshal offers the following safety tips:
- Use propane and charcoal grills only outdoors. Using them indoors or in any enclosed space such as a garage poses a fire hazard and exposes you and your family to deadly gases.
- Place grills away from the home siding, deck railings, and out from under eaves and overhanging branches.
- Place your grill a safe distance from play areas and foot traffic.
- Keep children and pets away from the grilling area; declare a three-foot safe zone around the grill.
- Periodically remove grease or fat buildup from catch trays to prevent it from being ignited by a hot grill.
- For propane grills, make sure to check the propane cylinder hose for leaks. A light soap and water solution applied to the hose will reveal escaping propane quickly by releasing bubbles.
- Only use proper starter fluid for charcoal grills. Remember to keep it away from heat sources and out of the reach of children and pets.
- Never add starter fluid when coals or kindling are already ignited.
"Also, make sure you dispose of ashes properly," Wallace said. "Even though ashes may feel cool to the touch, treat them as if they are hot. Soak them with water and place them in a nonflammable container. Store the container away from things that can burn."
Those who insist on a forecast of the wildfire season should ask for something easier, like who will win the American League pennant. But this we do know: Some sizable fires have already occurred and more are expected as warm, dry weather begins to take hold. The Oregon Department of Forestry and its partner agencies are completing final preparations for the season, however it shapes up. ODF continues to ensure that the essential elements are in place: helicopters and air tankers, fire engines, hand crews, and three specially trained teams to manage large wildfires.Air attack
Helicopters are the vanguard of the firefighting force. These ships - large, medium, and small - provide close-in support to ground-based fire crews. With precision drops from their water buckets, experienced pilots can steer a flame front away from timber and houses. Eight helicopters will fly under contract to ODF and the fire protective associations in 2013.
Yesterday’s airliners do the heavy lifting in today’s air attack on fires. Two converted DC-7 passenger planes, the seats replaced with large tanks, deliver liquid fire retardant to slow the flames’ advance. The propeller-driven aircraft turn double-digit airspeed into a virtue as they fly low and slow over rugged terrain, cooling hotspots to buy time for ground firefighters to arrive on scene and engage the fire directly.
Seven smaller fixed-wing aircraft play a dual role of reconnaissance and air attack guidance. These single-engine planes take to the air following a thunderstorm to search for lightning-started fires. On a large blaze, they circle the scene to report changes in fire behavior to fire strategists on the ground.
Fire crews
With satellite imaging, computer modeling, and other high-tech tools available to fire managers today, the basic hand crew still plays an essential role in firefighting. In hardhats and yellow fire shirts, these ground firefighters trudge across rugged terrain building fire line the old-fashioned way, with shovels and Pulaskis.
Thirty inmate firefighting crews and nine camp/kitchen crews will come online shortly for dispatch to fires. Through a long-standing arrangement with the Oregon Department of Corrections (DOC), ODF trains and fields 10-person inmate fire crews to perform initial attack on newly reported fires. Drawn from correctional facilities throughout the state, these crews also see action on large, extended-attack fires. While the fire crews are busy on the fire line, specially trained inmate camp crews staff ODF’s mobile kitchens, cranking out six meals a day to feed two shifts of firefighters.
Fire engine crews
ODF district offices completed the annual training and hiring of fire engine crews in March. The mission of these seasonal employees is to put out newly reported fires quickly at small size. They do their job so well that most Oregonians don’t know the engine crews exist. They play a major role in helping ODF meet its policy objective to put out 97 percent of all fires at 10 acres or smaller.
Fire engine crews
ODF district offices completed the annual training and hiring of fire engine crews in March. The mission of these seasonal employees is to put out newly reported fires quickly at small size. They do their job so well that most Oregonians don’t know the engine crews exist. They play a major role in helping ODF meet its policy objective to put out 97 percent of all fires at 10 acres or smaller.
Fire teams
Landowner firefighters
Oregon’s forest landowners have been key partners in Oregon’s collaborative fire protection system for more than a century. While support from all forest landowners is valuable, many of the industrial landowners maintain firefighting forces that include woods workers and heavy equipment ranging from fire engines to bulldozers, on up to helicopters. Forest landowners are intimately familiar with the land, including the location of critical wildlife habitats. The knowledge and expertise of their logging and silvicultural contractors comes into play as well when a fire breaks out.
Forecasting fire
Dry lightning is the wild card in any Oregon fire season. When thunderstorms produce numerous ground strikes but little rainfall, hundreds of new fires can spring up instantaneously. Dry lightning events are hard to forecast. But when meteorologists see strong potential, they notify fire managers, who may order “move-ups” of aircraft, fire engines and crews to areas likely to be affected. These additional resources help local forces attend to the new fires quickly before they can grow into major incidents.
Smoke cameras
Forest lookouts still serve a purpose in some forest locations. But ODF has found that “intelligent” smoke-detection cameras can take the place of human watchers in many areas at reduced cost. These automated video cameras are programmed to scan the forest for signs of smoke. When they find it, a sophisticated computer application interprets the image. If it comes up positive (not clouds or fog), the finding is then displayed as an alarm, prompting a human operator, who makes the final determination.
Tuesday, May 14, 2013
Due to an unseasonably warm and dry spring, fire season may arrive earlier than usual to Wallowa County and the rest of northeast Oregon, according to the U.S. Forest Service.
As a result, the Wallowa-Whitman National Forest is now hiring its seasonal firefighter work force and expects be fully staffed by early June.
.jpg)
“Generally, our firefighters head south in June to help other forests, but this year we expect to see fire activity earlier in the year,” said Brett Ruby, Wallowa-Whitman's fire staff officer.Ruby suggested early firewood cutting "to avoid any fire restrictions that may occur earlier than normal this summer.”
Declining snow packs and low precipitation levels are allowing access to the forest earlier than usual, Ruby said. If weather continues to be warmer and drier than usual, restrictions may be imposed, he said.
As always, visitors should use care when having campfires or using mechanized equipment in the woods to avoid starting a wildfire, officials warned. Roads at this time of year may be free of snow but most have not been maintained so travelers are advised to use caution.
For more information about firewood-cutting restrictions, call 541-426-5552. To report wildland fires, call 9-1-1.
Monday, May 13, 2013
The fire district Board of Directors will meet with its Budget Committee on Monday, May 20, to begin drafting the fiscal 2014-14 district budget. The meeting will be at 6 p.m. at Glacier Grill. The public, as always, is invited to attend. Attendees other than directors and committee members will pay for their own meals if ordered.
Sunday, May 12, 2013
Joseph firefighters, aided by Enterprise and Wallowa fire departments and the Oregon Department of Forestry, extinguished a brush and timber fire on West Russell Lane west of Joseph State Airport Friday, May 10.The blaze was limited to about three acres. Firefighters said the fire had been smoldering unnoticed for several days.
It was the second Wallowa County wildland fire in less than two weeks and a reminder that wildfire season has arrived. The Wallowa Lake basin is a particular fire hazard because of the denseness of the forest.
For information on preventing wildfires, click here.
Thursday, May 2, 2013
Joseph and Wallowa firefighters were dispatched as mutual aid once Lostine and nearby Enterprise fire departments got on-scene at Wade's Point.
Also assisting were the Oregon Department of Forestry and U.S. Forest Service.
The blaze, the first Wallowa County wildland fire of the 2013 season, was limited to about four-and-a-half acres but only after it had jumped the highway. Nearby structures were saved from damage.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
