10 Straight Days of Lightning Activity Sparks Nearly 90 Fires Across Northern California

News Release US Forest Service Shasta-Trinity National Forest

REDDING, Calif. (June 1, 2009) – In the past week, thunderstorm activity produced over 5,000 lightning strikes in Northern California resulting in nearly 90 fires in the northern region. "On Sunday alone, roughly 1200 lightning strikes occurred in the area," according to Basil Newmerzhycky, a Forest Service meteorologist in Redding. Fire crews quickly responded to the lightning-caused blazes, holding the total acres burned for all the fires to less than 45 acres.

Since last Thursday, lightning activity ignited 17 fires on the Shasta-Trinity National Forest. The majority of these fires were successfully kept to less than half an acre in size. “Engine, hand, smokejumper and helirappell crews responded to the fires. Lookouts and aerial reconnaissance aircraft have been deployed to search for fires. Identifying fires as early as possible provides the best opportunity to safely suppress the fires. Our intent is to hit the fires hard and keep them small without injury to firefighters or others,” stated Shasta-Trinity Fire Chief Arlen Cravens. "As of late Monday, 13 of the fires on the Forest have been extinguished or are controlled and in patrol status - the remaining four fires are actively being suppressed by our firefighters," Cravens continued.

Forest Service analysts noted today that while the number of lightning strikes recorded this past week is very high, the fuel conditions are different than they were for last June's Lightning Event. This lightning is coming with much more precipitation and the fuels are not quite ready to burn actively. On June 20, 2008 in Northern California, a 33 hour-long lightning event produced over 5,100 lightning strikes resulting over 1,000 fires in the area.

Forest Service meteorologists expect a 30-50% chance of showers and wet thunderstorms through much of the remaining week. As firefighters assess their successes over the past week, the anticipated wet conditions in the coming days may provide a welcome break to this early introduction of the 2009 Northern California fire season.

Fire updates will be provided as new information becomes available.

General fire information can be found at: http://www.fs.fed.us/r5/shastatrinity

Prescribed Burns: Vina Plains Area, Nature Conservancy and Dye Creek Preserve

Training control burns to be held

VINA - In an effort to prepare for fire season and to control medusa head and yellow star thistle, invasive weeds that plague ranchers and conservationists alike, CalFire will team up with The Nature Conservancy and Dye Creek Preserve to do training control bums in the next two weeks, weather permitting.

CalFire will instruct 25 employees how to use fire to fight fire by utilizing various firing techniques and control methodology. The students will apply the learned techniques during live fire training.
The Nature Conservancy will benefit from the bum by reducing the medusa head grass and star thistle and allowing non-invasive grasses to return for better cattle grazing.

June 3 and June 4 - The plan is to bum approximately 350 acres of grass in the Vina Plains Area at Rowles and Highway 99E.

June 10 - The plan is to bum approximately another 350 acres of grass in the Vina Plains Area at Rowles and Highway 99E.

June 11 - The plan is to bum approximately 300 acres on Nature Conservancy and Dye Creek Preserve. All the projected bums are based on weather permitting.

CalFire is conducting the bums with the cooperating land managers under the Vegetation Management Program, a state-sponsored cost sharing program to encourage prescribed fires on private property.

More Information: Adam Wyman, VMP Coordinator for CAL FIRE Tehama Glenn Unit, 528-5199.

U.S. Forest Service: Burnout and walk away

Forest Service stonewalling is shameful

During last summer's wildfire season, the worst in recent memory, crews struggling to contain blazes resorted to extraordinary steps, including the widespread use of backburns to keep flames in check.

We're not second-guessing firefighters who took what looked like the best available steps in the middle of a dire emergency.

Once the fires are out, though, it's not too much to ask for the government to help clean up the messes it made, and especially to compensate private property owners who suffered severe losses when their land was abused to protect the general public.

It's not too much to ask - unless you're asking the U.S. Forest Service, which has denied claims for compensation related to burnouts including that of William Heinrici, a Junction City-area resident who's had to haul water to his home since a burnout destroyed his water lines.

Heinrici seeks just $6,000 to replumb the pipes, and given the modest sum involved and the severity of the harm - lost water service isn't just an inconvenience but a threat to the family's health and safety - a sensible and humane government agency would have cut a check to Heinrici immediately.

Instead, nearly a year after the fire and a full six months after Rep. Wally Herger's office intervened with the Forest Service, the Heinrici family is still trucking water in drums.

In Herger's correspondence with the Forest Service, the agency said it was waiting until all fire-related claims were received or the two-year statute of limitations passed before processing any of them. This might make sense in the Magical Kingdom of Bureaucratia, but it is simply insane when we're discussing human lives. Two years to process the claim? The central-office functionaries who made that call should spend two weeks living without running water and then see how important prompt action is.

It's easy to imagine disputes over whether damage was caused by the wildfire or by the fire crews themselves - but there is no question in this case. Even the district ranger agrees Forest Service crews started the backburn and has verified the damage, according to Herger. Yet the Forest Service is still stonewalling Heinrici. It's shameful.

When fire crews rush to contain a blaze in regions with complex mixes of public and private land, they'll inevitably bulldoze or burn through someone's property. That risk, like the risk of fire itself, is a consequence of living in the woods.

But when families' property is commandeered for an emergency firebreak, they've done more than their share to protect the public - and the public owes them in return.

Our view: It might be reasonable to set backburns in an emergency. It's appalling to ruin private property and then let its owners suffer.

Source: Redding.com - Link

Earthquake 3.0 M - Central California, Keeler, Cartago, CA

Earthquake Details

Magnitude	3.0
Date-Time	Tuesday, June 02, 2009 at 13:50:00 UTC Tuesday, June 02, 2009 at 06:50:00 AM at epicenter Time of Earthquake in other Time Zones
Location	36.398°N, 117.836°W
Depth	0.1 km (~0.1 mile) (poorly constrained)
Region	CENTRAL CALIFORNIA
Distances	11 km (7 miles) SSE (162°) from Keeler, CA 19 km (12 miles) ENE (63°) from Cartago, CA 21 km (13 miles) NE (44°) from Olancha, CA 30 km (18 miles) SE (135°) from Lone Pine, CA 235 km (146 miles) W (276°) from Las Vegas, NV
Location Uncertainty	horizontal +/- 0.5 km (0.3 miles); depth +/- 1.7 km (1.1 miles)
Parameters	Nph=034, Dmin=17 km, Rmss=0.26 sec, Gp= 50°, M-type=local magnitude (ML), Version=1
Source	California Integrated Seismic Net: USGS Caltech CGS UCB UCSD UNR
Event ID	ci14467064

CAL FIRE: TCU - Training burn southwest of Hogan Lake on Palomino Ridge

Fields Training Burn June 2nd

SAN ANDREAS - The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE) will be conducting a training burn southwest of Hogan Lake on Palomino Ridge.

When: This burn is scheduled to start at 1 pm., Tuesday, June 2nd and end Thursday afternoon June 4th, 2009.
What: Approximately 100 acres of grass and brush will be burned during the exercise. The fire will generate light smoke which will be transported to the east into the Bear Mountain Area.
Who: To conduct the training burn, CAL FIRE will utilize 5 engines, 2 Fire Crews, and two watertenders.....

Why: This training will instruct fire line supervisors in the procedures used to plan and conduct complex firing operations during wildland fire suppression actions. Firing is utilized ahead of an oncoming wildfire to starve it of additional vegetative fuels, thus aiding in suppression efforts. After the burning operation is complete, firefighters will remain on scene for patrol and mop-up until the fire is completely out. As long as the temperatures, humidity and winds are favorable, the burn will proceed as scheduled.

Tuolumne-Calaveras Unit Chief Mike Noonan says, “This fire training exercise provides area fire commanders with necessary skills to aid in the suppression of unwanted wildland fires. Cal Fire provides several hundred hours of similar training each year to assure the citizens receive an efficient and professional service.”

Source: Pinetree.net - Link

California Lightning series 2009 - 5000+ Strikes

California 2009 Lightning series - 5000+ Strikes - 100+ Wildland Fires - 11 straight days of thunderstorms in California and Oregon and the thunderstorms storms will continue. Welcome to the 2009 Northern California fire season.

Thankfully most of theses storms have brought some associated precipitation and along with moderate fuel moisture levels are keeping the fires in check and aiding in the fire suppression.

2008 Lightning fires: Forest Service analysts noted today that while the number of lightning strikes recorded this past week is very high, the fuel conditions are different than they were for last June's Lightning Event. This lightning is coming with much more precipitation and the fuels are not quite ready to burn actively. On June 20, 2008 in Northern California, a 33 hour-long lightning event produced over 5,100 lightning strikes resulting over 1,000 fires in the area.

California - 5,000 lightning strikes in Northern California resulting in nearly 90 fires in the northern region. "On Sunday alone, roughly 1200 lightning strikes occurred in the area," according to Basil Newmerzhycky, a Forest Service meteorologist in Redding.

GACC News and Notes -0715 6-02-09 - Thunderstorm activity has been present in much of NOPS for more than a week. Over 5,000 lightning strikes have been recored. Yesterday's lightning resulted in less than 20 fires in the GACC, all were contained at 5 acres or less in size. Look for more thunderstorms the rest of this week.

GACC News and Notes -0700 6-01-09 - Lightning struck the NOPS area again yesterday and throughout the night. About 15 fires were reported as a result of yesterday's lightning. From May 25 through May 31 144 fires were reported in the NOPS area. 86 of these were caused by lightning and burned less than 40 acres.

While the number of lightning strikes recorded is very high for this past week, we must remember fuel conditions are different than they were for last June's Lightning Event. This lightning is coming with much more precipitation and fuels at higher elevations and on northern aspects are not quite ready to burn real actively.

This doesn't mean we won't see active fire behavior, it merely means we must maintain our situational awareness at all times and be heads up!

Yosemite National Park - At least 4 new Fires note: Other Fires may be found.- Measurable rain accompanied most T-cells, Thunderstorms predicted to continue through Friday morning.

Shasta-Trinity National Forest - 17 fires with 50+ acres burned on the Forest. Current Fire danger conditions are moderate.
The majority of these fires were successfully kept to less than half an acre in size. "Engine, hand, smokejumper and helirappell crews responded to the fires. Lookouts and aerial reconnaissance aircraft have been deployed to search for fires. Identifying fires as early as possible provides the best opportunity to safely suppress the fires. Our intent is to hit the fires hard and keep them small without injury to firefighters or others," stated Shasta-Trinity Fire Chief Arlen Cravens. "As of late Monday, 13 of the fires on the Forest have been extinguished or are controlled and in patrol status - the remaining four fires are actively being suppressed by our firefighters," Cravens continued.

Oregon - 20 fires have been reported since Friday.
Five fires found on ODF-protected lands in Jackson County as a result of Saturday's thunderstorms. All known fires are staffed and stabilized.
The largest fire in Oregon, the Green Grass fire, burned 1,000 acres south of the John Day River before it was contained. Aircraft will fly over Josephine County today to search for fires from Monday's thunderstorms. One smoke reported on ODF-protected lands.

Lightning Fire updates will be provided as new information becomes available.

Hesperia: Structure Fire - 3 dead, 1 critical

Deadly House Fire In Hesperia Kills Father, 2 Kids

HESPERIA, Calif. (AP) ― A house fire in Hesperia claimed three lives Monday and left a young girl hospitalized.

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A father and his two sons were killed in an early morning house fire that also critically injured the boys' 10-year-old sister.

Authorities in the Southern California desert town of Hesperia said a neighbor called for help after hearing the mother screaming early Monday.

Fire department spokeswoman Tracey Martinez said the mother suffered cuts on her arms when she broke windows in an effort to rescue the others. She got her daughter out but the girl was hospitalized in critical condition for treatment of burns and smoke inhalation.

The 33-year-old father and 9-year-old son were dead at the scene and a 4-year-old boy was pronounced dead at a hospital.

Martinez said the fire began on a back porch and the cause was under investigation.
Source: CBS2.com - Link

ATV Crash: Border Patrol Agent Hurt

U.S. Border Patrol agent injured In ATV Crash

TECATE, Calif. -- CAL FIRE responded to reports of a U.S. Border Patrol agent injured Monday in an all-terrain vehicle accident near the U.S.-Mexico line.

An air ambulance was sent to pick up the federal officer in an area near Tecate Port of Entry shortly before 10:30 a.m., Cal Fire Capt. Nick Schuler said.

The agent's condition and name were not released.

California Fire News: Undergoing site and feed Maint.

Update: 1400 hrs - This is a Google problem whereas they inserted broken code into the RSS feed. Hopefully this will be repaired soon.

First of all, I apologize to those of you who subscribe to my RSS feed and use email-based news aggregators.
If you checked your news page in the last 12 hours, you may of encountered very slow loading of content. We are working on the problem.

Thanks to all subscribers who reported this problem.

The feed in question:
Feedburner - http://feeds2.feedburner.com/CaliforniaFireNews
http://feeds.feedburner.com/CaliforniaFireNews
Blogger - http://calfire.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default?max-results=8
XML - http://feeds2.feedburner.com/CaliforniaFireNews?format=xml

Comments: Technical suggestions always appreciated.

June: Home Safety Month - National Safety Month

National Safety Month (June 2009): Every year the National Safety Council, a National Citizen Corps Affiliate, promotes National Safety Month, an initiative that focuses on heightening awareness of important safety issues. The National Safety Council asks employers to help prevent work place injuries and individuals to protect their loved ones from injury. Visit the National Safety Month website to learn about opportunities for Citizen Corps Councils to become National Safety Month Sponsors or to become Safety Ambassadors. Additionally, the site offers resources, in both Spanish and English, to support each of their June 2009 weekly themes. Visit http://www.nsc.org/nsm to learn more.

Home Safety Month (June 2009): Each year during June, the Home Safety Council, a National Citizen Corps Affiliate, works to educate and motivate families to take actions that will increase the safety of their homes. This year’s Home Safety Month campaign theme – Hands on Home Safety – asks the public to take some simple steps to create a safer home environment from the five leading causes of home injury – falls, poisonings, fires and burns, choking/suffocation and drowning. Visit the following website to obtain information and resources that Citizen Corps Councils and partners can share with community members to encourage them to take a hands-on approach to making their homes safer: http://www.homesafetycouncil.org/homesafetymonth/homesafetymonth.aspx.