NJFFSA16
04-26-2005, 04:19 AM
New firefighting style tested at Camp 5 blaze
rbpsdrap
RAPID CITY, S.D. (AP) - South Dakota officials were almost giddy
over what happened during the Camp 5 forest fire near Deadwood last
week.
U.S. Forest Service District Ranger Pam Brown and Joe Lowe,
director of the state Division of Wildland Fire Suppression, said a
new fire management structure could have profound results in the
fire-prone Black Hills National Forest in southwest South Dakota
and northeast Wyoming.
"From my perspective, this was huge," said Brown, who runs the
Northern Hills District of the Black Hills National Forest.
The April 17 fire burned 775 acres, or a little more than 1
square mile, about halfway between Deadwood and Sturgis.
Firefighters had it 60 percent contained April 18 and fully
contained by the next night.
Though cool, wet weather the first night of the fire helped put
it down, both Lowe and Brown emphasized quick actions that helped
save homes in a nearby subdivision: a crucial "burn-out" and fire
lines built on the east side of the fire.
They were excited about a fire management structure called a
"unified command," which allows various agencies to come together
quickly to coordinate firefighting efforts.
At the Camp 5 fire, using the new technique allowed officials to
come up with a written fire plan within minutes of their arrival on
the scene.
Lowe and Forest Service firefighter Terry Tompkins were among
the first to get there. Because the fire was on Forest Service
land, Tompkins would have been in charge under the traditional
system.
However, Lowe had already discussed trying the unified command
system with Dean Berger, fire management officer for the Black
Hills National Forest. Lowe and Tompkins, talking on cell phones on
their way to the fire, decided to give unified command a try.
Brown, who manages the ranger district where the fire started, also
approved.
"We had to get after it fast," she said.
Lowe and Tompkins met in person at the fire to discuss a
strategy, which included fighting the fire aggressively all night,
focusing on the east flank of the fire and setting a risky east
flank burn-out that could help save homes. They also agreed on a
system for ordering people, equipment and supplies and even roughed
out a cost-sharing agreement.
Lowe said the most important objective, aside from safety, was
to "build a box" on a map.
"Once the box is defined, you look for ways to keep the fire in
it," he said.
While Lowe and Tompkins were building the box, the initial
responders worked the fire, which was already moving fast through
tree tops. Lowe and Tompkins then picked an "operations officer"
to run the effort.
That turned out to be Randy Skelton, a battalion chief with the
Rapid City Fire Department.
Brown said that from the first night on, firefighters from about
a dozen organizations worked as though they had trained together
all year. They came from the Forest Service, the state of South
Dakota, the National Park Service, the Bureau of Indian Affairs,
volunteer fire departments and county agencies. Specially trained
state prisoners from the Rapid City Trusty Unit also fought the
blaze.
"It's great when it's so effortless," Brown said, because
multi-jurisdictional firefighting can be difficult.
Though parts of the unified command system have been used here
before, Lowe said this was the first time the formal structure had
been used on a big wildfire in the Black Hills.
He said the Black Hills National Forest is honeycombed with
private land holdings, which makes it ripe for jurisdictional
confusion.
(Copyright 2005 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
rbpsdrap
RAPID CITY, S.D. (AP) - South Dakota officials were almost giddy
over what happened during the Camp 5 forest fire near Deadwood last
week.
U.S. Forest Service District Ranger Pam Brown and Joe Lowe,
director of the state Division of Wildland Fire Suppression, said a
new fire management structure could have profound results in the
fire-prone Black Hills National Forest in southwest South Dakota
and northeast Wyoming.
"From my perspective, this was huge," said Brown, who runs the
Northern Hills District of the Black Hills National Forest.
The April 17 fire burned 775 acres, or a little more than 1
square mile, about halfway between Deadwood and Sturgis.
Firefighters had it 60 percent contained April 18 and fully
contained by the next night.
Though cool, wet weather the first night of the fire helped put
it down, both Lowe and Brown emphasized quick actions that helped
save homes in a nearby subdivision: a crucial "burn-out" and fire
lines built on the east side of the fire.
They were excited about a fire management structure called a
"unified command," which allows various agencies to come together
quickly to coordinate firefighting efforts.
At the Camp 5 fire, using the new technique allowed officials to
come up with a written fire plan within minutes of their arrival on
the scene.
Lowe and Forest Service firefighter Terry Tompkins were among
the first to get there. Because the fire was on Forest Service
land, Tompkins would have been in charge under the traditional
system.
However, Lowe had already discussed trying the unified command
system with Dean Berger, fire management officer for the Black
Hills National Forest. Lowe and Tompkins, talking on cell phones on
their way to the fire, decided to give unified command a try.
Brown, who manages the ranger district where the fire started, also
approved.
"We had to get after it fast," she said.
Lowe and Tompkins met in person at the fire to discuss a
strategy, which included fighting the fire aggressively all night,
focusing on the east flank of the fire and setting a risky east
flank burn-out that could help save homes. They also agreed on a
system for ordering people, equipment and supplies and even roughed
out a cost-sharing agreement.
Lowe said the most important objective, aside from safety, was
to "build a box" on a map.
"Once the box is defined, you look for ways to keep the fire in
it," he said.
While Lowe and Tompkins were building the box, the initial
responders worked the fire, which was already moving fast through
tree tops. Lowe and Tompkins then picked an "operations officer"
to run the effort.
That turned out to be Randy Skelton, a battalion chief with the
Rapid City Fire Department.
Brown said that from the first night on, firefighters from about
a dozen organizations worked as though they had trained together
all year. They came from the Forest Service, the state of South
Dakota, the National Park Service, the Bureau of Indian Affairs,
volunteer fire departments and county agencies. Specially trained
state prisoners from the Rapid City Trusty Unit also fought the
blaze.
"It's great when it's so effortless," Brown said, because
multi-jurisdictional firefighting can be difficult.
Though parts of the unified command system have been used here
before, Lowe said this was the first time the formal structure had
been used on a big wildfire in the Black Hills.
He said the Black Hills National Forest is honeycombed with
private land holdings, which makes it ripe for jurisdictional
confusion.
(Copyright 2005 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)