A World on Fire: The Fires of 2002

Fire!
Fire is the dominant fact of forest history In fact, throughout the world, fires have been set deliberately for thousands of years to clear the underbrush, improve grazing, drive game, combat insects, without thought, or just for the hell of it. ~ Barnes et al., p. 414

Fires Severity

Surface Fire (low severity)

Crown Fire (um high severity)

Post Fire
Surface Fires Crown Fires
(aka Stand-replacing fires)

Fire Effects on Forest Structure

Surface Fires

Crown Fires

Regeneration strategies

Survival Strategies

Historically Significant Wildfires

Year
1825 1871

Name
Miramichi and Maine Fires Peshtigo Great Idaho Fire CloquetMoose Mann-Gulch Yellowstone Cerro Grande / Los Alamos

Location
Maine WI/MI

Size (acres)
3 million 4 million

Significance
160 lives lost 1,500 Lives Lost

1910
1918 1949 1988 2000

ID/MT
MN MT MT/WY/ID NM

3 million
250,000 4,339 1.5 Million 47,650

Policy Development
450 Lives Lost 13 Smoke Jumpers Killed Public Awareness Prescribed fire gone bad

The Peshtigo Fire October 8, 1871

Palmer Drought Severity Index, 1871

A Meteorite impact?

Here was the Village of Williamsonville with a population of 77 persons on October 8, 1871. This Village was blotted out by a tornado of fire. 60 persons sought refuge in an open field surrounding this spot and were burned to death.

Historically Significant Wildfires

Year
1825 1871

Name
Miramichi and Maine Fires Peshtigo Great Idaho Fire CloquetMoose Mann-Gulch Yellowstone Cerro Grande / Los Alamos

Location
Maine WI/MI

Size (acres)
3 million 4 million

Significance
160 lives lost 1,500 Lives Lost

1910
1918 1949 1988 2000

ID/MT
MN MT MT/WY/ID NM

3 million
250,000 4,339 1.5 Million 47,650

Policy Development
450 Lives Lost 13 Smoke Jumpers Killed Public Awareness Prescribed fire gone bad

The 1910 Fires and Fire Policy

3 million acres burned across the west (4,688 mi2, about the size of Connecticut) 85 people killed Put fire suppression into high gear The legend of Major Ed Pulaski The 10:00 am policy ALL FIRE IS BAD!!!
Just look at this brewery!

Sunset Brewery, Wallace Idaho 1910 (Courtesy Idaho Historical Society)

Historically Significant Wildfires

Year
1825 1871

Name
Miramichi and Maine Fires Peshtigo Great Idaho Fire CloquetMoose Mann-Gulch Yellowstone Cerro Grande / Los Alamos

Location
Maine WI/MI

Size (acres)
3 million 4 million

Significance
160 lives lost 1,500 Lives Lost

1910
1918 1949 1988 2000

ID/MT
MN MT MT/WY/ID NM

3 million
250,000 4,339 1.5 Million 47,650

Policy Development
450 Lives Lost 13 Smoke Jumpers Killed Public Awareness Prescribed fire gone bad

Yellowstone Fires

Palmer Drought Severity Index (Warm colors mean dry conditions)

The Aftermath

20 years later

1949

1990 1909

Biondi, F. 1999. Ecological Applications 9: 216-227

1968 1989 1958 1910 1979 1948

Lick Creek, Montana 1910-1989

Which fire will be more severe?

1895

1979

California Wildfires
Gulf Times
October 1991: Oakland Hills Fire, 2,900 Structures Destroyed 1993: Laguna Hills, 366 structures in 6 hours 2007: San Diego County, 1,500 homes destroyed.

California, October 2007, L.A. Times Photograph

Modis, October 2007

Santa Ana Winds

From USA Today

Air and Soil

From: http://epod.usra.edu/

Cerro Grande, NM 2000 ($140 Million in Insured Losses)

Photos from: Eyewitness News 4

Photo from: Nasa Earth Observatory

The Cerro Grande fire began as a prescribed fire. It ended up burning on to property owned and operated by the Los Alamos National Laboratory.
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