The Southern states have as colorful and dynamic history of wildfire control as any region of the United States. Three primary influences give fire suppression in this part of the nation its particular character:

• the naturally rapid fire return interval in most of its ecosystems
• its continuous history of active burning by private landowners
• rapid urbanization amid fast-growing flammable vegetation

Although the science of fire control has advanced considerably over the years, the success of suppression efforts often depends as much on fortuitous breaks from the weather, as BROKEN-LINK BROKEN-LINK on firefighter knowledge and skills. The mechanics of firefighting are fairly straightforward, involving activities that essentially break a leg on the fire triangle. Numerous options exist, including depriving the fire of oxygen using soil or water, or cooling heat and flames with water and retardant chemicals.

Every fire presents unique challenges and learning opportunities for fire practitioners. The organization of fire control operations depends on the present and future fire danger, fuel types, values at risk, and land management objectives. These same considerations along with the fire?s behavior will dictate fire tactics and strategies. Managing fire control operations requires careful preparations, planning, and training before a fire breaks out. The proper equipment is an essential part of wildland firefighting.

Fire management plans are written to distinguish areas where fires will be fought most aggressively; plans also distinguish lower priority areas where responses might be less critical. Sensitive zones(such as cultural resource sites or wildernesses) also are identified. Minimal impact suppression guidelines reduce human impacts on the post-fire landscape. These guidelines advocate less reliance on mechanized equipment, tree cutting or other caustic activities that might endanger sensitive species or damage historic sites and artifacts. For example, felling of large trees or snags might be discouraged in red cockaded woodpecker habitat. Increasingly, firefighters are instructed to pay attention to archaeological or cultural resources that might be damaged by suppression activities. Also, firefighter safety considerations may sometimes dictate the need for less aggressive suppression strategies. For example, instead of confronting a raging inferno in a deeply dissected canyon, firefighters will back off BROKEN-LINK BROKEN-LINK and take a stand on a safer ridgeline. Managers may sometimes exercise a more nuanced approach to controlling a fire (Omi, In Press).

Early in the 20^th century, the primary tools of firefighting included shovels, axes, and manual saws. By the mid-20^th century, chainsaws, motorized vehicles (including tractors, bulldozers), and compressed-air water pumps improved firefighter capabilities. And today ground control techniques are augmented by aerial control using air tankers, helicopters, and sophisticated fire engines. Firefighters use soil and water as smothering and dousing agents, and often rely on chemical retardants for assistance.

Although the fire suppression arsenal has expanded considerably since the late 19^th century and early 20^th century, the basic tools of the trade haven?t changed much, as firefighters still rely on shovels, axes, and saws to build firelines and put the fire out. Regardless of the organizational complexity of the incident, firefighters on the ground are needed to carry out and complete suppression of any fire. Even as technologies for detecting, mapping, and monitoring fires become increasingly sophisticated, for example involving satellite or remote links to computers in fire camps, the brunt of the firefighting effort still relies on people with hand tools on the ground monitoring and controlling the fire.

Wildland firefighters are required to carry a certain set of tools.  In addition, each firefighter has some ability to select the particular equipment that he or she prefers to carry.  Firefighters have themselves invented a number of innovative tools when they needed a special piece of equipment to do their jobs.  Some of these tools have been adopted into the cache system.

This section of the encyclopedia highlights several types of wildland firefighting equipment and safety tips for using hand tools. 

• BROKEN-LINK BROKEN-LINK A Firefighters Gear is the core equipment that firefighters wear plus additional items that they need to perform their duties.
• Hand Tools are mainly used to construct fireline.
• Navigation Equipment are technologies that guide firefighters to a fire and through the surrounding landscape.
• Chopping Tool Safety Guidelines
• Grubbing Tool Safety Guidelines

Wildland firefighters use a basic set of equipment.

Personal protection equipment (PPE) puts a safety barrier between the firefighters body and flames or related hazards, reducing the possibility of injury. The barrier is created by bulk, chemicals, color, or design.  PPE has saved firefighters from injury, discomfort, and even death.

• Fire Resistant Clothing protects firefighters skin from radiant heat and prevent embers from igniting their clothing.
• Fire Shelters are fire resistant tents that each firefighter is required to carry.
• Line Packs are used to carry fire shelters, water, and other gear.

There are some firefighting duties that require very specific tools that are needed in additional to the standard gear.  A Lookout, for example, needs to carry a radio, compass, map, binoculars, and a fire weather kit.  A Crew Leader needs a radio, compass, map, and a GPS.  Some of the additional personal equipment used in wildland firefighting operations are:

• Fire Weather Instrument Kit
• Chain Saw Protection Equipment 
• Hearing Protection
• Binoculars
• Head Lamp

Fire Resistant Shirts and Pants

Nomex Shirt

Nomex Pants

The main items in the personal protection equipment (PPE) that firefighters are required during duty are a loose-fitting long-sleeved shirt and loose-fitting, cuffless pants. Both shirt and trousers must be made of fire resistant fabric. Fire resistant clothing protect firefighters skin from radiant heat and prevent embers from igniting their clothing. The shirts are a bright yellow color to improve the ability of air personnel and other ground staff to locate firefighters when they are working in heavily vegetated places.

It is recommended that firefighters wear a short-sleeved t-shirt, underwear, and socks under fire clothing and boots. T-shirts and underwear should be 100% cotton or a 100% flame-resistant blend. Socks should be cotton, wool, or a blend of flame-resistant fibers. Undergarments and socks should not be made of 100% or a high percentage of polyester, nylon, or acrylic.

Gloves

Fireman V Gloves

Heavy leather gloves are essential for protecting hands from burns and cuts. Firefighting gloves should be a nongauntlet style so as not to funnel hot embers into the glove. Some agencies require their firefighters to wear specific types of gloves. Gloves that have holes or tears should be discarded and another pair placed into service. Often leather gloves get wet on the fireline because of leaking water hoses. If wet, lay out flat to dry.

Goggles

Goggles

Goggles the eyes from dirt, debris, metal shards from tools, and hot ashes. Wildland firefighters are exposed to many hazards to the eyes. These hazards include, but are not limited to, debris in the air from wind gusts; dirt and debris propelled from chopping and grubbing operations with a hand tool; metal shards broken off hand tool edges after striking a rock; and hot ash reacting to application of cool water. Some styles of goggles protect eyes from smoke. Without goggles the eyes typically water profusely and blur the field of vision of the firefighter. Blurry eyes may have other safety hazards to firefighters who continue travelling or using his or her tool.

Boots

Wildland Fire Fighting Boots

Wildland firefighters are required to wear specially engineered boots that meet the NFPA 1977 certification.

Hard Hats

Helmet and Head Lamp

Wildland firefighters are required to wear hard hats when they are on duty.

All firefighters are required to carry a fire shelter when they are on duty.  An essential part of the certification requirements for firefighers is to attend annual refresher training where they must successfully deploy a fire shelter. 

Fire Shelter

The highest priority for firefighters is to avoid being entrapped by a fire.  If a firefighter is accidentally entrapped, he must protect his lungs and airways.  The firefighter must dispose of all flammable items and get inside the shelter and on ground before the flames reach him.  The fire shelter should be deployed in a spot where there are no fuels on the ground.

The greatest threats to the firefighter who is trapped by a fire are burns to the body and inhalation of hot gases which can cause asphyxiation.  A person can survive for a short period if the air temperatures are at 149°C  (300°F).  The environment outside the fire shelter will easily exceed these limits, but the fire shelter may save the life of a person inside.  Experiments on fire shelters show that the air temperature inside the shelter rose 80°C (176°F) when radiant heat is applied for 300 seconds.  When direct flames were applied to the shelter for 40 seconds, the temperature inside the shelter rose an additional 50°C (122°F).  Heat flux of 5 kilowatts per square meter will lead to a second degree burn in about 40 seconds on bare skin.  Heat flux from 300 seconds of radiant heat and forty seconds of direct flame produced peak heat fluxes of 1.5 and 1.3 killowatts per square meter, respectively.

Wildland Pack

Detachable Fire Fighting Back Pack

Wildland Fire Day Pack

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Firefighters must carry almost everything they need with them while they are on duty during a wildfire. Firefighters wear their packs throughout their shifts as they move across the landscape fighting the fire.

Firefighters carry a mixture of items they are required to carry and materials that they choose based on their own preferences. Typically, their packs hold water, food, a headlamp, extra batteries, matches, a space blanket, a signal mirror, compass, whistle, knife, extra socks, personal first aid kit, rain gear, extra clothing, maps, operational period plan, and toilet paper. Beside these items many line personnel also pack extra radio batteries, GPS receiver, weather monitoring instuments (sling psychrometer and wind meter or electronic psychometer with wind meter, relative humidity charts, recording book, pencil), fusees, fire shelter, fireline handbook, incidence reponse pocket guide, extra gloves, binoculars, sun screen, sun glasses, reading glasses, fuel bottles, chain oil bottles, extra spark plugs for saw, file with guard and handle, eye protection, hearing protection, and allergy medication.

The average weight of packs is about 40-50 pounds. Some firefighters prefer to carry this weight in back packs that hang from the top of the shoulders while others choose hip backs that rest on the lower back. Hip packs are better for people who are digging hand line and are bent over most of the day because back packs tend to slide over the head. Firefighters spending their day in an upright position usually opt for a pack that sits closer to the top of their shoulders.

Fire Weather Kit

Firefighters use fire weather kits to monitor wind direction, wind speed, and relative humidity, the 3 critical weather patterns that help them determine suppression tactics and strategies.

The core tools in a fire weather instrument kit are:

• a wind meter
• a compass to calculate wind direction and fire location
• tools to calculate relative humidity that measures dry and wet bulb temperatures (e.g., psychrometer, slide rule)

Additional kit items might include a notebook and pencil to record weather measurements and related data such as location, exposure (ridgetop, slope), vegetation density, elevation, aspect, and cloud cover. Firefighters can buy a pre-assembled weather kit or build their own.

Wind Meter

Pocket Wind Meter

The wind meter has an operational range from 2-60 mph. Wind speed and direction are measured at eye-level. The user faces the wind and holds the instrument so the wind speed can be watched. Thsi instrument requires the operator to constantly watch the instrument to determine average speed and strength of wind gusts. The data should be recorded separately because there is no storage for this information on the instrument.

The electronic instrument specification sheet that accompanies the wind meter lists the minimum and maximum wind speeds, the units of measurement, and the accuracy of those measurements. Wind meters have several measurement units to choose from (feet/second, miles per hour, kilometers per hour). The wind meters can recall average speed and maximum wind speeds for the time the instrument is powered on.

Psychrometer

Sling Psychrometer

Psychrometric Slide Rule

The two most common types of psychrometers are the sling psychrometer and the electronic psychrometer.

The sling psychrometer is the standard instrument used to determine relative humidity. It consists of two glass thermometers with ranges of 30-110°F. One thermometer, the dry bulb, is unmodified and measures the current air temperature. The other thermometer, the wet bulb, has a muslin wick tied around the bulb that is moistened with water. The frame holding the two thermometers is swung in a circlular motion until the wet bulb temperature stops declining. With these two measurements a person can use a slide ruler to calculate relative humidity and/or the dew point.

The electronic psychrometer displays current air temperature and relative humidity. The electronic psychrometer is a 5-ounce hand held, all-in-one, instrument that measures current air temperature, relative humidity (not adjusted for elevation or latitude) and wind speed. The limitations on the operational range of the electronic psychrometer are listed on the specification sheet that accompanies its purchase. Not all electronic psychrometers have the same operational ranges. Operational ranges must be known and carefully considered before operating this type of instrument.

Both types of psychrometers need to adjust to current air temperatures prior to taking measurements. These instruments are usually carried inside packs or pockets until used and as such are subjected to radiant heat from the body, fire, and sun. The sling psychrometer consists of glass thermometers which adjust quickly to temperature changes. However, the electronic psychrometers components are contained within a closed plastic shell that may take several minutes to adjust to the changing air temperatures. If the current air temperature (dry bulb) is 90°F but the temperature inside the case is 95°F, with a wet bulb temperature of 60°F, the relative humidity will be 13% and 8% respectively. It is important to use both instruments in the shade to derive current air temperature and allow the instruments to adjust to the temperature of the air they will be measuring.

The psychrometric slide rule and tables determine relative humidity to the nearest degree from 0-100%. The psychrometric slide rule has a dry bulb range of 60-110°F and a wet bulb range of 40-120°F. Tables generally mimic the operational range of the psychrometric slide rule for both dry bulb and wet bulb temperatures. The slide rule, however, is not adjustable to differences in air pressure that result from changes in elevation and latitude. For instance, a slide rule will report a 10% relative humidity for all elevations with a dry bulb temperature of 90°F and a wet bulb temperature of 58°F. Tables accurate to the nearest 2000 feet evelation will display a relative humidity with the same dry and wet bulb measurements given previously as 15% at 6,000 feet. A 5°F difference in relative humidity may have important implications to firefighters when temperatures are high and fuel moisture is low.

Chain Saw Chaps

In many cases, chain saw operators who work on wildfires or prescribed fires are required to wear PPE. Chain saw protection gear includes eight items of personal protection equipment (PPE): chaps, a hardhat, eye protection, hearing protection, gloves, fire resistant shirts and pants, a fire shelter, and firefighting boots.

Chain saw chaps are designed to clog a running chain saw upon contact to prevent the operator from sustaining large jagged lacerations. They are typically made of several layers of Kevlar sandwiched between outer layers of a Cordura nylon cover. The Kevlar is designed to clog a running chain saw to make it stop. The Cordura is designed to resist water, mildew, oil, and abrasions. Chaps are fastened about the waist and legs with adjustable straps.

The chaps should be long enough to overlap a persons boots by at least 2 inches. Chaps are available in standard coverage that protects 180 degrees of the legs or extended coverage that protects 220 degrees of the circumference of the legs.

Earmuffs for Hearing Protection

Foam Ear Plugs

People who work near noisy equipment should wear hearing protection.  Hearing protection comes in a variety of styles such as soft foam earplugs inserted into the ear canal and earmuffs that cover the entire ear.  There are a variety of push-in foam earplugs.  These earplugs are small for easy storage, light weight, quick insertion and removal, and provide enough hearing capacity to understand radio transmissions and crew communication.

Wildland firefighters use head lamps to see in darkened conditions as well as to be seen by others. 

Helmet and Head Lamp

There are numereous styles of head lamps on the market today.  Whatever style is chosen it must be able to attach to an approved hard hat without causing the hard hat to shift on the firefighters head.  It should also have a spare bulb stored somewhere within the lamp housing for easy assess.  It is also desirable that batteries last through the operational period without having to be changed in the dark.

Firefighters should carry head lamps with them during the day as well as at night.  One reason for having a head lamp during the day is that often a crew ends up walking off the fireline following the end of the operational shift.  In many cases, part of this hike invovles travelling cross-country in the dark.  Another reason for carrying a head lamp is that often firefighters are delayed until after dark from leaving the fireline. 

Since head lamps are often stored and transported in day pack, the firefighter should employee a method to prevent battery drainage.  This might include inserting batteries into the battery housing improperly or placing a paper barrier between batteries and light connections.  Firefighters should also carry extra batteries to fit their head lamps.

The prudent firefighter will check their head lamp before each operational period to assure that eveything is in working order.

Hand tools are non-mechanical tools used by firefighters to build and hold a fireline.  Handtools are used to clean fuels on a fireline, which is a pathway around the perimeter of a fire.  When a flaming fire reaches a fireline it runs out of fuel to burn and, under the right conditions, is reduced to a smoldering phase until all available fuel burns up or firefighters cool and/or smother the remaining flames.

Hand tools have various uses and many have multiple functions.  The general categories of hand tools are: burning, swatting, scraping, chopping, or grubbing.  This section contains brief descriptions of the hand tools listed in the following table.  It also contains tips on Chopping Tool Safety and Grubbing Tool Safety.

Fuel Bottles	Firing Devices
Firefighting Shovel	Council Fire Swatter Flap
Firefighting Broom	McLeod Rake
Council Rake	Fire Rake
Pulaski	Brush Axe
Double Bit Axe	Single Bit Axe
Hazel Hoe	Bush Hook

Fuel Bottles

Fire crews have to carry fuel to remote locations to operate mechanized equipment and build firelines. Most fuel bottles are aluminum because it is lightweight and strong. Firefighters carry fuel bottles in their packs along with other sharp metallic equipment. Fuel bottles that are made out of aluminum are more resistant to

Fuel Container

Two common uses of the fuel are to power chain saws and for bar oil. Another benefit to carrying fuel is the control the crew can exercise over the fuel mix. The gasoline and the 2-cycle engine oil that are used to power chain saws are usually carried separately and mixed on the spot. Sawyers can better control the ratio of gas to oil and avoid using an incorrect ratio that could damage their chain saws.

Swedish Safety Brush Axe

Although the brush axe is not a common firefighting tool, it can be useful for cutting small diameter material. Other tools, such as the Pulaski and chain saw, are more durable, versatile, and efficent for cutting larger materials.

The blade on the brush axe should be sharpened regularly to prevent glancing.

The brush axe has a wooden handle. The handle should be smooth and kept tight. Handles with splinters, cracks, excessive twist or warp should be replaced or reconditioned.

Double Bit Ax

The Double Bit Axe is an effective, well-balanced, chopping tool. This is no longer a common tool; it has been replaced by more versatile tools. However, they are still occasionally used during fire suppression and prescribed burns by workers from private industry. Firefighters can use 1 bit to chop through the types of tough roots which quickly dull axe edges and use the other bit for cutting tree limbs, seedlings, saplings and other lighter matterial.

Since the axe has 2 bits instead of 1, it does not have to be sharpened as often. The axes bit should be maintained by grinding with an even taper at least 2.5 inches back from the cutting edge. The wooden handle should be smooth. Handles with splinters, cracks, excessive twist or warp should be replaced or reconditioned.

Single Bit Axe

The Single Bit Axe is a tool for chopping trees and removing branches. The flat portion of the axe head, opposite the blade, is ideal for setting and creating a back cut on a tree. The back cut wedges are made opposite the face cut to make sure that the tree falls in the desired direction.

The Single Bit Axe is not used very often for building firelines because they are not as versatile as other hand tools such as Pulaskis and McCleod Rakes. Single Bit Axes are useful for chopping through roots, limbing trees, removing seedlings and saplings, and bucking small diameter trees that are crossing the fireline.

The blade on the Single Bit Axe must be sharpened when it becomes dull. The axe bit should be maintained by grinding with an even taper at least 1.5 inches back from the cutting edge.

The wooden handle should be smooth and kept tight. Handles with splinters, cracks, excessive twist or warp should be replaced or reconditioned.

Hazel Hoe

The Hazel Hoe is an effective grubbing tool that cuts through deep duff layers and tight root mats.

This hoe is often used after Pulaskis during fireline construction. Overall the tool is fairly light weight even though the head of the hoe is twice the width of a Pulaski and quite heavy.

The wooden handle should be smooth and tightly fastened. Handles with splinters, cracks, excessive twist or warp should be replaced or reconditioned.

Bush Hooks

Bush hooks are most effective if the edges are sharpened regularly.  To sharpen the edges, grind both sides of the long portion of cutting edge in an even taper at least 1-inch back from the cutting edge.  Maintain the circular pattern at the throat.  Carefully grind the throat back 1-inch on an even bevel.  Grind the hook to point to a bevel approximately 3/4-inch deep.

Bush hooks have wooden handles that should be kept smooth.  Handles with splinters, cracks, excessive twist or warp should be replaced or reconditioned.

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Fusees

Firing devices such as fusees and drip torches are widely used in both wildfire control and suppression and prescribed fire tactics.

In fire suppression tactics both devices are commonly used to burn wildland fuels that remain between the fire and the indirect fireline to secure that fireline. If the area between the fire and fireline is relatively small, then firefighters burn these areas out as fireline is being constructed. However, if the unburned area adjacent to the fireline is large, burn out operations may be delayed until a section of fireline is complete. This delay allows firefighters to reorganize and concentrate on lighting the unburned fuels and containing the fire within the fireline.

Adequate communication between all personnel involved in the operation is necessary during a firing operation. Whichever firing devise is used, communication is required with adjacent resources before and during lighting operations. Both suppression and prescribed fire operations require good planning before burning operations begin.

Selecting the firing device

Availability

Drip Torch

The selection of a firing device is based upon availability, fuel moisture and arrangement, and the size of the fire.

Fusees are much lighter and more portable than drip torches. A half dozen are easily carried by a firefighter. When safe, firefighter can use a fusee to light fuels between the fire and the fireline. Burning off the fuels can prevent the fire from jumping the fireline and make a safer environment for firefighters. If the fire does happen to cross the fireline, the firefighters have the option of stepping into the adjacent burned area.

If a fire crew does not have any firing devices on hand, embers can be retreived from the fire itself and scattered throughout the unburned fuels as the crew builds fireline.

Fuel moisture

Fusees can be ineffective if fuels are too wet; for instance, early in the morning and late in the afternoon. During those times when fusees are ineffective firefighters have to either wait until the fuels dry out to light unburned sections between the fire and the fireline or use a different firing device. If the decision is to continue to burn the fuels, then a drip torch is an appropriate tool. The advantage of the drip torch is that it is a mix of 2/3 diesel to 1/3 gasoline. Diesel burns slowly, allowing the heat to dry the fuels and also heat the fuels enough to start the fire. Gasoline is used because it ignites the diesel more easily. The diesel-gasoline mixture is often very effective at burning out even the most troublesome fuels, because a large mass of heat can be quickly created which then effectively preheats adjacent fuels.

Fire size

The size of area with unburned fuels is another consideration for deciding between fusees and drip torches. Drip torches spread diesel-gasoline on wildland fuel and is more efficient than fusees when the area covered by fuels is relatively large. With a fusee, a firefighter must often stop and hold the heat from the fusee on the fuels for a minute or two until it is self-sustaining, whereas the drip torch leaves a diesel-gasoline mix on the fuels long enough to initiate a self-sustainiing fire.

In a prescribed burn, drip torches are the tool of choice since relatively large areas are treated. By applying a variety of burn patterns and having either a backfire spreading downhill or a backfire spreading into the wind, or running uphill or with the wind, fire spread and fire intensity can be controlled.

The use of drip torches in fire suppression or prescribed fire operations requires a lot of planning and more complex logistics. First, it can take several days to obtain the necessary number of drip torches. Second, a supply of fuel cans, of a size that can be carried in firefighters packs into the operation area, with appropriate backpack frames will also be needed if there is no helicopter support available. Third, in some cases the fire managers have to find a helicopter that is available and affordable to sling fuel to the fire location. Fourth, a ready supply of fuel, both diesel and gasoline, and the personnel to mix and transport it is needed. The igition crew and support personnel must have the appropriate training and briefing to complete the operation safely and efficiently.

In a really large prescribed burn, where it is ineffective, not feasibly possible, or unsafe to have personnel walk through an area with drip torches, a drip torch may be used to burn adjacent to the fire boundary while a specially equipped helicoper lights the interior.

Shovel

Shovels are probably the most durable tool in wildland fire service. A shovels longevity is probably due to its many uses. It is useful for digging and removing fuel along the fireline, occassional cleaning of a fireline by scraping off small combustible material after fireline construction, throwing soil to smother fire on the ground as well as up a tree bole, swatting the fire, and cutting through small roots and branches.

Fre shovels are different from typical garden shovels. Compared to common shovels, it has a smaller blade (#1 rather than #2), a longer handle, and a neck that is bent to make scooping dirt and scraping easier for firefighters. Additionally, the edges of the fire shovel blade are sharpened to within one-and-a-half inches of the top of the blade. The sharpened bevel is on the inner face of the blade. The fire shovel handle is made of wood. The handle should be smooth and kept tight. Handles with splinters, cracks, excessive twist or warp should be replaced or reconditioned.

Rather than digging into plant detritus with a shovel, lifting the material, and throwing or carrying it out of the fireline it is more effective to scrape the combustible material off the fireline. This is accomplished by bending the body forward until the outside of the arm nearest the blade of the shovel is in contact with the inside of the leg on the same side of the body. The body pivots with the arm and leg working in tandem to scrape combustible material off the fireline while the shovel blade is slightly tilted upward and only deep enough to scrape the surface. This action is repeated until all the combustible material is removed in a section of fireline.

When building a direct handline (a fireline immediately adjacent to the fire), shovels are sometimes used to throw soil on the fire to reduce its intensity until the firefighters move past that spot in their attempt to build the fireline. In this case a shovel is used with a side arm throw. This throwing action spreads the soil rapidly and evenly across a wide section of fire. The action moves oxygen away from the fire for a brief moment and the fire falters. If done in light fuels the fire may not recover and stay in a smoldering stage until it goes out. Most times this fanning action by soil causes the fire to falter for the amount of time it takes for the crew to finish the line in that area. The fire then regains its intensity until it runs out of fuel at the newly constructed fireline.

Sometimes fire travels up the boles of trees aided by sap or lichens on the bole. It is usually desireable to keep fire from reaching the crown of trees. To accomplish this a shovel may be used in an overhand throw to cast dirt onto the target.

Council Fire Swatter Flap

Fire swatters are useful for working in light fuels when flame lengths are less than 2 feet high. Fire swatters are most effective for extinguishing small embers that have been blown across a fireline into an unburned area. Quick slaps with the fire swatter deprive the fire of oxygen and can quickly extinguish small fires.

A swatter is a nice addition to the firefighters tool box. However, in areas where there are accessible green conifer tree boughs they are used just as effectively as a swatter. In may cases, hand crews are already carrying 40 or 50 lbs of equipment per person along the fireline and the 5 lb swatter is often not carried.

The swatter is typically made of fabric-reinforced rubber. The wooden handle should be kept smooth and replaced if there are slivers, cracks, and excessive warp or twist. The swatter should be tightly fastened to the handle.

Broom

Firefighting brooms are useful for working in light fuels when flame lengths are less than 2 feet high. Firefighting brooms are most effective for extinguishing small embers that have been blown across a fireline into an unburned area. Quick slaps with the firefighting broom deprive the fire of oxygen and can quickly extinguish small fires.

Often a fire line is hand dug using tools such as Pulaskis and shovels. These larger, and heavier, tools are not very effective scraping small light combustible materials surrounding the fireline whereas the light weight firefighting brooms effectively clean smaller combustible materials away from firelines.

A broom is a nice addition to firefighters tool boxes, but green conifer tree boughs may be equally as effective as a broom. Although the broom weighs a mere 3 lbs, firefighters who are already carrying 40 or 50 lbs of equipment, will choose not to carry it.

Firefighting brooms are typically made of fire resistant fibers. The wooden handle should be kept smooth and replaced if there are slivers, cracks, and excessive warp or twist. The broom fibers should be tightly fastened to the handle.

McLeod Rake

The McLeod Rake is designed to clear loose litter fuels such as needles, leaves, and sloughed bark plates in open pine and hardwood forests. The large rake and wide hoe blade enables firefighters to build more fireline with less effort than any of the other tools available. The large strong teeth are useful raking litter and also pulling cut brush away from the fireline. The hoe blade is also useful for cutting through deep litter and scraping smaller combustible materials from the fireline.

Maintain the sharp cutting blade by sharpening at a 45° angle. The wooden handle should be smooth and tightly fastened. Handles with splinters, cracks, excessive twist or warp should be replaced or reconditioned.

Council Rake

• raking light brush, duff, and small roots
• cutting and digging
• pulling or pushing burning material deeper into the body of the fire
• scraping charred bark from boles of trees and snags
• cutting small trees or brush and raking it away from fire
• moving soil to stumps and logs and it mixing with charred material to cool surface
• raking embers and mixing them with soil to cool

To sharpen the council rake, stabilize it in a council tool slide and clamp.  An ordinary emory wheel should not be used.  Rakes that have square, rather than pointed tines, are ground with a straight stone.  This is done after the sloping edges have been ground with a beveled rock.  A straight stone is then placed on the grinder and the square tines are ground again.  The rakes handles are not removed during the sharpening process.

Fire Rake

Fire rakes are used to clear away small, light combustible materials when constructing firelines.

Fire rakes are used in combination with other hand tools.

The rake head is typically made of rigid heavy gage steel wire tines. The wooden handle should be kept smooth and replaced if there are slivers, cracks, and excessive warp or twist. The rake head should be tightly secured to the handle.

These types of rakes come in several sizes from handles that are 5 feet long with 12-to-16 inch tines to handles which are 24 inches long and tines about 8-to-10 inches long. Smaller rake can be easily carried on a line pack.

Pulaski Axe

The Pulaski is a versatile tool with a long history of use in wildfire control and suppression. Pulaskis and other grubbing tools are designed to cut through roots and deep mats of plant detritus packed tightly above the soil. Many firefighters prefer to use a Pulaski because it can be used like an axe and a grub hoe. The Pulaski is named for Ranger E.C. Pulaski who designed it for use in the types of fuels found in the Northern Rockies of Montana and Idaho, but it can be used in other fuel types as well.

The axe bit is sharpened by grinding it with an even taper at least 2.5 inches back from the cutting edge. The hoe side should also be ground to a good cutting edge with the bevel approximately 3/8ths of an inch deep on the side facing the handle. The wooden handle should be smooth and tightly fastened. Handles with splinters, cracks, excessive twist or warp should be replaced or reconditioned.

Wildfires are often in areas with very few roads or trails. Navigation equipment is necessary to guide firefighters as they travel through wildlands and to enable firefighting staff to deliver resources to the locations where they are needed.  The following items are common navigation tools:

• Compass
• Flagging
• Altimeter/Barometer
• Global Positioning System Receivers
• Signal Mirror
• Stereoscope

Compass

• to orient a map
• to aid navigation to a specific location
• as a protractor to plot and measure the crosscountry path between 2 points
• as a guide to maintain bearing along a travel route
• as a means for determining location

The compass itself is a measuring instrument with five important features:

1. it is pocket-sized
2. it has a magnetized needle that points to magnetic north
3. it is a dial housing with azimuth (or quadrant) degree markings in 2º increments from 0º to 360º (or in the case of a quadrant compass 0º at north and south and 90º at west and east) around its circumference and needle orienting arrow
4. a baseplate with direction of travel arrow and various scales
5. a built-in declination adjustment.

Other features that a compass may have are liquid dampening to reduce needle movement, luminous features for use after sunset, clinometer to measure slope, a sighting feature, and a lanyard to reduce loss. Azimuth is the most prevalent designation on compasses today.

Global positioning systems (GPS) do not necessarily eliminate the need for wildland firefighters to carry a compass and a map. A GPS unit is usefull for identifing precise locations, quickly noting elevation, charting routes, and plotting record of travel, but it may be difficult to use under a tree canopy or in dense smoke.

Using Compasses with Maps

Probably the best map a wildland firefighter has available to use with a compass is a United States Geological Survey (USGS) 7.5 minute, 1:24,000-scale, quadrangle series (topographic) map. An example of this map series is shown below. For compass work this map provides numerous scales to measure distance and declination (magnetic norths relationship to geographic north). Since this map is printed with true north on top and a compass must be adjusted to read geographic north, this map provides the appropriate declination to correct a compass.

A compass and a map can not be directly used together because a map is oriented to geographic north and the needle of a compass points to magnetic north. Only in certain areas of the country is no correction is necessary to either map or compass because geographic north and magnetic north align. In most areas in North America, firefighters will need to either have magnetic north lines drawn across the face of a map or the compass needs to be adjusted for declination ito read geographic north. If the compass is adjustable it is easiest to change.

Orienting a Map with a Compass

Orienting a map is done with a compass. Adjust the compass for map declination. Align north on the compass housing to the direction of travel arrow. With the compass direction of travel arrow pointing toward north end of map, place the long edge of the compass adjacent to any north-south line on the map. Turn the map and compass as a unit until the north end of the compass needle is within orienteering arrow on the floor of the compass housing. The map will then be oriented to the landscape. With a map in this position firefighters can identify landmarks around him or her.

Finding a Location with a Compass and Map

With landmarks identified, a map and compass can be used by the firefighter to find their location. This is done by taking a bearing to a couple of identified landmarks that are about 90º apart and writing those bearings down. Place north on the compass housing and align it with the direction of travel arrow. Using the compass as a protractor (forget the compass has a needle for the time being), place the center of the compass over one landmark with protractor north oriented to the north end of the map. Subtract 180º from the bearing taken to this landmark. Make a small tick mark next to this new bearing heading. Use the straight edge of the compass to draw a line from the landmark, through the tick mark, back toward where the firefighter is located. Use the same process for a second landmark. The point where the two lines intersect is the location of the firefighter. It is always wise to double check by reorienting the map and deciding if the firefighter is indeed in the location they have plotted or following the above procedure from a third landmark to see if the three lines intersect in the same location. This technique is often referred to as triangulation.

Once the firefighter has determined his or her location on a map through orienting the map, or triangulation, they can now identify and plot a course to another location. Begin by identifying the destination point of the firefighter. Draw a line between the two locations (from where they are to where they want to go). Refer to the compass as a protractor again and place the center over present location. Make sure the north end of protractor is pointed to the north end of map. The bearing the firefighter will need to travel is where the line intersects the compass housing. Read the degrees and set those degrees to the back of the direction of travel arrow. Lift the compass off of the map, align north end of needle with north orienteering arrow on the floor of the compass housing and travel in the direction that the arrow is pointing.

The compass itself is very accurate and provides a mechanism for firefighters to navigate in unfamiliar territory. However, firefighters can make errors in reading bearings or carelessly setting a bearing on the compass that will lead him or her away from the location they are attempting to find. The cost of carelessly setting the bearing 1º off will lead to an error of 92 feet (28 meters) over the course of 1 mile.

New methods will be developed, and existing methods will be improved in the area of risk assessment. We suggest that using the proposed framework for comparing tools will assist tool selection for a given situation and to improve understanding of the differences between tools in terms of precision, uncertainty, and resources required. In addition to ensuring that the set of tools forms a cohesive toolkit, it will also be important to improve the application of tools. That is, evaluating the applicability of a tool in a given situation needs to be easy, and usage of the method should be as straightforward and transparent as possible.

Although the examples we present focus on mountain pine beetle in lodgepole pine forests, the concepts underlying the risk-assessment methods and the classification gradient apply to other bark beetle species and forest systems. Susceptibility rating systems have been developed for MPB in ponderosa pine, Pinus ponderosa Laws. (Chojnacky and others 2000; Negron and Popp 2004) and whitebark pine, P. albicaulis Engelm. (Perkins and Roberts 2003). Dodds and others (2004) and Negron (1998) examined risk rating for Douglas-fir beetle (Dendroctonus pseudotsugae Hopk.). Susceptibility rating systems have been developed for spruce beetle (D. rufipennis Kby.) in Alaska (Reynolds and Holsten 1996). Connectivity analysis for risk assessment is not very common at present. We have ongoing work to explore risk of spruce beetle (across a large area of southwestern Yukon, Canada, using connectivity methods. In addition to susceptibility rating, statistical methods to examine spatial and temporal autocorrelation of environmental factors (Gumpertz and others 2000) and simulation-based approaches (Mawby and Gold 1984) have been applied to the southern pine beetle (D. frontalis Zimm.).

Applying methods in new systems presents a number of challenges and high levels of uncertainty. MPB have been expanding the northeastern limit of their range and are approaching boreal jack pine (P. banksiana Lamb.) forests in Alberta, Canada (H. Ono, pers. comm.). These changes increase uncertainty due both to the dynamic character of the changes and because little information is known on MPB—host interactions in these forests. Nonetheless, managers of these systems are faced with challenging decisions, and risk-rating systems can provide some insights. In conjunction with climatic suitability work (Taylor and others 2006), we have ongoing work to adapt and apply susceptibility and connectivity methods in the boreal forest of BC and Alberta, Canada.

Altimeter/Barometer

Changes in weather patterns may affect the altimeter/barometer.  The altimeter/barometer uses pressure differences to record elevation, so a change in atmospheric pressure after the reference elevation is set, may lead to spurious readings thereafter.  It is good practice to continuously check altimeter/barometer readings throughout the period of use against additional reference elevations.

Global positioning systems (GPS) also note elevations without regard to atmospheric pressure.  However, GPS elevational error is around +/- 50-to-65 feet (15 to 20 meters).

Altimeter/barometers can be purchased with either English or metric displays.

Global Positioning System

The Planning staff in a wildfire operation use GPS to create accurate maps of a fire. Staff members in the Operations and Logistics sections of the wildfire operation use the maps to decide where to place other personnel and equipment.  People who work in the Operations section of a wildfire use GPS to communicate with people who handle the aerial fire control.  GPS is more efficient method of communication between ground  and air personnel; it replaces the use of mirrors and bright objects to signal pilots.

GPS receivers receive signals from either 3 or 4 satellites at a time and triangulate a position using the interval between the transmission and reception of the satellite signal. Any given receiver tracks more satellites than are actually needed for a position fix. The reason for this is that if one satellite becomes unavailable, the receiver knows exactly where to find the best possible replacement. Two dimension positioning, which reports position only, requires 2 satellites.  Three-dimension positioning requires 4 satellites to calculate position and elevation.

Each GPS satellite broadcasts two signals, PPS (Precise Positioning Service) and SPS (Standard Positioning Service). The PPS signal is an encrypted military-access code. The SPS signal is an unencrypted, spread-spectrum signal broadcast at 1575.42 MHz. The SPS signal is virtually resistant to multipath and night-time interference, and is unaffected by weather and electrical noise.  A SPS receiver can provide position information with an error of less than 25 meters.

The SPS signal contains two types of orbit data: almanac and ephemeris. Almanac data contains the operating condition and approximate location of every satellite in the system. A GPS receiver collects almanac data from any available satellite, then uses it to locate the satellites that should be visible at the receivers location. Ephemeris data contains the precise orbital parameters of a specific satellite.

Site-Grid Signal Mirror

Signal mirrors are used in wildland firefighting operations to communicate between ground and air personnel. Firefighters on the ground flash mirrors to signal staff in the air who can then identify the precise location of ground staff. Signal mirrors, like global positioning systems, enable air personnel to quickly locate firefighters on the ground and thus save time flying around looking for them and therefore thousands of dollars per day in operating expenses.

Aircraft personnel often need to locate ground personnel during a wildfire in order to help ground personnel to recon the fire, deliver resources to ground personnel, and retreive spent resources from ground personnel. Some resources that aircraft operators might need to deliver to ground personnel are additional personnel, drinking water, food, sleeping bags, tools, and water for extinguishing fire.

Pocket Stereo Viewers

Field observers often use pocket stereoscopes to map the perimeter of the fire, and to locate hotspots, islands of unburned fuel, and water resources. Field observers use soft lead color pencils to record their observations directly on aerial photographs. They may rely upon a pocket stereoscope to confirm their identification of areas of concern before recording their observations on the aerial photograph.

Stereoscopes vary in size from desktop to pocket models. On a large wildland fire, where an incident command base has been established, the desktop stereoscope may be used by personnel in the Operations section to plan future firelines or by the Planning section to accurately create a map for firefighters.

Stereoscopes are useful field tools, but they are quickly being replaced by global positioning systems, which are able to create and print maps more quickly and accurately.

When a wildland fire occurs aerial photographs are used to identify structures that may be damaged by a fire, and to locate communication facilities, access roads, and special resource areas. Aerial photographs are taken in lines with one photograph overlapping the next as the aircraft progresses across the landscape. Once the aircraft finishes a line, it is turned, and a photograph is taken of the next line adjacent to and overlapping the previous line. A map with numbered flight lines and aerial photograph locations, numbered along those flightlines, is also created so photographs can be easily found for any area of interest. Stereoscopes are used to get a 3-dimensional view of the overlapped parts of aerial photographs.

1.  Employees should receive instruction in proper chopping techniques and tool sharpening.

     a.  When grinding, use eye protection. 

     b.  Keep loose clothing away from moving parts.

     c.  Inspect grinding wheel for cracks and defects before using.  

     d.  Use rest when grinding, grind slowly toward cutting edge, taper properly, avoid overheating.

     e.  Use file and stone to remove burrs and rough spots.

     f.  Secure work in clamp or vice when filing.  Wear gloves.  Use file equiped with knuckle guard.

     g.  Stroke the file across the edge.  Finish edge with hand stone.

     h.  Discard and repalce tool heads that are excessively round-cornered.  Check templates.

     i.  Inspect for loose or cracked heads.

     j.  Inspect for split, crooked, warped, or splintered handles.

2.  Chopping Tool Carrying Safety.

    a.  Grasp handle close to tool head.

    b.  Hold tool with flat surface of blade vertical (parallel to leg).

    c.  Allow arm to hang naturally to side.

    d.  Carry tool on downhill for ease of discard in case of fall.

    e.  Never carry tool on sholder.

    f.  When walking with other people maintain a distance of at least ten feet.

    g.  Place an edge guard on the tool to protect its edge and the people.

    h.  Keep tools and people separated in vehicles.

3.  Tool Use Safety.

    a.  Always remove branches, underbrush, and debris that might interfer with chopping.

    b.  Keep other people away from chopping area.

    c.  Wear gloves, leather boots, and leg protection.  Stay alert.

    d.  Remove any overhanging obstructions tool may strike or hang on.

    e.  Obtain secure footing.  Position body for working with tool.

    f.  Use natural striking action.  Never chop cross-handed.

    g.  Watch for spring loading when cutting bent branches or saplings.

    h.  Try not to stand on material being cut.

    i.  Don't use chopping tools as wedges or mauls.

    j.  Don't allow two people to chop simultaneously on the same tree.

    k.  Stand on opposite side of tree when removing limbs.

    j.  Remove wood chips from blade before resuming chopping.

    k.  Keep striking head of tool perpendicular to work to prevent tool glancing.

These guidelines are appropriate for grubbing hand tools (e.g., hoes, mattocks, picks, Pulaskis, combination tools, McLeods, etc.).

1.  Employees should receive instruction in proper grubbing techniques and tool sharpening.

     a.  When grinding, use eye protection. 

     b.  Keep loose clothing away from moving parts.

     c.  Inspect grinding wheel for cracks and defects before using.  

     d.  Use rest when grinding, grind slowly toward cutting edge, taper properly, avoid overheating.

     e.  Use file and stone to remove burrs and rough spots.

     f.  Secure work in clamp or vice when filing.  Wear gloves.  Use file equiped with knuckle guard.

     g.  Stroke the file across the edge.  Finish edge with hand stone.

     h.  Repair or replace defective or excessively worn tools.

     i.  Inspect for loose or cracked heads.

     j.  Inspect for split, crooked, warped, or splintered handles.

    k.  Keep blade eye tight-fitting and secure.

2.  Grubbing Tool Carrying Safety.

    a.  Grasp handle close to tool head.

    b.  Hold tool with flat surface of blade vertical (parallel to leg).

    c.  Allow arm to hang naturally to side.

    d.  Carry tool on downhill for ease of discard in cas eof fall.

    e.  Never carry tool on sholder.

    f.  When walking with other people maintain a distance of at least ten feet.

    g.  Place an edge guard on the tool to protect its edge and the people.

    h.  Keep tools and people separated in vehicles.

3.  Grubbing Tool Use Safety.

    a.  Do not allow other people to stand, or pass through, work area.

    b.  Wear gloves, leather boots, and possibly eye protection.  Stay alert.

    c.  Ensure secure footing.  Keep feet and legs in the clear when swinging tool.

    d.  Maintain tight grip on handle.  Avoid directing tool toward body.

    e.  Keep tool out in front.  Use gentle, but deliberate, swinging or hoeing action.

    f.  Watch for objects that will cause tool to glance, rebound, or create excessive flying material.

    g.  Maintain 10 feet minimum between people when walking and working.

    h.  Remove all overhead obstructions the tool might strike or hang in.

Fire crews cannot afford to relax just because flames have died down inside constructed fireline. In fact, mop-up and patrol can be the most tedious yet most important activity for assuring that a burn area does not become a future menace.  Much important work remains even after a fire is encircled by fireline or is considered contained after initial attack. Unburned fuels between the main fire area and fireline may need to be burned out. Hot spots within the fire perimeter may need to be cooled down.

Mop-up begins after the fireline is constructed, so as to strengthen or hold the fire containment. Activities include securing the line, often through widening, as well as disposing of burning or smoldering materials close to the fireline. Fuel hazards, such as snags and fuel jackpots, near the control line must be eliminated or mitigated since these might jeopardize control efforts.

The availability of water greatly assists mop-up activities. Water absorbs heat and douses flames through oxygen deprivation. The portable backpack pump is an invaluable tool for mop-up, especially when coals can be mixed with soil and water. The usefulness of water is greatly enhanced by chemical suppressants and retardants that lower surface tension or viscosity agents that provide greater cling to fuel particles.

Good communications are essential for carrying out fire management activities, whether in conducting fire suppression operations or in establishing two-way dialogues with the public (Omi, In Press). The Incident Command System (ICS) is similar in style to a paramilitary organization, with a unified command and control structure that requires a good communications infrastructure. An effective system requires that orders given by supervisors must be clearly understood and carried out. Communication failures are often at the root of mistakes, such as crew not knowing escape routes to safety zones.  In the worst cases, ineffective communication systems can lead to chaos and fatalities. Fortunately, the Incident Command System adopted by many fire suppression agencies was developed to facilitate improved communications by adoption of standard terminology and chain of command.

Specialized positions (e.g., Fire Information Officer) are created within the fire organization to provide media updates and communication with interested publics. Other positions may be established to interact with local communities in contending with emergency evacuations, road closures, disruptions in local commerce, the trauma of fatalities, and personal/property losses. Individuals receive specialized training to hold these positions, and must have strong oral and written communication skills, as well as general backgrounds in fire management, fire ecology, and related subject areas.

Radio communication

Communications on a fire requires skilled personnel to manage dedicated and general use radio frequencies. Different radio bands may be used for internal communications among crew, tractors, or other single resources (tactical net), between the crew supervisor and overhead teams (command net), and between the ground and aerial operations (air-ground net).  Special care is required that radio frequencies are compatible, especially if resources such as fire engines and airplanes are brought in from other localities. Air traffic can reach high volumes during an ongoing incident. Trained technicians assure that communications networks are set up to work as efficiently as possible under stressful conditions, while not conflicting with the radio frequencies of local infrastructure.

Interagency communication

The various fire jurisdictions and organizations must communicate effectively. Effective communication between supervisors and among subordinates is especially important, because of the paramilitary fire organization structure and since crew rely upon each other for safety and support. Liaison positions are also important with the increasing use of non-English speakers and non-governmental workers on the firelines.

Fire planning takes place on several levels; for example to build and justify an annual budget request or to make sure that specific projects (e.g., mechanical thinning, prescribed burning, or both) are carried out as effectively as possible and at least cost compared to alternative treatments. The standards used in planning will vary depending on objective and scope. For example, for annual budget requests the minimization of cost plus net value change (damages net of benefits) has been the traditional goal for federal agencies. This goal recognizes the inevitability of wildfires, so the intent is to minimize their economic impact. So a budget is prepared for an entire fire management program, including activities such as initial attack and extended attack, fuels management, and fire prevention--with the hope of producing the lowest fire costs and damages throughout the upcoming fire season, an ambitious undertaking under any circumstances. 

 Planning for eventual suppression activities requires numerous considerations, including wildland vegetation, fire history, human population densities, weather and climate. Satellite imagery and computer modeling can be used to build data layers that depict wildfire risk, including those areas most likely to encounter damaging wildfires. Once high-risk areas are determined, fuels management, education and outreach efforts can be targeted to reduce consequences before future fires occur.

Wildfire risk assessment

The Wildland Fire Risk Assessment System is a planning system developed by Florida?s Division of Forestry. On a map, high hazard areas are color-coded red, while less prone areas are coded green. The system also can be used to allocate firefighting resources more effectively prior to or during a wildfire siege, by identifying areas most likely requiring emergency assistance. 

Many fire management agencies use principles similar to those in the Wildland Fire Risk Assessment System to develop pre-attack plans for individual management units, detailing advance tactics and necessary logistics. Maps are assembled that display

• fuel types
• recent burned areas
• road networks
• distances between different fire stations
• possible fire control lines
• helispots
• tractor loading areas
• fuelbreak and firebreak systems
• greenbelts
• water sources (artificial and natural)

Logical starting and end points for firelines are permanently signed on the ground. Signing enables the user to refer quickly from map to field notes, describing equipment and human resource requirements, and provides ground identification to field crews (Chandler and others 1983). Once assembled, these plans can be used with information on historic weather and climate and fire environment (e.g., wind, slope, and fuel moisture) to simulate potential fire outcomes or to develop programmed dispatch responses during the fire season.

Wildfire simulation models

Fire Behavior Chart

Numerous computer programs have been developed to aid decision makers, most of which to date are based on Rothermel (1972), with subsequent modifications. Computerized models such as BehavePlus and FARSITE provide estimates of fire behavior (rate of spread, flame length) that can be used to gauge suppression difficulty. NEXUS is a tool that uses a spreadsheet linking surface with crown fire behavior.  Flammap is a planning tool for tracing historic burn patterns on the landscape. Existing models for computing fire danger ratings can be used to produce a helpful tool known as a pocket card, from a program called FireFamily Plus, which provides incoming firefighters from distant locations with general guidance regarding expected local fire behavior. Fire behavior models allow the prediction of fire characteristics, such as surface fire?s rate of spread, fireline intensity, and flame length, which can be used to provide guidance for fire suppression activities, using a tool known as the fire characteristics chart, but are limited in terms of usefulness for predicting fire effects. These models also can be used to develop projections for the fire?s perimeter or area burned.

While models provide insight into fire spread phenomena, few models are able to incorporate all the important variables, including the impacts of fire suppression forces in controlling the growth of a spreading fire. Simplistic models have attempted to balance fire growth rates against the production rates of suppression crews, but fall short of incorporating the contributions of all firefighting resources (e.g., helicopters or airtankers).

A fire that is discovered and reported to a local jurisdiction will set in motion a complex series of planned and organized responses. Typically, a fire dispatcher familiar with the local terrain and values-at-risk will call upon appropriate suppression resources to respond to the incident.  An Incident Command System will be established.  A fire crew will be organized and mechanical resources will be acquired. If additional intelligence is needed, a trained observer may drive to or fly over the fire location to size up the local vegetation, burning conditions, and potential problem areas to augment dispatch decisions. Depending on the current fire behavior and projected levels of fire danger, the resources that might be dispatched include an initial attack crew, heavy equipment, and/or aerial support.   These resources are used during initial attack or extended attack activities when necessary.  Controlling a fire is greatly facilitated by the availability of water and chemical retardants to douse flames and hotspots.  As a fire spreads over the landscape, its behavior and the surrounding environment will provide additional clues about the appropriate suppression response.

Among the first duties of the IC are In every operation, firefighter safety is the IC?s #1 priority. The IC supervises the first firefighters to arrive on a scene who perform the initial attack. A fire that grows in size and complexity may cause the IC to delegate some of the fire management responsibilities to the staff under his command.

Major Functions of the Incident Command System

The Incident Command System (ICS) was developed in the 1970s to provide a standardized framework (including common terminology) that could be applied across multiple agencies for managing any fire of any size. The ICS organization focuses on 5 major functions that are required for managing an incident of any complexity: Command, Operations, Plans, Logistics, and Finance/Administration.

On most incidents a single Incident Commander (IC) manages the command structure. The IC is the leader of a fire control operation. The role of the IC is to size up the fire, determine incident objectives, choose the most appropriate attack strategy, define specific tactics and strategies, and immediate priorities, and establish the fire control organization. Incident tactical operations are managed by the Operations Section Chief. Based on reconnaissance information, the Planning Section Chief supervises the collection, evaluation, processing, and dissemination of incident action plans. The Logistics Section Chief supervises all incident support needs, e.g. transportations, food services, communications, and portable latrines in fire camp. The Finance/Administration Section Chief supervises all financial aspects of an incident, including purchases, time keeping, and cost sharing.

One of the aims of the ICS system is to create a unified command structure for fighting a fire, regardless of the number and type of agencies involved and suppression resources employed. The unified command concept reinforces the understanding that there is one boss and everyone else knows his or her area of responsibility. The IC for a complex fire will strive to create a seamless organization among federal, state, local, and private cooperators (including volunteer fire departments).

ICS was designed to handle any type of emergency incident, regardless of size or complexity, by adding support positions to each major functional activity. Thus, each major function may have a support staff that expands with the complexity of the incident. A more complex organizational structure might be appropriate for a project fire with significant air and ground resources serviced by a fire camp and off-site aerial bases.

The Structure of an Expanded Incident Command System Operation

On larger fires, the IC might use additional staff, such as an Information Officer, Liaison Officer, and Safety Officer. The Information Officer would be responsible to the IC for communications with the news media, to local publics, to incident personnel, and other agencies or organizations. For multi-jurisdictional fires that involve several agencies, multiple languages, or prison inmate crews, separate Liaison Officers might be required for communicating and overseeing activities that affect each entity. The Safety Officer is responsible for recommending to the IC measures for stressing personnel safety, for identifying potentially dangerous or unsafe situations, or for investigating accidents that might occur. Additional branches and units supports each staff position in ICS (Operations, Plans, Logistics, and Finance/Administration) on a complex incident.

ICS manages the many activities that go on ?behind the scenes? in a typical fire camp. For example, the daily Incident Action Plan detailing the operations to be carried out on the day and night shifts may be written as a collaborative effort between the Operations and Planning Section Chiefs. Also, the overhead team leaders may provide input to the Wildland Fire Situation Analysis (WFSA), a formal document describing the complexity of an incident and documenting the rationale used to arrive at a selected suppression alternative, from among the available options. On some complex incidents, a special team may be formed to work on the WFSA.

For larger fires, firefighters may come from federal agencies, native tribes, state forestry agencies, and low-security detention facilities.  Other labor sources include local volunteer, municipal or private fire departments or contractors. Seasonal employees with non-fire job responsibilities may be recruited and organized into Type II crews. The military, especially the Army or National Guard, may be mobilized on the more complex incidents. Although the strategies for fighting a fire may be similar as an incident grows in size and complexity, the tactics may differ considerably, relying on heavy equipment and interregional Hotshot crews for fireline construction on intense sectors of large fires, for example.

Particularly challenging fires may dictate the need for skilled and experienced Hotshot crews who build firelines under the most arduous conditions. In remote, mountainous terrain, smokejumpers may parachute down to a fire site or a Helitack crew may rappel down to a position close to the fire. If a road network is nearby, fire engines and hand crews may become part of the team. As a fire grows in size or if other ignitions occur, additional regional or national resources may be mobilized, including an administrative or supervisory team known as fire overhead. If the fire exceeds the capabilities of the local agency with jurisdiction over the fire, that agency can request additional resources through a regional Geographical Area Coordination Center (GACC) or from the National Interagency Coordination Center (NICC) in Boise, Idaho. As a fire grows in size and complexity, an increasingly sophisticated organization structure will be built. A Type II overhead team may be dispatched to assist local jurisdictions with the initial attack. Eventually a Type I team may be dispatched if fire complexity overwhelms the Type II team.

In the US, the federal government hires contractors to provide many of the resources used on fire incidents, including aerial control and support services, commissary goods, fire control chemicals, showers, and portable toilets. Other contracted services may include heavy equipment such as engine crews, bulldozers, water tenders, flatbed trucks, and chainsaws crews. The Federal Excess Personal Property (FEPP) program allows firefighting organizations to acquire title to equipment from other federal agencies that no longer need it, including trucks, aircraft, personal protective equipment, motor oil, nuts and bolts, and hoses. Many states have taken advantage of this program to develop sophisticated fleets of firefighting vehicles, most often equipped with slip-on water tanks and hydraulic pumps.

Repeated large fire seasons have spawned a huge market for support services, in areas as diverse as full-service kitchens, sanitation and waste-disposal, hand and power tools, aerial fire control, chemical retardants and foams, firefighting crew, and engine crew. The breadth of this market becomes evident especially on project and mega-fires, where personnel, equipment, and supplies are shipped to a fire camp and employed to manage the incident--in essence creating a small city with typical infrastructure needs. The service market for wildland fire use or prescribed fire programs is much less developed at this time, perhaps because these provide less lucrative opportunities for contractors.

Wildland firefighters are taught to always consider safety first when combating a wildfire. Loss of life while fighting a wildfire is simply unacceptable, no matter how valuable the resources under protection or at risk (Omi, In Press).  Even seasoned veterans can benefit from review and reinforcement of the principles underlying safety standards, especially when confronted with fires of increasing complexity and risk.  Firefighters should know the proper way to use hand tools for using Chopping Tool Safety Guidelines and Grubbing Tool Safety Guidelines.  Risks to firefighters can also be reduced by wearing protective clothing and carrying proper, up-to-date gear.

All new firefighters learn the 10 Standard Firefighting Orders and the 18 Watch Out Situations while working on the fireline.  The 10 Standard Firefighting Orders were developed in 1957 by a task force established to prevent firefighter injuries and fatalities, following the Inaja fire in southern California where 11 firefighters were killed. The 18 Watch Out Situations were identified shortly after that incident to specify the traits of extremely hazardous situations. The 10 Standard Firefighting Orders are non-negotiable requirements for conducting safe firefighting operations, linking overhead expectations to the rights of fire crew to be given safe assignments on an ongoing fire incident.  Strict adherence to the orders should ensure public safety as well.

Over time the 10 Standard Firefighting Orders and 18 Watch Out Situations have become widely accepted to be followed at all times on all incidents. The orders are firm—not to be broken or relaxed under any circumstances. In fact, the 10 orders are invoked when investigators seek to assign causal factors to fatalities or accidents on fires. The 18 Watch Out Situations point out circumstances historically associated with firefighter fatalities and injuries.

Surprisingly many mishaps occur on smaller fires or on isolated portions of larger fires. Tragedy fires commonly occur on fires that are innocent in appearance prior to flare-ups or blow-ups, even on mop-up stages of some fires. Other common denominators include flare-ups in deceptively light fuels, fire runs on steep slopes with chimney canyons, fires fanned by helicopter rotor washes or blasts of air associated with air tankers (Wilson 1977). Sadly, recent death and injuries (as well as near-misses) recur with disturbing regularity despite documentation of the dangers and necessary precautions.

Fatalities and mishaps can usually be traced to violations in one or more of the 10 Standard Firefighting Orders, or failure to pay sufficient attention to at least one of the 18 Watch Out Situations. Usually fatalities involve multiple infractions. Even so, firefighters may sometimes develop a false sense of security when infractions repeatedly occur without undesirable consequences. Tragic problems occur whenever firefighters do not put safety first and are caught unaware by sudden changes in the fire’s behavior. Breakdowns in communication are another common culprit when fatalities or injuries occur. 

10 Standard Fire Orders required of wildland firefighters are designed to ensure compliance and facilitate memorization. The 18 Watch Out Situations complement the 10 Standard Fire Orders

1. Fight fire aggressively but provide for safety first.
2. Initiate all action based on current and expected fire behavior.
3. Recognize current weather conditions and obtain forecasts.
4. Ensure that instructions are given and understood.
5. Obtain current information on fire status.
6. Remain in communication with crewmembers, your supervisor, and adjoining forces.
7. Determine safety zones and escape routes
8. Establish lookouts in potentially hazardous situations.
9. Retain control at all times
10. Stay alert, keep calm, think clearly, and act decisively.

Each of the 10 Standard Firefighting Orders reinforce the other Orders. For example, orders 2, 3, and 5 relate to fire behavior. Orders 4, 6, and 9 relate to organizational control. Standards 7, 8, and 10 identify key safety requirements, while the first order in some respects provides an overarching mandate to firefighters. Gleason (1991) condensed some of the above concerns into four basic safety elements key to safe procedures for firefighters. His LCES system (Lookouts, Communications, Escape Routes, and Safety Zones) was developed to reinforce iterative refocusing by firefighters on the essential elements of the standard fire orders.

A safety zone is a location where threatened firefighters can find adequate refuge from heat and rolling debris. Firefighters are sometimes encouraged to ?get to the black? and, if necessary, deploy their personal protective equipment if trapped by an oncoming fire front, meaning that burned area may provide as good a safety zone as any, especially if cleared of re-burnable surface or crown fuels. As a general guideline, safety zones should be large enough to accommodate all threatened firefighters with a minimum distance of at least four times the maximum approaching flame length (www.nifc.gov/sixminutes). The LCES system places emphasis on firefighters having multiple routes for reaching a safety zone, to provide an extra mea