2018 Wildfire Season

[Meadow Skipper]

Could you explain why the logging practices caused the fire? I'm just curious because I have no clue.

Untreated slash, leaving small trees, brush reproduction, etc.
http://geo.msu.edu/extra/geogmich/fires.html

Wasteful timber-cutting practices led to disastrous forest fires, including the deadly 1871 Peshtigo fire.

http://wxguys.ssec.wisc.edu/2016/10/10/peshtigo-fire/

The logging and land clearing practices of the time period, along with the sawmills of the area, provided debris that served as fuel for the Peshtigo Fire.

https://www.uwsp.edu/cnr-ap/leaf/Sit...d/LESSON6S.pdf

Leftover slash from logging, irresponsible use of fire, and a very dry summer were all causes of the Peshtigo fire.

Logging is often advanced as a method to prevent wildfires - IMO/IME it’s not. I think more or less along these lines:
https://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/23/o...wildfires.html

I will say that logging prevents valuable trees from burning, but that’s a not-so-subtle difference than preventing fires.

[PB]

According to a certain Leader of the (formerly) Free World, the fires are California's fault because we've wasted all our abundant water.

[Meadow Skipper]

According to a certain Leader of the (formerly) Free World, the fires are California's fault because we've wasted all our abundant water.

rotflmao. Fuckin’ moron:
https://amp.cnn.com/cnn/2018/08/06/u...res/index.html

In related news, the Mendocino Complex made a big run yesterday. Really big.

[AKPogue]

Meadow Skipper, thanks!

[KQ]

[yeahman]

Red flag fire weather today and tomorrow, temps up to 100 and single digit humidity, and this morning I saw a lady toss a burning cigarette out her car window. I stopped to extinguish it and saw her park. Started yelling at her when she got out. She thought I was mad because she was littering. I set her straight and ground it out in the street and told her to put it OUT next time. I think she got it. Some people just don't pay attention to what's going on in the world around them. I'll just throw this fucking cigarette out with an inch left to burn on a red flag day. Ho hum.

Can't recall the last time I yelled at a stranger like that, if ever. The stress of fire season I guess. Even though we have been very lucky so far in most parts of Montana, it is far from over.

[S_jenks]

One thing I can say through the hazy skies here is that we're damn lucky we've not had as many dry cold fronts come through.

It felt like Red Flag warnings were issued every week last summer, and those wind storms were directly responsible for a lot of the acreage burned that year in MT (Rice Ridge, Apgar, Lolo Peak, etc.)

If we ain't having rain, then at least we've got a strong high pressure ridge keeping those winds down. Hold on tight...

[goldengatestinx]

Red flag fire weather today and tomorrow, temps up to 100 and single digit humidity, and this morning I saw a lady toss a burning cigarette out her car window. I stopped to extinguish it and saw her park. Started yelling at her when she got out. She thought I was mad because she was littering. I set her straight and ground it out in the street and told her to put it OUT next time. I think she got it. Some people just don't pay attention to what's going on in the world around them. I'll just throw this fucking cigarette out with an inch left to burn on a red flag day. Ho hum.

Can't recall the last time I yelled at a stranger like that, if ever. The stress of fire season I guess. Even though we have been very lucky so far in most parts of Montana, it is far from over.

The attempted arson side of things is bad. But even when wet cig butts take years to decompose. Depending on the climate of the area it could take 10 years. Dumbasses who toss their cig butts off the chair before unloading piss me off on the litter side of things.

Past that we've been OK on the fire side of things. Lots of calls for smoke that's been drifting over the divide but nothing so far in our district. Now that I've opened my FFT1 task book there won't be anything nearby to start getting things signed off.

[char_]

Now that I've opened my FFT1 task book there won't be anything nearby to start getting things signed off.

Oh man, I figured you were like 65 years old.

[dunfree]

rotflmao. Fuckin’ moron

it's just an excuse to kill salmon.

[KQ]

[AK47bp]

Montana must of paid someone off.


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[bodywhomper]

Red flag warning = pre-evacuation notice. Is this a new use of the warning?

Just got back from a week of camping on the mendo coast. It was nice to be out of the smoke. Lots of evacuees in the area. One told me it was her 6th time in 3 years to be under a mandatory evacuation. Saw two new fires (grass) on the way home.

[XXX-er]

"B.C.'s Wildfire Service says there are 472 active wildfires burning throughout the province — more than 30 of those considered fires of note because they are highly visible or threaten homes."


https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/briti...ires-1.4780912

Another big fire year up here, maybe even bigger than last year

I picked up a little work delivering groceries and prep cooks to fire camps last year, cuz an army marches on its stomach so it looks like I got the same gig happening this year,

kind of eerie when you are driving thru the bush in all that low lying smoke

[zartagen]

There were some fresh grass fires on I-5 south of Sacramento on Tuesday. Saw a utility pole smoldering at the (former) base, top half suspended from the wires.

[Meadow Skipper]

I just read this post on FB, 19 hours old:

Washington State, 68 new fire starts in last 24hrs, had a lightning storm come across state

Hang on.

[lifelinksplit]

Montana must of paid someone off.


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We just had quite a few pop up this weekend around sw montana. And inciweb has been down most of the day.

[Harry]

Montana must of paid someone off.


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We just had quite a few pop up this weekend around sw montana. And inciweb has been down most of the day.

Big Sky filled up with smoke today. A new lightning caused fire near Ennis blew up today and threatened a subdivision (those houses to left if you are driving to Virginia City). I am signed up for Madison Country alert messages, and I received multiple texts today informing me of where the evacuation center is, etc... Very impressed with this system.

[KQ]

I just read this post on FB, 19 hours old:

Hang on.

Fire in Kennewick yesterday took three homes and two horses.

There's a big one burning up in Coulee City (Grass Valley Fire) - level 3 evac.

[yeahman]

Speaking of Montana, came up to Glacier thinking it would be the one place in the West without fires, and last night three lightning fires flared up in the park. Smoky on the east side.



Edit: Just heard the park service closed Going to the Sun road west of Logan Pass. Fire on Howe Ridge near Lake MacDonald.

[goldengatestinx]

Took a drive up across RMNP yesterday to get away from the house and wander...along with a little fishing. The smoke east onto the Front Range and plains was crazy thick. Right about sun down there was a straight line of what looked like smoke layer SW to NE over the furthest east peaks. Never saw anything like it before.

I'm thinking it was a jet stream thing sucking smoke across the state. Didn't get a pic unfortunately.

[S_jenks]

Got back Sunday from an overnight 4x4 camping trip in the Tobacco Roots. Not many places left in the state that hasn't banned campfires. Our site was only a couple miles from the still-small Virginia Creek fire, and was eerie to watch:



The monument fire also started that evening in the Gravelly range just south of us, and grew to 2000 acres real quick.

Bye-bye campfire season.

[Norseman]

That sucks. Gravellys are cool.

Monument fire is toasting some nice hunting lands that my family has been visiting for a long time.

Prolly good in the long run to clear out all those beetle-killed whitebarks n shit. All that country has been primed to burn for a while. Still sad, in our short-sighted view

[Norseman]

Looks like the Bacon Rind fire is still active. There's some good ski touring in the area that might be improved nicely with the burn.

[S_jenks]

Looks like the Bacon Rind fire is still active. There's some good ski touring in the area that might be improved nicely with the burn.

Been periodically checking on that one. They really haven't given much of a shit about it so far since it's not been threatening any structures/property. Definitely could open up some nice mellow touring.

On the way back we had stopped fro gas in Cardwell, and happened upon a firefighter in their USFS-green fire engine. They had just came from a small spot fire in Deer Lodge, and were being reassigned to 8 different lightning-starts in the SW MT. I thanked her for their service and mentioned how bad the smoke gets towards Ennis.