3.2 Wildland Flashcards by kevin contreras

Wildland levels

Level 1 low to moderate
Level 5 high
Level 9 extreme

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How is the wildland level determined?

10 and 1000 hour fuel levels at Redstone Canyon

Found on the intranet

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10 hour fuels versus 1000 hour

10 hour are 1/4 inch to 1 inch and reflect day to day trends

1000 hour are 3 to 8 inches and reflect seasonal drying trends

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Wildland levels change based on one of 2 sources. What are they?

Idl chart

Batt chief with input from station 7

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Level 1 response

Core, plains and foothills get one engine

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Level 5 response

Core gets one engine. Plains gets one engine and one brush. Foothills gets an engine, a brush, a tender, a safety officer and one bc.

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Level 9

Core gets an engine, a brush, an SO, and a bc. Plains adds a tender. Foothills adds a brush to the plains response.

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Tenders normally respond with ____ personnel.

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The first due unit responds _______.

Emergent and all others code 2 unless requested otherwise.

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Wildland 1st alarm

On top of the level dictated response, you get 2 engines, 2 brush units, one tender, one batt chief, one SO, notification of emergency services.

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Wildland second alarm response

3 engines
3 brush units
2 tenders
2 batt chiefs

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When a second alarm response has been requested, ic should verify what has been done?

LCES supervisor to command post
Air resources?
Wildland team notified
PFA command staff notified 
PIO and investigator response

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Wildland third alarm response

Second alarm plus:
Station 8, 9 and 11 personnel with requested apparatus
Off duty wildland team members
Command staff, wildland command team and icp

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Initial ic does the following things:

Establish command and command
IAP
Suppression resources and values at risk
Ensures plan is communicated to and understood by everyone

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If another Ic is first on scene, the first arriving PFA unit SHALL:

Make a decision to leave command with initial IC, take command, or establish unified command.

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After command is figured out, three things SHALL be aired to incoming units.

Command, IAP, radio frequency

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Wildland Size up includes:

The fire size, fuels (type, continuity, condition), weather, direction and rate of spread, and intensity
What is or will be threatened, and when (immediate vs. delayed)
The potential for sustained fire spread and growth

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To provide for the safety of personnel on the incident, the IC shall:

Determine the need for lookout(s) where terrain or other factors impede visibility of the entire fire
• Designate an operations radio frequency (800 or VHF)
• Establish trigger points for action plan re-assessment
• Establish escape routes and safety zones that are adequate and realistic. In light fuels that have burned completely with no potential for re-burn, this may simply be “keeping one foot in the black.”

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Engaging in a “fast attack” command option should be considered only when rapid and immediate actions can accomplish one or more of the following:

Protect the public or other personnel on scene from immediate harm
Limit property loss or damage
Prevent the fire from escaping initial attack, provided these actions will not jeopardize the safety of the crew

Before engaging in assignments, PFA personnel SHALL:

Have appropriate PPE

Personnel without an assignment:

SHALL report to the designated staging area.

If an individual crew fully disengages from suppression actions:

Crew leader SHALL communicate this to IC

When a wildland incident expands beyond the capability of initially-dispatched resources, or beyond the capability or span of control of the initial Incident Commander (IC):

The initial IC shall request the next level of qualified IC (e.g., Captain to Battalion Chief or Captain or Battalion Chief to NWCG-qualified ICT4 or ICT3, etc.).

Until the next level of qualified IC assumes command of the incident, the IC should:

a. Maintain control of all resources via a command-only role
b. Ensure the safety of all personnel
c. Confirm LCES (Lookout, Communications, Escape and Safety) is in place and address any safety issues
d. Reassess the situation status, taking into consideration the current and predicted weather and fire behavior
e. Re-assess the IAP and adjust objectives with emphasis on Firefighter safety
f. Consider disengagement if personnel cannot operate safely
g. Establish a Staging Area and Incident Command Post

5. During transition and transfer of command to the incoming IC, the incoming IC should ensure adequate information about the incident has been obtained, including:

a. Current size-up of the fire b. Evaluation of the IAP c. Completion of Incident Complexity Analysis d. Staffing – current, ordered and additional needed e. Location and adequacy of the ICP and staging area f. Potential values at risk g. Any other specific concerns

Any IC, at any time, should consider disengaging resources from suppression actions on any part of the fire if:

a. The incident exceeds the capabilities of assigned and available resources or b. The PFA Complexity Analysis indicates a higher level of incident management and support is needed

If it becomes apparent an incident will likely exceed one operational period or will exceed assigned and available resources, or a Complexity Analysis indicates a level of incident management and support beyond Type 4 is appropriate:

Consider transitioning to type 3 incident

Once an incident transitions to type 2 or 1:

PFA SHALL maintain an active role

Backfiring

an indirect method used to stop, slow or change the direction of an advancing wildfire. It involves setting a fire along the inner edge of a control line to consume the fuel in the path of a fire and/or change the direction of force of the fire’s convection column, i.e., actually change the fire behavior

Burning Out

using fire as a direct attack method to secure and strengthen the control line. It is a fire set inside a control line to consume the fuel between the edge of the fire and the control line

PFA does not function as the primary implementing agency for prescribed fire within its response area. PFA personnel may assist other agencies in prescribed fire planning and operations. This cooperation is contingent upon the following two conditions:

* PFA personnel meet the NWCG standards for the role they are filling. * The prescribed fire must have a written burn plan and be supervised by a red carded burn boss of the appropriate level (type I, II, or III) for the complexity of the operation

PFA involvement in backfiring

PFA will not initiate backfires as defined above. However, PFA personnel may be involved in a backfiring operation in support of an incident under the direction of a multi-agency Incident Management Team

PFA may, under certain circumstances, use burning out as a tactic in line construction and reinforcement, provided at least one member of the crew performing the burning SHALL:

have successfully completed S-290 (Intermediate Fire Behavior) and S-234 (Ignition Operations).

Crew members burning out Shall advise:

Adjacent resources and immediate supervisor

All aircraft resource orders shall be routed to:

United States Forest Service (USFS) Fort Collins Dispatch Center via the Larimer County Sheriff’s Department Emergency Services Division (LCES), Larimer County Dispatch (900), or in rare instances, by direct contact to the USFS Fort Collins Dispatch Center.

The following information shall be provided by the IC when ordering air resources:

``` • Type of air resource needed a. Fixed wing, light (Single Engine Air Tanker or SEAT) b. Fixed wing, heavy (Heavy Air Tanker) c. Rotary wing (helicopter) • Fire size-up a. Fire size b. Fuel type c. Rate of spread/flame length d. Terrain/aspect • Values at risk/structures threatened • Location, including both a legal description and a common name ```

Who has the authority to deny air resources?

LCES

After air resource has been ordered, who needs to be advised?

Air resources may not be able to handle winds above____.

20 mph

If a certified faller is not available and the Incident Commander determines a Firefighter has the appropriate level of experience:

the IC may allow this non-certified Firefighter to operate a power saw.

The three recognized levels of NWCG saw-operator qualifications include:

* Faller A - Qualified to limb, buck and fell trees up to 8 inches in diameter (DBH), and cut brush during fireline construction and fire control. * Faller B - Qualified to perform same tasks as Faller A and fell trees up to 24 inches DBH. * Faller C - Qualified to perform same tasks as Faller A and fell trees greater than 24 inches DBH.

To maintain current certification, sawyers shall:

have documented performance on a wildfire incident at least once every two years or complete a practical refresher session every two years.

Swamper

serves as a lookout and assists in removal of cut material.

PFA Wildland Command Team

consists of PFA Chief Officers and personnel with advanced red card qualifications of Engine Boss or above.

The WCT can be paged through dispatch by a BC, Incident Commander (IC) or Systems BC to incidents such as but not limited to:

* A second alarm wildland response. * The IC needs assistance with supervision. * Multiple fires are occurring. * Multiple operational periods. * Multiple auto or mutual aid departments are involved

WCT personnel will be allowed to fill overhead: positions

One level above their red card qualifications