2015 Fire Season Overview Heath Hockenberry NWS Fire Weather Program Manager Analyze, Forecast and Support Office & National Interagency Fire Center Boise, ID Daily weather map from August 20, 1910, known as The Big Burn, the largest wildfire in US history. Photo courtesy: NWS Partners Defined by Agency Firefighting and Resource Management Missions Bureau of Land Management Bureau of Indian Affairs Fish and Wildlife Service National Park Service U.S. Forest Service National Association of State Foresters NWS Fire Weather Our Customers/Partners National NWS Fire Weather Our Customers/Partners Regional Local Customers/Partners at all levels! 4 NOAAs Site-Specific Fire Weather Services NOAAs Spot forecasts support: - Wild Fire Suppression - Prescribed fire ops. We average 20,000 Spot Forecasts annually 18,531 this year so far (as of 9/30/15) 5 NOAAs National Fire Weather Services National Fire Weather Watch/Red Flag Warning Program. Fire Weather Planning Forecasts. Over 8000 Red Flag Warnings and Fire Weather Watches issued annually. No Fire Weather Forecast Issued 6 Fires and Acres Burned, 2015 Less fires, more acressee Alaskas contribution! 7 NOAAs National Fire Weather Services Incident Meteorologists: On-site fire weather forecasters Extensive training in microscale/mesoscale Meteorology (250+ hours). Forecasts used to plan Incident Team and resource placement. Essential part of an Interagency fire management team. Dependent on mobile technology and meso/micro- scale research improvements. AMRS Locations 2015 PDT (2) OTX (2) MSO (2) SLC BOI (2) MTR (2) HNX (2) SEW (2) TWC REV (2) STO (2) SGX MFR (2) PSR PIH PQR (2) EKA FGZ (2) GGW TFX VEF LOX BYZ LKN MHX BGM CHS ILM ILN BTV HGX LZK ABQ MAF EPZ JAN JAX PUB RIW CYS BOU GJT JKL LBF PAH FWD MLB MFL RNK MQT HFO AFG AFC AJK CAE DLH BIS (2) Indicates office has 2 AMRS units Number of AMRS: 70 WFOs with AMRS: 58 TBW Total Fires YTD: 30,285Total Acres Burned YTD: 3,955,748 Ten Year Avg: 39,209Ten Year Avg: 2,623,599 Record Year (total): 1988 (154,573) Record Year (Total): 2006 (9.87M acres) Current Fire Weather Status for 9 July, 2015 IMETs Currently Deployed: 9 Certified 1 Trainee NICC Preparedness Level Current Level Metrics IMET Response Time: YTD 16 hours (user requirement = 24 hours) Spot Response Time: YTD 22 mins. NOTE: Above maps show only incidents reported to Inciweb. May not show all fires. Tanana Area Fires Tanana, AK 401,885 acres 0% contained Est Containment: N/A 231 Fire Springdale, WA 970 acres 70% contained Est Containment: N/A NICC Preparedness Level Current Level NOTE: Maps show only incidents reported to Inciweb. May not show all fires. Okanogan Complex Omak, WA 258,339acres 15% contained 1,345 Personnel 51 Structures Lost Cost to Date: $9.8M Motorway Complex Kooskia, ID 29,604 acres 2% contained 293 Personnel 0 Structures Lost Cost to Date: $2.2M Initial Attack Activity: Light (87 new fires) New Large Incidents: 4 Large Fires Contained: 1 Uncontained Large Fires: 76 (NICC: 8/25/2015) Total Fires YTD: 42,735 Ten Year Avg: 52,041 Record Year (total): 1988 (154,573) Total Acres Burned YTD: 7,573,139 Ten Year Avg: 5,316,857 Record Year (Total): 2006 (9.87M acres) LEGEND IMET Large Wildland Fire Incidents National Weather Service Wildland Fire and IMET Status Report 25 August, 2015 IMETs Deployed: 44 Certified* 3 Trainees *NEW All-Time Record Avg IMET Response Time: 18 hrs IMET Missions YTD: 150 Ten year Avg YTD: 129 Last year YTD: 104 Projected missions for 2015: 158 Ten Year Avg (total): 137 Record Missions (annual total) Max (2006): 208 Min (1993 & 1997): 15 Days on Mission YTD: 1,668 Hours on Mission YTD: 23,352 Ten Year Avg Hours (total year): 19,039 Record Hours (total year): 27,216 (2007) 12 NOAAs National Fire Weather Services 2015 IMET Stats Record Year Old deployment record: 34 out, set on 8/29/2000 Broke record on 8/16/2015: 35 deployed. Peak of 44 IMETs out at once Stayed at record levels for 22 straight days. Set a record for Alaska: 10 dispatches. Social Media AWIPS IMET Status Report:KMZ file for use in Google Earth:Follow us on Twitter: NWS_IMET_OPS Like us on Facebook: Glossary AMRS: All hazards Meteorological Response System CWA: County Warning Area area of responsibility for a WFO IMET: Incident METeorologist Large Fire: Any wildland fire in timber 100 acres or greater, and 300 acres or greater in grasslands/rangelands NICC: National Interagency Coordination Center NIFC: National Interagency Fire Center PL: Preparedness Level WFO: Weather Forecast Office YTD: Year To Date (Calendar Year) Structures: A constructed object, usually a free-standing building above ground. (e.g. house, garage, shed, etc.) NICC Preparedness Levels Preparedness Level 1 Conditions are not favorable to support significant wildland fire activity in most geographic areas. Resource capability is adequate with little or no mobilization of resources occurring through the National Interagency Coordination Center. Potential for emerging significant wildland fires is expected to remain minimal. Preparedness Level 2 Significant wildland fire activity is increasing in a few geographic areas. Resources within most geographic areas are adequate to manage the current situation, with light to moderate mobilization of resources occurring through the National Interagency Coordination Center. Potential for emerging significant wildland fires is normal to below normal for the time of year. Preparedness Level 3 Significant wildland fire activity is occurring in multiple geographic areas, with Incident Management Teams (IMTs) actively engaged. Mobilization of resources through the National Interagency Coordination Center is moderate to heavy. Potential for emerging significant wildland fires is normal for the time of year. Preparedness Level 4 Significant wildland fire activity is occurring in multiple geographic areas; significant commitment of Incident Management Teams. NICC increasingly engages GACCs in an effort to coordinate and fill orders for available resources. Potential for significant incidents emerging in multiple GAs indicates that resource demands will continue or increase. Preparedness Level 5 Full commitment of national resources is ongoing. Resource orders filled at NICC by specifically coordinating requests with GACCs as resources become available. Potential for emerging significant wildland fires is high and expected to remain high in multiple geographic areas.