Wildfire Vigilance Especially Needed at This Time

"DCNR statistics show nearly 85 percent of Pennsylvania’s wildfires occur in March, April and May, before greening of state woodlands and brushy areas. 

In 2019, more than 500 wildfires burned 688 acres in Pennsylvania, destroyed 14 structures and caused three injuries. Human carelessness with outdoor fires continued to lead the list of causes of wildfires across the state.  Burning debris is the leading cause.

Fighting wildfires is dangerous. Related injuries would add challenges to already taxed first-responders and medical facilities.

Amid COVID-19 precautions and staffing restraints, the Bureau of Forestry’s wildfire fighting force is ready to meet any wildfire threats in the days ahead, but the help of all Pennsylvanians is needed. Property owners, anglers, hunters and others are urged to observe wildfire prevention vigilance throughout the state."

- Terrence Brady, Press Secretary - Office of the Secretary

Hazleton Tanker Base Update

Good morning everyone!

I hope you are staying relatively thawed out, as the tanker base is basically iced over yet again this year.

One good thing to come back to this morning, Tanker 865 landed safely ahead of the weather and is strapped down ready for the fire season this year. Here's to hoping we can give him some work this time around! Mid State's Tanker 855 also landed safely over the weekend before the weather could hit.

Both Hazleton and Mid State will have tankers on contract ready to roll this Saturday.

Fire Shelter Inspections

Firefighters are expected to inspect their fire shelters upon issue, and periodically throughout the fire season. While fire shelters do not have a specified shelf life, their condition determines their serviceability. You should also check them if anything out of the ordinary happens – a heavy rainstorm, it falls off a shelf, or your pack rolls down a hill – among other situations.

The condition of a shelter can be determined based on the wear of the protective bag surrounding the shelter.

There are three signs, in particular, that point to excessive shelter wear:

1.       A bag that had turned dark gray.

2.       Holes in the bag.

3.       Water in the bag.

PVC bags turning dark gray are the result of aluminum rubbing off the shelter onto the bag. Therefore, the more aluminum that has rubbed off the more likely that the shelter may be damaged. Holes in the bag allow debris inside which can degrade the aluminum on the fire shelter. White film or dust on the foil is a sign of corrosion – meaning that water had entered the bag. This makes shaking the shelter open difficult and can degrade the bonds between layers.

However, sometimes just the bag is worn out and the shelter inside is still serviceable if this is the case there are two things you can do:

1.       Replace the carrying case, if needed.

2.       Rebag the shelter, if needed.

Carrying cases have been redesigned to reduce wear and tear on shelters. If the shelters themselves meet any of these criteria, they should be removed from service: 1.) they show evidence of moisture, 2.) they have so much aluminum rubbed off that the paper label inside the bag is not readable, or 3.) they have already been through a rebag.

Do you have a shelter that needs to be taken out of service? Give it another purpose by marking it for training purposes. Use them as serviceability examples for your next training session, or practice deploying with them. The practice shelters, while a good tool to use, don’t have the same feel or weight as a real shelter. Use them to train in high-stress simulations, in different positions, and with time constraints. *NEVER practice deployments in an actual fire.

Have you inspected your fire shelter yet this year? If not, take the time to do so before the fire season really gears up, and before you get sent on an assignment! Remember, this is a lifesaving tool, inspect and treat it as such.

For more detailed information regarding fire shelter inspection and rebagging please click here.

SEAT Tactics

             As most of you know Hazleton and Mid-State are home to several Single Engine Air Tankers that coordinate with our firefighters to help battle wildfires in Pennsylvania. But did you know that SEATs have their own firefighting tactics?

They have both direct and indirect forms of an attack like firefighters do. 

When they attack directly their goal is to knock down flames with the retardant so that ground crews can build a fire line more safely and effectively. 

DIRECT ATTACK

For an indirect attack, their goal is to reinforce constructed fire lines with retardant.

INDIRECT ATTACK

Here is a photo that labels parts of a fire so that you can follow along with the descriptions of their tactics:

Tactics:

ANCHOR AND FLANK

When SEATs use the anchor and flank method, they establish an anchor point and begin working either one or both flanks of the fire with their retardant drops.

HOOK/PINCH

This tactic is often referred to as “turning the corner” or “pinching the head off.” These aerial drops progress from the flank around the head of the fire.

NARROW VEE

The narrow vee is aggressive and used to quickly catch the head of a small fire. If the SEATs use this additional hose lays or line construction MUST follow soon.

WIDE VEE

This tactic is attempted when the ground crews are delayed, they drop a little in front of the head of the fire to “slow it down” or “buy you time” until the crew gets there.

PRE-TREAT

This is not meant to catch the fire itself but to provide support by reinforcing a natural barrier to lower fire spot spread and assist with backfiring operations. Dropped on the green side of the fire or on the lee side of a ridge.

TANDEM AHEAD

With this, a SEAT will tie in where ground forces left off, rather than from the anchor point. The goal here is to lower the intensity of the fire so ground crews can work more safely and efficiently.

TANDEM BEHIND

Used to reinforce hastily created fire lines, most often it is being used when high values are being protected.

ANGLE TIE-IN

The SEAT will anchor from a barrier and work across the head would usually be followed with firing operations to the barrier. It provides a defendable tie to the anchor point.

SPOT FIRE

This is an aggressive tactic used to prevent a small spot fire from growing. The SEAT will put an “X” on the spot fire, usually dropping from two directions for better coverage. 

ANGLE OUT

The goal here is to pre-treat and contain growth and is used when you can’t get to the origin of the fire (steep or congested terrain).

COOLING CONVECTION

The goal is to cool down the fire by dropping into the head. The tanker will drop tight to the backside of the flames which allow for convection wind to draw the retardant into the flames.

2020 Wildland Fire Academy

Good morning everyone and welcome to the 2020 fire season!

The Division of Forest Fire Protection is happy to announce that registration for the 2020 Wildland Fire Academy is now open! The academy will be conveniently located in central PA at the Lock Haven University, May 26-31. Initial registration ends April 15, 2020. Courses that are not filled will remain open until the final deadline of May 13.

For those of you who missed last year's academy at Lock Haven, we have secured rooms with temperature control so you won't sweat to death this year. They are also semi-private, the bathroom is shared in a foyer type part of the suite, but the beds and closed off within the suite.

This year’s academy will focus heavily on wildland engine activities; entry-level through advanced-level courses are offered:

L-280, Followership to Leadership PMS-419, Engine Operator (ENOP) S-130, Firefighter Training (Blended) - Field Day ONLY S-131, Firefighter Type 1 S-211, Portable Pumps and Water Use S-212, Wildland Fire Chain Saws S-215, Fire Operations in the Wildland Urban Interface S-230, Crew Boss (Single Resource) S-231, Engine Boss (Single Resource, Blended) S-270, Basic Air Operations S-355, Ground Support Unit Leader - Tentative Advanced Investigation Techniques, Target Group: Wildland Fire Investigators Basic Wildland Fire Crew - PA WFC candidates only FFT1/CRWB OJT - PA WFC members only For more information and to register, go to https://dffp.ticketleap.com/2020-wildland-academy/details There is no tuition for classes and on-campus meals and lodging will be covered by the Division of Forest Fire Protection. Please make every effort to travel with a Bureau of Forestry employee, because we cannot reimburse mileage for this event. Likewise, students and staff choosing off-campus meals and/or lodging will not be reimbursed by the DFFP. Courses are scheduled to provide maximum opportunities for students. Register for as many classes as you'd like, but if any overlap, please indicate your preference in the registration remarks. Registering for a class does not guarantee placement. Students will be notified of acceptance after April 15, 2020.