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Speeding Wildfire Contained in France

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“I CAN’T BELIEVE THAT ALL THIS CAN BE SPONTANEOUS,” related Colonel Christopher Risdorfer, the Director of County Fire and Rescue Herault in France.  Monday afternoon around 1 pm the first of several fires started in the brush and scrub land in and around Herault, Meze and Fontanes.  With a strong wind blowing one of the fires raced through 3,000 hectares in a brief time and brought five Canadair firefighting planes to the scene to assist.

Literally hundreds of firefighters were brought in to tackle the many fires threatening the communities.  The town of Meze has been most affected with a house burned down and the inhabitants evacuated in haste.

Paris Match

“Five Canadair aircraft, two trackers and a Dash resumed aerial rotations. It seems that the main fire was contained around the village of Saint-Bauzille Montmel, located about ten kilometers north of Montpellier, “said Peter Maitrot, chief of staff of the prefect.

AFP

One of the main highways, the A9 was shut down for 16 hours because of the dangers along the freeway from the fires as seen in the later moments of this video:

The remaining fire is now contained and hopes are to continue it as the strong, sudden wind gusts are capable of moving the fire 300 meters along in seconds.

Paris Match has a recent REPORT.
Le JDD has MORE.

Update:  All fires are reported to be out now.

From Le Figaro:

These were the largest fires recorded this summer in the Southeast. In total, nearly 3,000 hectares of vegetation have gone up in smoke since Monday afternoon. Tuesday morning, the fire that destroyed some 2,800 hectares in the single department of Herault was contained on Tuesday morning.  A dozen homes have been destroyed, however, including four in the village of Guzargues.

The fire that started Monday afternoon north of Montpellier, near Fontanes, “is fixed and will not progress,” said Colonel Christopher Risdorfer, the commander of firefighters in  Herault. Firefighters, however, remain “very, very careful because we are not immune to a takeover. The wind picked up in the zone. It was weak in the early hours but it has strengthened. ”

The 900 firefighters from departments in reinforcing of Languedoc-Roussillon, PACA region and even the Auvergne, fought the flames all night to contain the blaze on three fronts – north, west and south-east – and prevent its spread to the capital of the Hérault, distant ten miles. At dawn, four Canadair Dash resumed their rotation that was interrupted by nightfall.

AFP

Another fire that started around 16:30 between Monday and Meze Villeveyrac, south-west of Montpelier, also destroyed 600 hectares of vegetation in the same department. It jumped over the A9 highway which was temporarily closed. The fire then hit the outskirts of Meze, where homes have been evacuated. According to the first deputy of the city, Yves Pietrasanta, a restaurant and a wine factory burned in the fire, which reached the entrance to an industrial park and failed to reach a new police station that had been evacuated. The fire was contained around 21:30.

Posted by on August 31, 2010 • Filed under: fire, Fires, Videos, Wildland

Wildfire Sweeps Through 11 Homes in Oregon

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A GRASS FIRE NEAR ASHLAND, OREGON, RACED INTO A neighborhood and destroyed 11 homes before the fire departments could contain it Tuesday afternoon.  Stiff winds at the time sped the flames and challenged the first-arriving units.

KDRV-TV

The Ashland Fire Department was already on the scene of a brush fire along the west side if I-5 freeway that had involved a large barn when they saw the flames on the other side of the highway and called in the alarm just before 5 pm.  The fire was rapidly upgraded to 4 alarms and it took 70 firefighters with 20 engines until 8:30 to contain it.  They were assisted by two helicopters plus Forestry Department units.

 ”I looked out, and the sky was just burning,” Cindy Walker told reporters. “Right across the street it was on fire.  Immediately a second house ignited, and then a third while I was on a line to dispatch.  Then I hung up and started to water my yard and neighbors’ houses, ’til the Fire Department showed up.

“It was just inferno — black smoke, RV, things blowing up, gas tanks, tires,” she said. “Propane tanks, I don’t know. It sounded like bombs going off. Like tornados of black smoke coming out of garages and backyards.”

 

KDRV-TV

KDRV-TV has a 14-image photo gallery HERE.

KATU-TV Ch. 2 filed this video report:

Some additional brief video from the fire scene:

The Ashland Daily Times has a recent report along with a map showing the locations of the two fires HERE.
The Associated Press has MORE.
The Mail Tribune also has a GOOD REPORT.

KDRV-TV

Ashland Fire Department WEBSITE.

Posted by on August 25, 2010 • Filed under: fire, Fires, Videos, Wildland • Tagged:

Russia Wildfire Update

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THE DEVASTATING WILDFIRES IN CENTRAL RUSSIA CONTINUE TO overwhelm the thousands of firefighters, volunteers and military people who have been battling the hundreds of fires since last week.  (See the previous Firegeezer reports HERE and HERE.)

AP

The official death toll has now reached 50 after a body was found in one of the more than 300 villages that have been destroyed by the fires.

President Dmitry Medvedev fired seven high-ranking military officials Wednesday over what he called criminal negligence in fires that destroyed 13 hangars and tons of aviation equipment at the Komona navy base while the officers were absent from their posts.

There are still nearly 600 fires burning out of control and the capital city of Moscow is covered under a thick smog created by the fires.  Current levels of carbon monoxide in Moscow soared overnight to about 5.7 times safe levels as daytime temperatures continue to climb over 100º F.  This video report from the Associated Press was filed from Moscow yesterday and it includes some footage of Russia’s robotic firetrucks at work:

In the Nizhny Novgorod region, east of Moscow, firefighters have been battling blazes near a major nuclear research facility in Sarov.  As a precaution, all nuclear materials have been removed from the site, which is about 400km (250 miles) from Moscow.

About 20% of Russia’s grain crops have been destroyed.

Russia Today has posted this comprehensive video report earlier today:

This map provided by BBC News shows the regions that are in the
state of emergency in the shaded areas.

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Posted by on August 5, 2010 • Filed under: fire, Fires, Videos, Wildland

Russia Wildfire Update

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UPDATE TO YESTERDAY’S REPORT HERE ON THE CATASTROPHIC FIRE EMERGENCY IN RUSSIA.

The death toll from the hundreds of fires that are raging through 14 Regions in Russia has risen to 40 Monday evening.  More than 2,000 homes have been destroyed and an additional 500 fires have started in the past 48 hours.  Currently there are still 580 working fires.

This is one of the most gripping videos we’ve seen in a long time.  Four young men attempting to drive out of harms way find themselves surrounded by the fire and are trapped.  At first they consider bailing out and running for their lives, but they reconsider and attempt to drive through the flames.  You will see and hear them as they reach a moment of panic  when they don’t know if they will make it.  Finally they get through the flames and are then enveloped in the thick, acrid smoke.  Obviously they made it, because their home video is here for you to view:

The government estimates that the army, firefighters, and civil defense personnel have saved more than 280 villages from being overrun by the flames and at least 86,000 people have been safely escorted to freedom.

Watch for more updates later.

Posted by on August 2, 2010 • Filed under: fire, Fires, Videos, Wildland

Aerial Tanker Crash in Canada

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A CANADIAN AERIAL FIRE TANKER CRASHED last night (Saturday)
in British Columbia killing both crewmen on board.

This AP file photo shows a Conair water bomber
that is similar to the one that crashed Saturday night.

CBC News is reporting:

The company that owns a water bomber that crashed while battling wildfires in B.C.’s Fraser Canyon confirmed Sunday that the pilot and co-pilot of the plane are dead.  Crews can see the crash site, south of Lytton, but conditions are still too dangerous to reach the wreckage. They got within 500 metres of the scene Saturday night, Conair said.  There are reports the crash of the Convair 580, based in Abbotsford, sparked a new wildfire.

The water bomber went down just before 9 p.m. local time Saturday, about 15 kilometres south of Lytton, said Capt. Marguerite Dodds-Lepinski, the public affairs officer for the Joint Rescue Co-ordination Centre in Victoria.

About 1,000 firefighters are on the front lines across B.C., supported by air tankers, helicopters and heavy machinery, to battle more than 300 forest fires in the province.

In a press statement released early Sunday morning, RCMP spokesman Cpl. Dan Moskaluk said that two crew members were on the Conair-owned aircraft contracted out to the B.C. Ministry of Forest and Lands as it dropped water on a new fire near Siwash Rd. in the Lytton area.

Witnesses reported seeing the plane fall from the sky. A second Conair aircraft that was shadowing the air tanker pinpointed the location of the crash site for crews on the ground.

“The Lytton RCMP and first response rescue crews were able to locate the crash location,” Moskaluk said,  “However crews were not able to get to the crash site due to steep terrain and fire condition. We can confirm that the crash site had erupted into flames and was fully engulfed sparking a wildfire itself.”

Paramedics and officers with the Lytton RCMP detachment were able to get within 500 metres of the crash site on Saturday, but the fire forced them to turn back, according to Moskaluk.  Firefighters, police, search-and-rescue crews and aircraft will fight the new fire and attempt to reach the crash site Sunday morning, he said.

Posted by on August 1, 2010 • Filed under: aircraft, Wildland

Wildfire Catastrophe in Russia

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AN UNBEARABLE COMBINATION OF A HEAT WAVE, high winds, and an ongoing drought have combined to put much of Russia into a state of emergency as wildfires break out by the scores.  The size and numbers of the fires have outstripped the country’s ability to reasonably handle the emergency.

AFP

As of Sunday morning, more than 500 sq. miles of land are burning in 14 different regions of the country.  So far, at least 30 people are dead and untold thousands are homeless as many entire villages, 77 at least, have been destroyed. 

Entire towns have been overrun by the flames (AFP)

 Russia Today filed this raw video documenting the devastation of one town:

More than 2,000 homes have been lost along with thousands of acres of cropland.

AFP

About 230,000 people, firefighters, military and others, are engaged in the efforts to control the fires.  The army has dispatched all 300 of its firetrucks to assist the local FD’s and 226 aircraft are deployed.

Reuters photos

Temperatures have been exceeding 40º C. (104º F.) every day and are predicted to continue.

Reuters

All of central Russia is covered with smoke from the hundreds of fires still burning and growing.

The city of Voronezh is covered with smoke (AFP)

This home video taken Friday evening shows a large fire encroaching on the city of Vyksa:

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Posted by on August 1, 2010 • Filed under: fire, Fires, Major Incidents, Videos, Wildland

California Brush Fires Claim 40 Homes, Still Spreading.

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Sacramento Bee

TWO FAST-MOVING BRUSH FIRES IN KERN COUNTY, California, have raced through 17,000 acres and destroyed at least 40 homes.  The most destructive of the two fires is near the town of Tehachapi and has claimed more than 30 houses and still threatens 150 more.  So far, 2,300 people have been evacuated.  Currently it is about 20% contained.

That fire began Tuesday afternoon around 2 pm and the high winds whipped it up and sent it moving so fast that the residents had no time to gather any belongings before fleeing for their lives.  This early video report from AP interviews some of the evacuees and shows the initial damage:

The other fire began Monday afternoon and covers a much larger area, but it is sparsely settled and only 8 or 10 dwellings have been destroyed so far.  As of this morning it was only 5% contained.

The Associated Press reports:

The winds rise as the sun burns off a dewy inversion layer of cooler air, and that could cause the fires to flare up, said Jeff Barlow, a senior forecaster with the National Weather Service in Hanford.

“It’s like opening a flue to a fireplace and that’s when you see these things really run,” he said.

Sacramento Bee

Years of drought in the Tehachapi area, along with tree diseases and bugs among the foothills’ pine and chaparral, have turned the area into a “tinderbox,” said county fire Battalion Chief David Goodell.

KGET-TV Ch. 17 has more plus a video HERE.

The AP has a later video report:

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Posted by on July 28, 2010 • Filed under: fire, Fires, Videos, Wildland • Tagged: , ,

Wildfire Season Pops Up in Portugal

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THE WILDFIRE SEASON TOOK OFF IN A BIG WAY this week in Portugal.  Many grass and forest fires blew up and as of 7 pm Tuesday evening there were 23 active fires keeping more than 900 firefighters busy in the small country  according to the National Authority for Civil Protection.

Global Imagens

The largest one currently burning is in the District of Alcacer do Sal, mobilizing 215 firefighters, 66 vehicles and a helicopter water bomber.  Other fires which are using over a hundred firefighters are in Pataias, Alcobaça and Rebordelo, Santa Maria da Feira.

Global Imagens

Global Imagens

The fire hazard is magnfied by a heat wave covering the country with temperatures over 40º C. (105º+ F.) and tinder-dry vegetation.  The District of Aveiro has the most fires with sixteen.

A large number of the blazes are in populated areas and are threatening thousands of homes.

These two videos show the encroachment on the residential areas:

Publico has the STORY.

Posted by on July 28, 2010 • Filed under: fire, Fires, Videos, Wildland

Menacing Wildfire Threatens Towns Around Marseille

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All photos via Le Figaro

THE FIRST WILDFIRE OF THE SEASON took off Saturday evening in the southern region of Rhone, France.  The fire traveled through 900 hectares (2,200 acres) before it was brought under control Sunday morning.

During the night the blaze began moving toward the town of  d’Ensuès-la-Redonne when winds of 90 kmh (55 mph) whipped the flames up and directed the fire in that direction.  A total of 450 firefighters were on the scene and had the fire under control and contained by midday Sunday.

Police have opened a criminal investigation into the fire after learning it was started by a burning auto left in the forest.  The car, a Porsche Cayenne had been stolen earlier that morning in Marignane and abandoned.  It hasn’t been learned if the car was left because it had caught fire, or whether it was deliberately torched.

L’Express has the STORY.

AFP filed this brief video report from the fire scene:

Posted by on July 25, 2010 • Filed under: fire, Videos, Wildland

Engine 31 Update

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Update, 11 pm:  Yakima Scanner Live has the archived radio traffic of the burning of Eng. 31 HERE.

THE BRUSH FIRE IN YAKIMA COUNTY, WASHINGTON, that overran and burned a fire engine last night is now 15% contained.  See the Firegeezer report from this morning HERE.

The carcass of West Valley FD Engine 31 lays in the burn zone after being overrun
Sunday night.  The engine is valued at $400,000.  (Herald-Republic photo)

The winds have diminished enough that the fire is not spreading right now.  West Valley Fire Chief Dave Leitch said “The fire is not aggressively burning. We are trying to support our control lines, refortify and start mopup around structures.”

All evacuations have been lifted and residents are being permitted back into their homes.  A re-evaluation of the damaged area disclosed that only two homes were burned instead of the three reported earlier.  Firefighters from several other counties were brought in today to relieve the exhausted crews that worked all night.  All efforts are directed toward controlling the 15-mile perimeter of the fire.

The Yakima Herald-Republic has the UPDATE.

Posted by on July 19, 2010 • Filed under: apparatus, fire, Firefighting Operations, Vehicle Operations & Apparatus, Wildland • Tagged: , ,

Growing Wildfire Claims Homes and Firetruck

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Update, 5 pm:  Updated report with photo of Eng. 31 HERE.

A WILDFIRE WEST OF YAKIMA, WASHINGTON, sprang up Sunday afternoon and has grown overnight.  The fire has burned down at least three homes and many outbuildings as high winds drive it and expand the burn area.  One fire engine was destroyed as the fire moved over it early in the operation.  By Sunday evening it had grown to 10,000 acres.  There were 200 firefighters working the blaze Sunday night with another 100 expected to arrive Monday morning.

Herald-Republic

The Yakima Herald-Republic continues:

The blaze started as a small brush fire at 2401 Cowiche Mill Road in Cowiche Canyon across from the Cowiche Creek Nursery. Flames were first reported about 2:30 p.m. Heavy winds prompted the fire to travel southwest over the hillside into the West Valley area. Firefighters estimated wind speeds at 20 and 25 miles per hour, with gusts as high as 35 mph.

The flames engulfed West Valley fire engine 31 and sent three firefighters to an area hospital to be treated for smoke inhalation. Shelters were not deployed, but (West Valley FD Chief) Leitch said the engine is lost.

Engine 31 before yesterday.

Richard Andring, public information officer for the West Valley fire department, said the fire will continue through today, with containment efforts taking another couple days.  The fire is approaching an area that contains a gravel pit and the fire lines are being created with the purpose of directing the fire toward that area.

Wildfire helicopter dips into a fruit orchard reservoir.
(Herald-Republic photo)

Posted by on July 19, 2010 • Filed under: fire, Fires, Wildland • Tagged: ,

Extraordinary Wildfire in France

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 A fire ravaged the Mountains d’ Arrée in France Sunday, bringing 180 firefighters and 55 fire trucks to the scene.  One brush truck was destroyed and two firefighters were injured, however both were treated and released later. At 7:30 pm the fire was contained.

france b

 ”It’s very very hot. We had flames up to 110 feet (33 meters) high.” said a fire department spokesman. “A team of firefighters from Landivisiau is monitoring  blackened remains of the Arrée Mountains to prevent new outbreaks.  In the distance, on the other side of the ridge, we saw large clouds of smoke. It is now there that firefighters are fighting vigorously to retain the progress of the fire.  It has devoured the countryside between the towns of Botmeur and Commana, and in the heart of Finistere and Brittany Regional Natural Park.  The firefighters Landivisiau are positioned a few meters from the origin of the fire. The steaming shell of a truck dedicated to the fight against forest fires is there to show the rapid progress of the flames. It belongs to the firestation of Brasparts.”

france d bikers

The firefighters of Brasparts arrived first on-site, around 1:00 pm, but the local firefighters, were perfectly versed in this type of terrain, were surprised by the spread of fire pushed by the winds. They had to abandon their vehicle and two firemen were slightly burned on the legs.

Four hours later, the 180 firefighters were still engaged directly with fire.  At the command post, Colonel Mahoudo was responsible for coordinating the activities of the companies involved. “The fire line was blocked on the right flank,” he said. Reinforcements were brought in along with fifteen more vehicles. More importantly, the firefighters used the Canadair based in Marseille, the tanker plane that drops retardent.

france c plane2

Finally, at 7:30 pm the firefighters had stopped the fire.. Thanks to the joint action of Canadair and firefighters on the ground, the fire seemed contained. In total, nearly 500 hectares (1,500 acres) have gone up in smoke.  On the ground, firefighters were preparing for a long night of watching to prevent a recurrence of fire.

This video captured the Canadair in operation on the fire:

Ouest France has several more videos from the fire posted HERE.
Maville has a 20-image photo gallery HERE.
Le Telegram has the STORY and more VIDEOS.

Posted by on May 24, 2010 • Filed under: aircraft, fire, Fires, Videos, Wildland • Tagged:

The Velocity Fire Force Tanker

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velocity a KTTV

KTTV image

A HOLLYWOOD STUNT-MAN HAS DEVELOPED WHAT HE THINKS could be a valuable resource for the incessant wildfires that occur in California and elsewhere every year.  George Sack has built a specially-designed tanker truck that blasts water and retardant ahead of oncoming flames.  Dubbed by Sack as the Velocity Fire Force, it has a shotgun-style nozzle that lays down a blanket of water or fire retardant up to 200 ft. away to act as a barrier to fire spread.

KTTV Ch. 11 filed this video report on his innovative tanker:

Sack has spent about five years developing and building his truck and has offered to sub-contract it to fire protection agencies for firefighting duty.  So far he hasn’t been able to convince any of them to try his approach.

Velocity Fire Force has a website HERE and has also produced this promotional video:

Posted by on December 15, 2009 • Filed under: apparatus, Vehicle Operations & Apparatus, Videos, Wildland • Tagged: , , , ,

Thinking Outside the (Fire)Box

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UNFORTUNATELY THE DESIGNER OF THE AMATOYA fire suppression vehicle doesn’t seem to realize just how much water you need in a wildland fire when you’re miles away from a source.  But we like his design as a starting point for what could become a practical firefighting vehicle if it’s efficiently outfitted.

amatoya a

The vehicle is described by Liam Ferguson, the designer as:  Amatoya is a concept reconnaissance and suppression vehicle that gives us a new approach to fire-fighting. This highly advanced and specialized light tanker functions primarily as a reconnaissance vehicle and offers unmatched vehicle and crew safety/survivability. It promises to be the best front line defense during the scene of an emergency. He is obviously working with wildland firefighting in mind and is approaching it from European viewpoint.

He continues:

Cabin temperature and vehicle survivability are central to the AMATOYA concept. Existing approaches in survival engineering on fire tankers consistently appears as augmentation rather than integration. Methods are passive, typically reactive and often incapacitate the appliance when in use. A key example is the use of curtain heat shields, while effective, when employed render the appliance out of operation.

To create a homogenous directive towards survivability AMATOYA incorporates state of the art clear aerogel laminated insulation in the windows and bodywork, a dedicated auxiliary water supply to operate a highly efficient, intelligent temperature controlled spray down system, military grade sacrificial thermo ceramic intumescent paints, and a mechanically injected large displacement diesel engine specifically engineered for the unique conditions experienced on the fire ground.

These measures will assure that even in the case of an extremely prolonged and high intensity burnover the vehicle will not only maintain cabin integrity, but opposed to existing appliances AMATOYA will remain fully operational.

The concept is explained in more detail along with a lot more photos and diagrams on the YankoDesign WEBSITE HERE.  Check it out and decide for yourself whether there is any potential in the design.

Posted by on December 7, 2009 • Filed under: apparatus, Fire Rescue Topics, Wildland • Tagged: , ,

Around the Fire Web

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*  The FireEMS Blogs community is growing with the addition of two more quality blogs to the community.  Wildfire Today, one of Firegeezer’s favorites, has now joined the group and with that site coupled with Firefighter Blog, we have the best wildfire news and coverage available on the web.  You can link to both of them, like all the other “members” directly from the FireEMSBlogs homepage or by logging in directly as you have in the past.

The other new site is parked over on the EMS side, MedicThree.  Offering a unique viewpoint on active EMS operations, I think you’ll find it a good read, too.  So Firegeezer and FossilMedic welcome both of them to the Fire and EMS gateway to the web.

*  The ick is starting to seep out of the box in Bourne, Massachusetts, and Dave Statter has been keeping us up-to-date daily on the racy situation in the fire department.  A new bombshell was dropped yesterday, keeping the story alive.  Catch today’s episode at STATter911 HERE and then click on the picture of the happy blonde.  (at least she was happy when the pic was snapped.)

*  Fire Daily has a good article on the arrival of the warship USS New York in NYC the other day.  A nice story with links to a couple of videos HERE.

Posted by on November 4, 2009 • Filed under: EMS Topics, Fire Blogs, Wildland

DirectTV Jams it to Wildfire Victims

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BACK IN AUGUST WHEN THE “STATION” FIRE roared through Los Angeles County, more than 70 homes were destroyed, most of them reduced to nothing more than ashes.  Several of them were satellite tv customers of the leading service DirectTV, a large corporation that apparently needs to work a bit harder on their customer relations policies.

Following the fire, DirectTV started charging the fire victims for the cost of their satellite receivers that are technically property of the service provider.  David Lazarus of the Los Angeles Times tells:

Ken Gray lost everything in August when his two-bedroom cabin burned to the ground in the devastating Station fire, the largest blaze in recorded Los Angeles County history.

The last thing he figured he needed to worry about were the two satellite-TV receivers consumed by the flames.

DirecTV had other ideas. The company deducted $279.87 from Gray’s bank account to cover the cost of its burned-to-a-crisp boxes, plus taxes.

“It’s hard to believe,” Gray, 63, told me. “What I’d like to do is take a shovel full of ashes from my cabin and dump it on their desk. They can have their receivers back.”

directtv a lat

Ken Gray surveys his entertainment center in this
L. A. Times photo by Jordan Grout

Following the destruction, Gray did the responsible thing and called DirectTV to tell them what happened and why he was canceling his account.  Then after seeing that his bank account had been charged, he called customer service.  Lazarus continues:

“They said it was a non-return fee for my two satellite boxes,” Gray recalled. “They said it wasn’t negotiable.”

He asked to speak with a supervisor and got the same response. In fact, Gray said, he was told that DirecTV was actually doing him a favor. He said the supervisor claimed he could have been billed as much as $400 for allowing his receivers to be roasted.

Now that they’ve been exposed by the Times, though, DirectTV has gone into damage-control and backed off charging the disaster victims for their failure to return their boxes.  Mr. Gray has had his funds returned to his account and the company is claiming to be taking measures to prevent this (publicity nightmare?) from happening again.  You can read the entire STORY HERE.

Posted by on October 24, 2009 • Filed under: current events, Fire Rescue Topics, Wildland • Tagged: , , , , ,