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North American Wild Fires 2021

Started by Riwaka, April 21, 2021, 05:36:21 PM

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Andries

He didn't say the place name, but said it was North of Hope, so could be.
Keeping fingers crossed for you guys out there Sawguy.
LT40G25
Ford 545D loader
Stihl chainsaws

mike_belben

Praise The Lord


sawguy21

I am surprised there is anything left of northern California to burn! :( It is bad here this morning, can't see across town for the smoke People with respratory problems are having difficulty breathing and Covid masks make it worse. They are no longer mandatory in most places but many still wear them, may be for protection against the particulate which I can taste in the air.
old age and treachery will always overcome youth and enthusiasm

mudfarmer

We have had air quality advisories and have had very hazy air for the past week here in northern NY - This page has an interesting map from NOAA that shows the smoke plumes and locations of fires New York issues air quality advisory as haze from wildfires reaches north country | State News | nny360.com

Stay safe out there, hoping for the best for those more directly impacted :-\

quilbilly

Got a friend who leads a crew out here. Been pretty tough and looking to get tougher. Hiring practices at the FS don't help either. 
a man is strongest on his knees

sawguy21

I loaded the recycling to go to the depot this morning, the bags were covered with fly ash. One was partially welded shut from the heat! We are in for another hot spell later in the week so it won't get better anytime soon. People with allergies and resperatory problems have to be suffering.
old age and treachery will always overcome youth and enthusiasm

BAN

Eastern Washington has shut the woods down starting tomorrow Aug 2 at midnight for fire danger.

Working on third fire of the season.  Never been on a fire in July before this year.

donbj

Quote from: sawguy21 on July 28, 2021, 02:47:32 PM
I loaded the recycling to go to the depot this morning, the bags were covered with fly ash. One was partially welded shut from the heat! We are in for another hot spell later in the week so it won't get better anytime soon. People with allergies and resperatory problems have to be suffering.
Did you get any rain out of this system passing through. I sure hope so. We had steady at times heavy rain all night last night and this morning. Thank the Lord no lightning with it.
It sure is holding the smoke down though. Heaviest yet, it can't go anywhere.
I may be skinny but I'm a Husky guy

Woodmizer LT40HDG24. John Deere 5300 4WD with Loader/Forks. Husky 262xp. Jonsered 2065, Husky 65, Husky 44, Husky 181XP, Husky 2100CD, Husky 185CD

sawguy21

Just enough to knock the dust down although it was sure welcome! It didn't clear the smoke, the valley is socked in solid. Kelowna airport, a major hub, is shut down. A good friend is really suffering with asthma but nothing anyone can do to help her.
old age and treachery will always overcome youth and enthusiasm

quilbilly

Quote from: BAN on August 01, 2021, 09:39:19 PM
Eastern Washington has shut the woods down starting tomorrow Aug 2 at midnight for fire danger.

Working on third fire of the season.  Never been on a fire in July before this year.
We got a tiny baby fire out west here. 10 acres. I'm surprised they are even fighting it. Rain maybe friday. Humid enough here to keep working even though we've got an early shutdown. 
a man is strongest on his knees

donbj

Quote from: sawguy21 on August 02, 2021, 03:30:03 PM
Just enough to knock the dust down although it was sure welcome! It didn't clear the smoke, the valley is socked in solid. Kelowna airport, a major hub, is shut down. A good friend is really suffering with asthma but nothing anyone can do to help her.
The weather is forecast to change for the better by the weekend in this regard. Lets hope. The fires have been so intense and smoke so thick the air support has been grounded a lot of times. This weather break is so welcome. Some evacuation alerts have been removed and fire attack has been improved.
I may be skinny but I'm a Husky guy

Woodmizer LT40HDG24. John Deere 5300 4WD with Loader/Forks. Husky 262xp. Jonsered 2065, Husky 65, Husky 44, Husky 181XP, Husky 2100CD, Husky 185CD

Andries

Smoke Forecast - FireSmoke.ca 

This website is worth a look.
If you're seeing a lot of smoke in your area, this'll show you where it's coming from and whether a wind direction change will clear the air up.
BTW: normally I have to cut grass once a week. This year I've only cut four times since the snow melted. This drought is breaking 150 year weather records.
. :'(
Anyone got a phone number for a good rainmaker? 
LT40G25
Ford 545D loader
Stihl chainsaws

Riwaka

"The art of felling timber" instagram has short clips of trees still burning being chain sawed down ahead of the fire crews putting water etc on hot spots.

You Tuber - 'Action of the Day' on the edge of the Dixie Fire before going into a post-burn Greenville, California August 2021.

Daytime Footage of Dixie Fire Before Entering Greenville - YouTube

sawguy21

We are actually getting some relief from the smoke, it is a pleasant day for a change. The alert for the town south of us has been lifted for the moment but everyone is still on edge.
old age and treachery will always overcome youth and enthusiasm

Riwaka

Caldor Fire California August 2021
News crew being a bit risky in another video.

California Wildfires: Caldor Fire Tuesday morning update - YouTube

RPF2509

So I just finished a 3 week stint on the Antelope fire in Siskiyou county.  We though we had it wrapped several times but each time we had a blowout it was the wind and unmanaged forest service land that caused the most problems.  Portions of the property we manage are alternate sections with the Feds owning the other.  We mange ours for timber production, they mange theirs for late seral reserves - ie no management.  Every time fire got into one of their sections it was like an atomic bomb going off with the resultant spotting causing major losses in our sections.  Rugged unroaded terrain did not help.   I am not opposed to fire and acknowledge we need to do a lot more prescribed burning but letting things burn in August is not the way to go.  As it winds down we lost 10 sections - five of those to the 'backburns' which we tried to tighten up but were overruled.  The frustrating thing was the lack of resources and the Feds control over what little we had.  They listened to our recommendations because we know the ground but went ahead and did what they wanted anyway.  The initial strike team was from Arizona and it took them a week to figure out the ground and where to put lines.   I saw a lot of the basic firefighting norms ignored.  In the end (though it is not completely over) it was the weather cooling off and the winds diminishing that allowed us to gain the upper hand.
In July I took a forestry tour of the Placerville area and the King fire next to where the Caldor fire is now burning.  Though fuel treatment projects were present I was struck by the overall overstocking of the forests, the lack of roadside vegetation maintenance and the unpreparedness of homeowners.  If the fire gets to Pollock Pines, it will all be lost.  Many homes on steep ground with virtually no clearing or fuels management.  The oakland hills fire happened in the 90's when I first came to California and I thought it would be a wakeup call.  For the last five years we've had tens of thousands of homes lost each year but still people seem to think it won't happen to me.  From Placerville we went to Tahoe and at least there was more visible evidence of fuels management since my last visit several years ago.  Still a fire in the basin with the right wind will destroy billions in real estate.  In any case its going to take decades and a major change in attitudes to gain some semblance of control. 

sawguy21

So nothing has changed since we were on the Lassen and Shelter Bay fires with an S-61 in 1988!
old age and treachery will always overcome youth and enthusiasm

Ljohnsaw

A fire started in a light industrial area of east Grass Valley Wednesday late afternoon.  CalFire has several choppers dumping water on it and as of this morning, 70% contained.  Only 59 acres burned.  No structures damaged but several vehicles were burned.  One guy had a log yard that burnt up but was thankful to CalFire that his business was undamaged.  Unknown cause at this point.
John Sawicky

Just North-East of Sacramento...

SkyTrak 9038, Ford 545D FEL, Davis Little Monster backhoe, Case 16+4 Trencher, Home Built 42" capacity/36" cut Bandmill up to 54' long - using it all to build a timber frame cabin.

Sauna freak

Thank the Lord, we have finally gotten some timely rains in NE MN.  A couple of large incidents are still active in the peat and heavy fuels, but largely contained.  One took a couple of big runs in cabin country and destroyed some 50+ primary and 150+ total structures.  Total coverage now holding at 26000 acres and change.  Occasional rains and overall improved conditions are forecast, but organic soils and heavy fuels are still relatively dry, and most of the area experienced a killing freeze Saturday AM, so more drought conditions will elevate hazards quickly. For now hazard will shift to grass/brushlands and lighter fuels.  Hopefully the rains continue to arrive in sufficient interval and quantity to get us into freezeup without any more destructive and costly large fires in the Boreal zone.
Sauna... like spa treatment, but for men

charles mann

Quote from: RPF2509 on August 26, 2021, 12:15:02 PM
So I just finished a 3 week stint on the Antelope fire in Siskiyou county.  We though we had it wrapped several times but each time we had a blowout it was the wind and unmanaged forest service land that caused the most problems.  Portions of the property we manage are alternate sections with the Feds owning the other.  We mange ours for timber production, they mange theirs for late seral reserves - ie no management.  Every time fire got into one of their sections it was like an atomic bomb going off with the resultant spotting causing major losses in our sections.  Rugged unroaded terrain did not help.   I am not opposed to fire and acknowledge we need to do a lot more prescribed burning but letting things burn in August is not the way to go.  As it winds down we lost 10 sections - five of those to the 'backburns' which we tried to tighten up but were overruled.  The frustrating thing was the lack of resources and the Feds control over what little we had.  They listened to our recommendations because we know the ground but went ahead and did what they wanted anyway.  The initial strike team was from Arizona and it took them a week to figure out the ground and where to put lines.   I saw a lot of the basic firefighting norms ignored.  In the end (though it is not completely over) it was the weather cooling off and the winds diminishing that allowed us to gain the upper hand.
In July I took a forestry tour of the Placerville area and the King fire next to where the Caldor fire is now burning.  Though fuel treatment projects were present I was struck by the overall overstocking of the forests, the lack of roadside vegetation maintenance and the unpreparedness of homeowners.  If the fire gets to Pollock Pines, it will all be lost.  Many homes on steep ground with virtually no clearing or fuels management.  The oakland hills fire happened in the 90's when I first came to California and I thought it would be a wakeup call.  For the last five years we've had tens of thousands of homes lost each year but still people seem to think it won't happen to me.  From Placerville we went to Tahoe and at least there was more visible evidence of fuels management since my last visit several years ago.  Still a fire in the basin with the right wind will destroy billions in real estate.  In any case its going to take decades and a major change in attitudes to gain some semblance of control.
We were working the antelope fire, based out of the siskiyou county airport. Now we are on the creek fire, working out of scott valley airport. Not sure if you monitored air to ground comms, but we are 49cu. 
Temple, Tx
Fire Fighting and Heavy Lift Helicopter Mech
Helicopter and Fixed Wing Pilot

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