Our Favorite Wildfire Websites
(nine, so far - and one that would be)
check our FAQ's page for fire
jobs links
Wildland Fire Information
Wildlandfire.com is the self-proclaimed "home of the
wildland firefighter." Among many resources on their site is the
bulletin board, They Said It, which was first moderated by the original
"Abercrombie" and now by Abby. They Said provides its readers
with LCES: a Lookout for what we probably
couldn't otherwise see happening in the rest of the wildfire world; Communications
to bring together a diverse group of agency, contractor and cooperator
folks (and even some of those structure types); Escape routes
for when the off-season or office day lasts too long or is just too far
from the smoke; and ultimately, a Safety zone in the
information, innovation and motivation to help bring us all back home.
The Wildland Fire Leadership Development Program came about
following the South Canyon tragedy. They have put together a great site,
with resources for all levels of firefighter from the newest probie to
the type 1 IC. We're pretty big on leadership at Colorado Firecamp - see
the book review on our 'About Us' page. Kent
learned about the professional reading program on the fireleadership.gov
website and started a small library at fire station #4.
Jefferson County's Emergency Management website outlines
the kind of comprehensive wildfire program every county should create.
Their slash collection program and type 3 IMT (incident management team)
address a couple of the big issues: helping homeowners create defensible
space and managing the fires that escape initial attack.
There is good reason why the 10 Standard Firefighting Orders
start with: “Keep informed on fire weather conditions and
forecasts.” With helpful websites like this, what excuse
can firefighters cling to as they keep bending and breaking the first
order?
Wildland Fire Training
The wildfire academy concept started here, literally, with
the first Colorado Wildfire Academy in the Upper Arkansas Valley in 1994.
The increased training requirements of PMS 310-1 would not have been achievable
without the delivery capacity of this and the other large academies that
followed. A word of advice: Get all the training you can, wherever you
can.
Pueblo Zone wildfire training calendar
Well, this would be a favorite of
ours, if such a website existed. The Pueblo Zone covers everything in
Colorado east of the Continental Divide and south of Interstate 70, plus
the whole state of Kansas. More than a few classes get cancelled each
year for lack of students, while firefighters are held back on their quals
because they can't find the training they need. Go to the Rocky
Mountain Region website to see what other zones offer (Grand Junction
has the most.)
Vendors of Firefighter Stuff
Chuck Roast Equipment, Inc. is a New Hampshire clothing
company and the first vendor to send us something for a door prize - a
Nomex fleece hat - to give to one of our students. Thanks, Chuck.
Urban Interface
Harry Carter came up through the ranks of the Newark Fire
Department (yes, they have wildlands in New Jersey, though Newark doesn't
invoke that image.) Now known as "Dr. Carter," Harry advocates
for safety and leadership in the fire service. The Commentary
section is a collection of his weekly columns for Firehouse.com. Warning:
Do not follow this link if the way we've always done things for
the last 250 years is good enough for you.
Mitigation
One of the biggest hurdles to wildfire mitigation is what
to do with all the slash generated by thinning. The Governor's Office
of Energy Management and Conservation has created this website to bring
together all the different people working on the partial solutions to
the biomass problem. Market development is key to this effort.
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