wildfires Flashcards
1
Q
what is the ladder effect
A
spreading from the forest floor to the tree canopy
2
Q
what are surface fires
A
most common burn along the floor burn at 900 degrees easy to control spread quickly
3
Q
what are ground fires
A
burn organic matter
spread slowest
burn at 540 degrees
burn for a long time
4
Q
what are crown fires
A
top layer of the canopy is burned can exceed 1100 degrees most intense huge flames spread quickly
5
Q
what is spotting
A
wind can blow ‘firebrands’ away from crown fires to other areas
6
Q
what is conflagration
A
large fires
enhanced with wind
7
Q
what are the natural causes
A
lightening
decrease in precispitation
dry vegetation
hot lava
8
Q
what are the human causes
A
cigarette
fireworks
burning debris
agricultural fires
9
Q
what 3 things are needed for a fire
A
fuel
ignition source
climatic weather conditions
10
Q
how do you prepare for a fire
A
- early detection
- during times of high risk warnings on social media and tv
- red flag warning when weather conditions suggest
11
Q
how do you prevent a fire
A
- controlled burning
- public awareness
- since 1944, ‘smokey bear’ urged americans to behave responsibly, now 96% of them know him
12
Q
how do you mitigate fires
A
cameras
high fire towers
13
Q
how do you adapt fires
A
- planning regulations
- building designs
- fire resistant roofing
14
Q
what does the nature of fires depend on
A
type of vegetation space between fuels wind strength topography time and season temperature
