Wildfire Ecology

According to
Wikipedia
free online encyclopedia a wildfire is also known as a “forest fire, vegetation fire, grass fire, peat fire … bushfire (in Australia), or hill fire” that is “an uncontrolled fire occurring in wildland areas, but which can also consume houses or agricultural resources.”

Wildfires could be caused by a lightning bolt striking a tree or human carelessness when smoldering camp fires are left unattended or by cigarette butts tossed mindlessly into dried vegetation that is grass, twigs, brush, leaves or pine needles.

About 5-million acres will burn every year in the United States. According to the National Interagency Fire Center website as of July 13th, more than 50,000 fires had burned 2,832,759 acres in 2007. The U.S. government costs in fighting these wildfires are an estimated $2-billion dollars per year.

Burning Guidelines

About 90 percent of wildfires are caused by humans whether unintentionally through carelessness or intentionally by arson. Some guidelines for preventing them are appropriate:

1. Fires should not be left unattended
2. Burning should be done about 200 feet from all vegetation
3. Fires must be in a proper container preferably with a lid
4. Water should be handy for an emergency
5. If a full-blown fire develops a person must call the necessary fire units. It is unwise for him to try to put out a full-blown wildfire.

An individual could further protect his home by clearing all vegetation from around his house, using nonflammable materials in building materials and by attending preparedness seminars in his community.

Nature

Temperatures of wildfires could rise as much as 2,600 degrees Fahrenheit. That is high enough to melt iron into steel.

The forward blasts could be as wide as 60 feet and flames could shoot up to 325 feet and move as fast as 100 miles per hour. This is especially so of violent crown fires – called “firestorms” or “blowups,” that engulf the top of huge trees as they sweep across the landscape. The landscape’s topography also determines the speed a fire travels since it tends to move uphill faster.

Fire lookout towers are located in some wildfire prone areas. The Natural Weather Center for Atmospheric Research issues reports and computer models about the spread of these fires and their behavior e.g., the direction and force of the wind that is of great concern to this agency. It also looks at the humidity of the air. When there is more water in the air wildfires are unlikely to occur.

Firefighting

Wildfire firefighters undergo rigorous training. They have to be able to run an 11-minute mile, be able to fell trees with crosscut saws, carry 85-lb gear, learn to parachute and do fire management. They take precautionary measures by cleaning up leaves, brush, fallen trees and other debris that feed a fire in the forest.