- Subject: NPS Morning Report - Thursday, July 20, 1989
- Date: Thurs, 20 Jul 1989
RANGER ACTIVITIES DIVISION
MORNING REPORT
Attention: Directorate
Regional and Park Chief Rangers, USPP, BIFC, FLETC
CC: RAD Information Net
Day/date: Thursday, July 20, 1989
INCIDENTS
89-191 - Hawaii Volcanoes - Hurricane Delilia
Hurricane Delilia was to have struck the coast of Hawaii at 3 p.m. local (9
p.m. EOT) time yesterday. The storm was expected to bring winds in excess
of 70 m.p.h. at a time when the year's highest tides will be coming in,
thereby threatening the south coast of the island. The park has closed the
coastal back country and is monitoring the coastal roads. Closures will
depend on weather conditions. (Jim Martin, CR, HAVO, via CompuServe message
from Herb Gercke, RAD/WRO).
FIRE ACTIVITY
1) FIRE SITUATION
Planning Level III.
2) FIRE SUMMARY
State Agency Area Fire Acres Contain
AZ State - *Perilla 1,100 None
NM NPS El Malpais NP *Outlaw 200 None
BLM Las Cruces *Mulberry 2,000 None
TX NPS Big Bend NP *South Adams 212 None
NPS Big Bend NP *North Muerto 125 None
NPS Big Bend NP *South Muerto 250 None
NPS Big Bend NP *Heath 188 None
CO NPS Mesa Verde NP Long Mesa - T2 3,075 7/19
BLM Craig Burnt Out 3,000 7/21
UT USFS Dixie NF Uinta Flat - T1 7,856 Yes
USFS Dixie NF Sandy Peak - T2 850 7/20
BLM Moab Rattlesnake - T2 2,530 None
BLM Cedar City *Waterhollow 880 7/21
NV BLM Ely Delmue - T2 6,700 Yes
Canada Yukon - Dawson Fire 20 6,500 None
3) SIGNIFICANT FIRES
a) NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
* Long Mesa Fire - Mesa Verde NP:
The fire is holding at 3,075 acres despite continuing high temperatures,
low humidities and winds of up to 40 mph. There are still hot spots along
the northern escarpment, but handline has been constructed along the
northern boundary of the fire. Heavy use of helicopters continues;
21,000 gallons of retardant were dropped on the fire on Tuesday alone.
Crews have finished the last segment of the 20 miles of line which have
been cut around the fire. Firefighters expected to have the fire
contained by 6 p.m. last night; it should be controlled by 6 p.m on
Saturday. Four crews and two helicopters will remain on the fire
today. The fire has been remapped, and it is now calculated that a
total of 2,405 acres of the park actually burned within the 3,075 acres
of the fire perimeter.
4) FIRE ACTIVITY - 183 fires for 7,114 acres in last 24 hours.
5) ANALYSIS - Isolated lightning activity throughout the West has led
to increased initial attack efforts. RED FLAG warnings have been
posted for dry lightning in eastern Idaho and western Wyoming.
6) PROGNOSIS - Activity is expected to increase due to low fuel moistures,
high temperatures and lightning activity. No resource shortages are
anticipated.
7) NOTES - The Service's Wildland Fire Situation Report has been
completed for the period from July 11 - July 18:
- Fire Danger:
ARO Low-Mod Very High: Yukon-Charlie, Alaska
MAR Low
MWR Low-High Very High: Scotts Bluff, Nebraska
NCR Low
NAR Low
PNR Low-High
RMR Low-High Very High: Colorado, Dinosaur, Mesa Verde,
and Rocky Mountain, Colorado; Arches,
Canyonlands, and Natural Bridges, Utah;
Badlands, South Dakota; Fossil Butte,
Wyoming//Extreme: Bryce Canyon and Zion,
Utah; Black Canyon and Great Sand Dunes,
Colorado; Fort Laramie, Wyoming; Glen
Canyon, Arizona
SER Low-Mod
SWR Low-High Very High: Aztec Ruins, Bandelier, Chaco
Culture, El Malpais, El Morro, and Salinas,
New Mexico; Fort Davis and Guadalupe
Mountains, Texas; Hubbel and Navajo,
Arizona//Extreme: Fort Union, New Mexico;
Canyon de Chelly, Sunset Crater and
Wupatki, Arizona
WRO Low-High Very High: Hawaii, Hawaii; Pinnacles and
Yosemite, California; Saguaro, Arizona;
Great Basin, NevadaZ/Extreme: Chiricahua
and Grand Canyon, Arizona; Lava Beds and
Sequoia-Kings Canyon, California
- Wildfire Occurrence:
Region Park # Fires # Acres
Alaska Kenai Fjords AK 1 1
Yukon-Charlie AK 1 50
Midwest Indiana Dunes IN 1 2
Pacific NW North Cascades WA 2 1
Rocky Mtn Badlands SD 1 30
Bryce Canyon UT 2 1
Dinosaur CO 1 0.3
Mesa Verde CO 1 carry-over 475
Yellowstone WY 5 1
Zion UT 2 1
Southeast Cape Hatteras NC 1 0.1
Cumberland Is GA 1 3
Southwest Big Bend TX 10 + 4 carry-over 1,296
Guadalupe Mtns TX 2 350
El Malpais NM 2 + 1 carry-over 21
Western Grand Canyon AZ 9 carry-over 51
Saguaro AZ 1 + 1 carry-over 5
Sequoia-Kings Can CA 3 + 3 carry-over 0.3
Yosemite CA 2 0.2
--- -----
Total 57 2,288.9
- Prescribed Natural Fire Occurrence:
No prescribed natural fires are being conducted, pending revision and
approval of area fire management plans.
- Prescribed Burn Occurrence:
Southeast Everglades FL 3 1,325
- National Situation:
The large fires that were burning in Big Bend, El Malpais, Saguaro,
Grand Canyon, and Mesa Verde were all controlled by July 11th.
Two of those fires, both of which had been managed by
interagency overhead teams, escaped on July 15th. The Muav Fire at
Grand Canyon flared up on the northeastern edge of the fire and burned
an additional 50 acres for a total fire size of 1,750 acres before
being contained a second time on July 17th. At Mesa Verde, the Long
Mesa Fire escaped control along the northern edge of the fire and began
to back down the steep escarpment that forms the park's northern
boundary. That fire was expected to be contained on the 19th at
3,075 acres, with 475 additional acres burned since the previous
"containment".
Big Bend has 10 uncontrolled backcountry fires, all burning in
extremely remote, rugged terrain. No facilities or non-park
lands are threatened. One crew and two helicopters have been ordered,
and the suppression efforts are expected to be dominated by helicopter
bucket work.
On the opposite end of the wildfire spectrum, Kenai Fjords
had its first reported fire since record-keeping began in the area.
Lightning is rare in the coastal area, and it is usually too wet for
fires to ignite, but a small, human-caused fire did ignite and carry in
white spruce in a popular area of the park.
The National Park Service commitment to interagency suppression efforts
peaked on July 11th, with 743 people reported to be involved. This
included 590 firefighters and 153 overhead.
The potential for widespread new fires continues in a broad area of the
Western United States.
- Fire Occurrence, Year-To-Date:
Fire Type # Fires # Acres
Wildfires 350 194,000
Natural Outs 38 1,349
Prescribed Natural Fires 0 ---
Prescribed Burns 70 34,019
False Alarms 35 ---
Mutual Aid by NPS 69 7,960
Support Actions 109 ---
TRANSMITTALS
Memorandum: "FY 1989 Uniform Allowance Closeout Procedures", signed by
Acting Associate Director, Operations, on July 19th, and sent today to all
regional director for distribution to superintendents. Establishes August
25th as the last day when uniform orders may be submitted to R & R Uniform
in this fiscal year and contains procedures for closing out old accounts and
establishing new accounts.
STAFF STATUS
Ringgold on AL, Dabney in Philadelphia at conference on recruitment and
retention problems.
Prepared by WASO Division of Ranger Activities
Telephone: FTS 343-4874/6039 or 202-343-4874/6039
Telefax: FTS 343-5977 or 202-343-5977
CompuServe: WASO-RANGER