Prescribed Fire ● A managed, intentional fire.. 8 main purposes: ● Removes fuel from the floor...
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Transcript of Prescribed Fire ● A managed, intentional fire.. 8 main purposes: ● Removes fuel from the floor...
Prescribed Fire
● A managed, intentional fire.
8 main purposes:
● Removes fuel from the floor● Gets sites ready for seeding and planting● Improves wildlife habitats● Removes undesirable trees and brush cluttering● Controls forest diseases● Improves quality of grass● Improves appearance of forest● Easier access to the forest
Three steps in a prescribed fire
● 1. Must be controlled very close● 2. Fire cannot be too hot
– Damage to crown and to cambium layer● 3. Cannot get out of control
Great Chicago fire
● Most famous fire in America: Great Chicago fire of 1871. 300 people died
Peshtigo fire
● Same time as Chicago Fire● Hot and Dry Summer / High winds● Loggers were burning / got out of control● 1,600 lives lost
● Miramichi Fire (1825) :160 Lives
Three requirements for a fire
● Fuel: Something to burn (forest litter)● Oxygen: Wind● Heat: (ignition temperature): Natural and
human caused
Fire Triangle
7 Sources of Fires
● 1. Incendiary: Arson or out of control planned burn.
● 2. Debris burning: burning trash, litter● 3. Smokers● 4. Campers: fires and lanterns● 5. Railroads: sparks from old locamotives● 6. Logging: not a threat anymore● 7. Lightning: Main cause of natural fires.
Types of Forest Fires
● 1. Ground Fire: Spontaneous Combustion. (Humus or peat gets very hot) Smoldering fire that burns out root systems.
2. Surface Fire: Burn near the ground. Brush, vines, grasses, dry litter on floor. Most common fire.
● 3. Crown Fire: Most Violent and dangerous. Once the surface fire reaches the canopy. Spreads quickly due to wind.
Detecting a wildfire
● Look out tower: – One operator spots smoke
● Calls in to office● Determines azimuth (direction) from the tower with an
alidade (instrument)● Second tower operator does the same.
– Use triangulation to determine actual fire location– Plotting the lines connecting each tower with the
smoke. Point of crossing is fire location.
Other ways to detect fire
● Telephone reports● Fire watch planes
Anatomy of a typical fire
● Starts from a single point● Spreads in the direction of the wind. ● Small fires will be down wind● Leading edge of the fire is jagged.
Factors that affect the anatomy of a fire
● Slope● Moisture● Fuel● Wind● Open areas● Roads● Streams● lakes