Wildfires - News

Fire chiefs from Canada, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and the United States participated in the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) Urban Fire Forum (UFF) last week at NFPA headquarters in Quincy, Mass. NFPA President and CEO Jim Pauley welcomed the chiefs and provided an overview of the association’s mission, reinforcing the critical role urban fire service leaders play in reaching the Association’s goals and initiatives. Guest List Special guests included Chair of...

Abbot Fire Group is delighted to once again be offering free fire extinguisher hire to the local community, charity, or non-profit bonfire or firework events. Thereby helping to keep the community safe on bonfire night. Event details Abbot will discuss the event with users, taking into account the expected number of attendees, and ensure the fire safety requirements are covered by a suitable number of fire extinguishers on the night. Up to a maximum of eight per event. This offer is only...

The IAFF welcomes the Canadian election result and is prepared to work with the Liberal minority government and MPs from all parties to continue advancing firefighter and public safety issues. “We congratulate all MPs elected to the House of Commons on September 20 and look forward to collaboration from all parties on the issues that matter most to Canadians, and the issues that we bring forward on behalf of Canada’s professional firefighters,” says IAFF Assistant to the Gener...

Federal disaster assistance is now available for wildfire survivors with uninsured and underinsured damage to their primary residence in Tehama and Trinity counties. Funds assistance Assistance may include funds for temporary housing while one is unable to live in the home, such as rental assistance or reimbursement for hotel costs; funds to support the repair or replacement of owner-occupied homes that serve as the household’s primary residence. Including privately-owned access routes,...

Pierce Manufacturing Inc., an Oshkosh Corporation company, announced that it has completed the purchase of an ownership interest in Boise Mobile Equipment (BME). This investment will facilitate greater collaboration between Pierce and BME within the wildland market. Furthermore, Pierce will support BME as the business moves from a factory-direct model to an independent dealer distribution model, with a focus on the West Coast, which will provide new and existing BME customers with comprehensive...

Pegwell Bay Country Park is Kent Wildlife Trust’s largest nature reserve and is of international importance for its bird populations, including nightingales and cuckoos.  However, a number of these animals and their habitats were destroyed when a campfire became out of control at the site, which sits between Sandwich and Ramsgate, and spread across a large area of grasslands and undergrowth.  Kent Wildlife Trust Kent Wildlife Trust has thrown its support behind KFRS campaign t...

Wildland fires are an increasing threat in the United Kingdom. They’re high risk, difficult to manage, and create a set of very particular circumstances for firefighters, who are battling the blaze. And with wildland call-outs measured in days, rather than hours, fire services need a kit that’s as tough as the terrain that they’re working on. Defender wildland firefighting suit FlamePro, a British manufacturing specialist of life-saving garments for firefighters, has unveiled...

South Yorkshire’s fire service has won a national award for its response to a major wildfire, which crews spent 22 days tackling last year. The fire affected a huge area of rare peat moorland, which is a site of special scientific interest and home to several rare species of animals and plants. South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue won the Incident Management Award at CIR Magazine’s Business Continuity Awards 2021 for its work in coordinating the response to the incident, which inv...

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has authorized the use of federal funds to assist the state of California in combating the French Fire burning in Kern County. On Aug. 24, the state of California submitted a request for a Fire Management Assistance Grant (FMAG) for the French Fire. At the time of the request, the fire threatened approximately 4,000 homes in and around Wofford Heights and Kernville. Fire threat The fire also threatened dozens of businesses, schools, a fire s...

For the second year, DripDrop Hydration (DripDrop ORS), a renowned rehydration therapy company, and the National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC), the global association representing the volunteer fire, EMS (Emergency Medical Services), and rescue services, have teamed up to provide dehydration relief to volunteer firefighters. Oral rehydration solution (ORS) DripDrop is providing 200,000 sticks of their oral rehydration solution (ORS) to volunteer fire departments across the U.S. The donation co...

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) authorized the use of federal funds to help with firefighting costs for the Schneider Springs Fire burning in Yakima County, Washington. The state of Washington’s request for a federal Fire Management Assistance Grant (FMAG) was approved by FEMA Region 10 Acting Administrator Vincent Maykovich on Thursday, Aug. 19, 2021, at 6:25 p.m. PT. He determined that the Schneider Springs Fire threatened to cause such destruction as would constitute a...

Starting on July 13th, the Dixie Fire has already become the 2nd largest fire in California history and the largest active fire in the United States, covering more than 670,000 acres across Butte, Lassen, Plumas, and Tehama counties and displacing thousands of people. With nearly 6,000 fire personnel deployed – spanning federal, state, and local public safety agencies, including California Governor’s Office of Emergency Management, California Conservation Corps, El Dorado Hills Fire...

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has authorized the use of federal funds to assist the state of California in combating the Monument Fire burning in Trinity County. On August 17, 2021, the State of California submitted a request for a Fire Management Assistance Grant declaration for the Monument Fire burning in Trinity County.  At the time of the request, the fire was threatening 5,053 residential structures in and around Junction City, Weaverville, Hayfork, and Douglas City,...

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has authorized the use of federal funds to assist the state of California in combating the Caldor Fire burning in El Dorado County. On August 17, 2021, the State of California submitted a request for a Fire Management Assistance Grant declaration for the Caldor Fire burning in El Dorado County.  Fire threat At the time of approval, the Caldor Fire was threatening approximately 7,500 homes in and around Pollock Pines, Grizzly Flats, Camino, a...

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) authorized the use of the federal funds to help with firefighting costs for the Twenty-Five Mile Fire burning in Chelan County, Washington. The state of Washington’s request for a federal Fire Management Assistance Grant (FMAG) was approved by FEMA Region 10 Acting Administrator Vince Maykovich on Monday, August 17, 2021, at 10:39 p.m. PT. He determined that the Twenty-Five Mile Fire threatened to cause such destruction as would constitute...

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) authorized the use of federal funds to help with firefighting costs for the Ford Corkscrew Fire burning in Stevens County, Washington. The state of Washington’s request for a federal Fire Management Assistance Grant (FMAG) was approved by FEMA Region 10 Acting Regional Administrator Vincent Maykovich on Monday, Aug. 16, 2021, at 8:41 p.m. PT. He determined that the Ford Corkscrew Fire threatened to cause such destruction as would constitute...

  Fleet service company BwFuhrparkService GmbH is procuring 76 forest fire trucks (FlKfz WBBk) from Rosenbauer on behalf of the German Armed Forces. Rosenbauer Germany was awarded the contract because it had the most cost-effective bid in the tender. Design and features The vehicles are part of the MT series. They are custom-designed according to the precise deployment needs of the fire crews and feature state-of-the-art equipment. They not only have sturdy structures and high-qualit...

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) authorized the use of federal funds to help with firefighting costs for the Muckamuck Fire burning in Okanogan County, Washington. The state of Washington’s request for a federal Fire Management Assistance Grant (FMAG) was approved by FEMA Region 10 Acting Regional Administrator Vincent Maykovich on Monday, Aug. 16, 2021, at 12:41 a.m. PT. He determined that the Muckamuck Fire threatened to cause such destruction as would constitute a major...

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) authorized the use of federal funds to help with firefighting costs for the Bedrock Fire burning in Nez Perce County, Idaho, and on the Nez Perce Reservation. The state of Idaho’s request for a federal Fire Management Assistance Grant (FMAG) was approved by FEMA Region 10 Acting Regional Administrator Vincent Maykovich on Friday, August 13, 2021, at 12:32 a.m. PT. He determined that the Bedrock Fire threatened to cause such destruction as wou...

FEMA authorized the use of federal funds to help with firefighting costs for the Parley’s Canyon Fire burning in Salt Lake and Summit counties, near Summit Park, Utah. FEMA Acting Regional Administrator Tammy Littrell approved the state’s request for a federal Fire Management Assistance Grant (FMAG) after receiving the request late this afternoon and determining that the fire threatened such destruction that it would constitute a major disaster. Fire threat At the time of the requ...

Firefighters in Wisbech are urging residents and visitors to think before they park, to help tackle the ongoing problem of inconsiderate parking in and around the town.  Drivers are urged to take care when parking their vehicles so they do not prevent fire engines from attending potentially life-threatening emergencies. Causes of delayed response  There are some areas around Wisbech that are notorious for motorists parking down both sides of a narrow street and there have been times...

The issue of protecting heritage structures and other buildings containing priceless artefacts or documents from fire risk came into stark focus in mid-April. A blaze originating at Table Mountain eventually swept onto the upper campus of the University of Cape Town (UCT). It caused extensive damage to the African Studies Library reading room, known previously as the JW Jagger Library. Built-in the 1930s, it is home to many international research collections, with an estimated 85 000 items in t...

Globally renowned fire and life-safety systems manufacturer, C-TEC, is exhibiting at The Fire Safety Event 2021. Hosted at Birmingham’s NEC, from September 7 - 9, 2021, the eagerly-awaited event will feature free CPD-accredited educational seminars, 120+ exhibitors and the fire industry’s latest products, technology and solutions. C-TEC’s fire alarm systems C-TEC will be showcasing CAST, its revolutionary new own-protocol fire alarm and detection system, ENVISION, its futuri...

In its latest resolution action, the Metropolitan Fire Chiefs Association (Metro Chiefs) unanimously approved support of Outthink Wildfire™, an initiative of the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) aimed at eliminating the destruction of communities by wildfire in 30 years. The resolution emphasizes the fact that the U.S. has witnessed a steady increase in frequency and intensity of wildfires, a trend that experts predict will continue. The number of homes lost in wildfires...

FEMA authorized the use of federal funds to help with firefighting costs for the Richard Spring Fire burning in Rosebud County, Mont. FEMA Acting Regional Administrator Tammy Littrell approved the state’s request for a federal Fire Management Assistance Grant (FMAG) after receiving the request this afternoon and determining that the fire threatened such destruction that it would constitute a major disaster. Fire threat At the time of the request, the Richard Spring Fire was threa...

Fire Brigades Union general secretary Matt Wrack has responded to the UN’s latest major report on climate change, which was published recently. He said that “Firefighters here and across the world are on the front line of the climate crisis. We see the effects of climate change every time we fight wildfires and save people from floods, and we will fight as hard as we can for politicians to wake up and take notice. As a humanitarian service, we cannot stand by and watch this happen.&...

Hundreds of IAFF members continue to fight a Northern California wildfire, the second-largest wildfire in state history. Known as the Dixie fire, it has burned more than 482,000 acres and more than 800 structures. Only the August Complex Fire of August 2020, which consumed more than 1 million acres, was bigger. Four CAL FIRE Local 2881 members, who are part of the department’s 18-person Butte unit, were injured when a large tree burned and fell on them. All four were transported to the ho...

FEMA has approved $34,488,250 for the State of Oregon to defray the costs of debris removal throughout Douglas, Jackson, Lane, Lincoln and Marion counties from 2020’s devastating wildfires under FEMA’s Public Assistance Program (PA). FEMA funds will reimburse the Oregon Department of Transportation for the collection, removal and disposal of debris from destroyed structures throughout Douglas, Jackson, Lane, Lincoln and Marion counties following the September 2020 wildfires. Do...

Wildland firefighters are exposed to many of the same naturally occurring respiratory hazards as structural firefighters. They are also exposed to many of the same man-made respiratory hazards, especially when fighting fires in or near the wildland-urban interface. However, unlike structural firefighters, wildland firefighters are unable to use the current standard respirator systems. They are heavy and bulky, taking up valuable carrying capacity needed for the tools and supplies required for w...

With more people planning to spend time outdoors over the coming weeks, Royal Berkshire Fire and Rescue Service (RBFRS) is urging residents to take some simple steps, in order to reduce the risk of a wildfire breaking out. Wildfire awareness campaign A week-long wildfire awareness campaign (running 26 July – 1 August) is taking place, following a period of warm and dry weather, and with more people expected to be outside, enjoying the countryside, due to COVID-19 restrictions easing and...