FIRE SPOTS:

Alert sounded on wildfire front - By Dan Robrish, Associated Press, 11/18/99
Dry weather this fall has made forests and fields susceptible to fires in areas as farflung as the Rust Belt and the high deserts of the West. This week, several small fires threatened homes and businesses in Reading, Pa., about 45 miles from Philadelphia. Parts of the Appalachian Trail in Georgia remained closed yesterday because of fires in the Chattahoochee National Forest. And in Denver, skiers and snowboarders are being warned not to smoke because a cigarette recently started a wildfire. ''I think we're going to go into one of the worst winter fire seasons that we've had in years,'' said Les Rogers, the Texas Forest Service regional fire coordinator for the northern part of the state. He said heavy spring rains made the brush grow abundantly, and now that brush has dried out, making it perfect fuel for a fire. A blaze Tuesday about 60 miles east of Amarillo engulfed 2,700 acres. ''All the conditions were ripe for big brush fires this year,'' said Don Smurthwaite, a spokesman for the US Bureau of Land Management in Idaho. In the Great Basin alone, a region mostly in Nevada but extending into parts of Utah, Idaho, Oregon, and California, wildfires are blamed for a loss of 1.7 million acres. ''That's about 10 times a normal fire season,'' Smurthwaite said. This week's fires in Reading were probably set on purpose, but spread quickly because of the dry conditions. In the South, a combination of arson and lightning is suspected in a number of fires that spread fast because of the dry conditions.


KENTUCKY - November 17, 1999 - Fires fueled by drought-like conditions, low humidity and weekend temperatures that had reached into the uppers 70s. Firefighters were using rakes, leaf blowers, chainsaws and drip torches to contain the fast-moving blazes. Kentucky's forest fire season is from Oct. 1 through Dec. 12. So far this year, 2,000 wildfires have destroyed 57,000 acres of forest in the state.


November 11, 1999 - Hard as this may be for people in South Florida to imagine in the wake of such a wet fall, weather forecasters are predicting a warmer, drier and more dangerous winter/spring fire season. The season could be worse than last year, but probably not as bad as the horrific summer of 1998 when the summer rains were eight weeks late, leading to a spate of lightning-ignited wildfires. Those fires leveled or seriously damaged more than 150 homes and businesses while scorching nearly 500,00 acres. More than 10,000 firefighters from 47 states battled the blazes. The price tag was more than $1 billion. ''Right now our biggest concern is North Florida ... where there is already a deficit of rainfall for the year,'' said Andy Devanas, chief meteorologist for the Florida Division of Emergency Management. South Florida should be somewhat better off, both Devanas and Florida Division of Forestry meteorologist Scott Goodrick predict. But it would not take much for South Florida to become as dry as it was last spring when smoke from huge fires in the Everglades cut visibility in cities as far away as Fort Lauderdale and Miami. ''We're going to be looking at a pretty rough time come next spring,'' Goodrick said.
So far, through November 7, 1999, there have been 4,427 wildfires, burning about 340,000 acres. But from Jan. 1 through June 7, a frightening 3,970 wildfires destroyed 284,290 acres. About one in five wildfires are arson cases, about the same percentage as those started by debris and trash fires. Lightning is usually the third-most common cause of wildfires.


CALIFORNIA - Oct. 25, 1999 — A state of emergency was declared last Friday for three additional Northern California counties affected by ongoing wildfires. California Lt. Governor Cruz Bustamante added Napa, Humboldt and Yuba counties to the list that includes Butte, Plumas, Shasta, Tehama, Trinity, Tuolumne and San Bernardino counties. Most of the 10 counties link to the three Northern California wildfires that began earlier this month as well as a fourth fire that has been burning in Humboldt and Trinity counties since Aug. 23. Also on Friday, officials began advising residents living near the fires burning in the forests of Trinity and Humboldt counties to begin evacuations because of the exceedingly unhealthful level of smoke in the area. Melinda Ciarabellini, spokeswoman for the Humboldt County Office of Emergency Services, said that air quality in the region is "way above hazardous." The Megram Fire, which has burned 108,172 acres, was 70 percent contained almost two weeks ago, but gained momentum again last week when it jumped several fire lines. The Onion Fire has already burned 16,602 acres.

CALIFORNIA - Oct. 19, 1999 — Northern California wildfires ignited over the weekend continued to burn out of control Monday, The blaze has so far burned a swath of 25,900 acres, destroying about 90 homes and 200 other structures. Three other major wildfires that started two months ago continued to burn - a fire that began two months ago in Trinity County is still burning and is responsible for charring a total of 111,000 acres. Two other fires in the Los Padres National Forest near the state's central coast have scorched more than 85,000 acres. .
October 18, 1999 - A fast-moving wildfire, fueled by high winds and extremely dry vegetation, has consumed 20,000 acres in one northern California county, forcing at least 1,000 people to evacuate and causing the death of one volunteer firefighter.

LEBANON - Oct. 1, 1999 — At least three firefighters were wounded battling more than 100 forest fires that raged across regions of Lebanon on Thursday as the country sweltered in a heatwave. Disaster officials said that 20 new fires had broken out in the mountains above Beirut as well as in other parts of the country during the day.

CALIFORNIA - Sept. 28, 1999 — Firefighters spent the weekend battling at least five wildfires. At least 37 houses were destroyed by a wildfire that ravaged Happy Valley. The fire jumped shallow canyons covered with oaks and dry grass, and quickly grew to cover more than 2,000 acres (809 hectares). Firefighters continued to battle a series of ongoing wildfires during the weekend in California's Trinity Alps Wilderness that have charred more than 60,000 acres (24,280 hectares). The so-called Onion Fire in the same region, about 200 miles (322 km) north of San Francisco, had burned a total 16,602 acres (6,719 hectares) by Sunday, pushing fire lines, which surrounded 95 percent of the blaze. Another group of fires near the central Pacific coast had burned 42,454 acres (17,181 hectares) in the Ventana Wilderness of Los Padres National Forest by the end of last weekend. The Tassajara fire which has burned 26,320 acres (10,651 hectares) near Big Sur, had 30 percent containment by Sunday evening.

September 20, 1999 - Fires Still Burn Near California's Big Sur Coast. The stubborn, lightning-ignited fires, which started on Sept. 8, are burning up nearly vertical slopes through thick forests. At least 25,700 acres of oak trees, sage and chaparral have been charred in the blazes so far.


BRAZIL - Sept. 7, 1999 — Thousands of brush fires burned through south-central BRAZIL during the weekend, cutting off power supplies to 10 key cities and sending scores of people to hospitals with respiratory conditions. More than 2,700 blazes were raging throughout the open countryside. There has been no rain in the state for more than 60 days. In the neighboring state of Mato Grosso to the north, firefighters estimated that at least 11,000 fires were burning out of control.
Sept. 1, 1999 - Nearly 2,000 brush fires were raging out of control across the central-western region of Brazil and more than half of a 10,000 acre rainforest sanctuary in the central part of the country has already been destroyed. Many rare plant and animal species are threatened by the advancing blazes. The fires were fueled by an ongoing drought and fanned by hot, gusty winds.


CANADA - Sept. 1, 1999 — Forty-two wildfires raged across the Manitoba region of Canada. Province officials said that six of the fires were out of control. The largest of the blazes covered 15,000 acres in the far northeast of Manitoba. The region is sparsely populated, but the fires are destroying prime timberland. There were another 25 fires burning in the neighboring province of Ontario, two of which were being controlled with water bombers. Three large fires in the area were ignited by lightning last week.


U.S. - Sept. 1, 1999 — The Willow fire, the biggest of the wildfires torching six Western states, has burned 52,800 acres as it moves toward lake resorts in the San Bernardino Mountains. Dozens of homes have already been consumed by the blaze in the Mojave Desert below. More than 9,000 firefighters are battling the fires in California, Idaho, Washington, Montana, Nevada and Utah. A 40,000-acre blaze is devastating grasslands across southern Idaho. The National Interagency Fire Center said increasing winds and low humidity will likely plague firefighters throughout the week.

One firefighter was fatally injured battling flames in Los Padres National Forest near Santa Barbara. (August 29, 1999)
Firefighters battling blazes in California and Nevada, tens of thousands of acres remained ablaze and forecasters warned more fires could be touched off by lightning strikes. (August 26, 1999)


BOLIVIA - August 24, 1999 - wind-fueled fires have destroyed 350,000 arcres of farmland and at least 500 homes, leaving thousands homeless and blanketing the country's lowlands with smoke. Farmlands and forests have burned out of control for more than a week in the area north of Santa Cruz.


SPAIN - August 16, 1999 — Five hundred people were evacuated from their homes and campsites north of Javea on the east coast of Spain on Sunday when two forest fires joined together and ravaged 740 acres. The two fires met and formed a nine-mile wall of fire. The fires were fueled by high temperatures and gusty winds. None of the blazes had been contained by Sunday night.


HAWAII - August 11, 1999 - Officials have been monitoring a nagging drought -- one that has persisted in some areas since January 1998 and could become a source of major fires. The Big Island faced its biggest brush fire in the past two years when some 10,000 to 15,000 acres of brush land burned in south Kohala last week. Officials are worried about the potential for large fires.


August 6 - NEVADA wildfires char 600,000 acres.

August 5, 1999 -- Four people were killed and five others seriously injured in the wildfires that swept across the Veld of SOUTH AFRICA on Monday.

July 28, 1999 - U.S. - Wildfires were raging in CALIFORNIA (13,700 acres), NEVADA (59,000 acres), UTAH, and MONTANA (33,000 acres).
IDAHO - July 28, 1999 -- Wildfires that destroyed nearly 50,000 acres of desert vegetation near Atomic City, Idaho, last week also took with them one of the last existing prime habitats of the sage grouse. The area was the birds' mating and nesting place, and biologists estimate it will take at least 20 years for the habitat to recover.
OHIO - Since June 1, about 100 wildfires have burned 275 acres, figures typically seen in the fall. The problem is not nearly as severe as in the West, where thousands of acres burn at a time. The mid-Atlantic and Northeast also are reporting more serious problems than Ohio Ohio's situation is unusual, but not extreme. Fires are not typical in the summer in Ohio because rain usually keeps vegetation healthy and the ground moist. This year, plants and fields are dry, which makes them more susceptible. ``What was once green early in the spring is now dying as it would in the fall,'' said Nathan Kirk, fire and law enforcement coordinator for the Ohio Division of Forestry. ``It's almost as though we're heading into fall and wintertime the way things are dying.'' The problem could grow if the drought continues through mid-August. More vegetation would dry up and leaves would fall earlier, extending and worsening the fire season, he said. The fires have received little attention because most are small and typically can be put out quickly.


FRANCE - Nearly 6,000 acres of Riviera pine forests burned in a wildfire that cut a swath through the Bouche-du-Rhone area of France July 29 and 30.
July 6, 1999 -- High winds fanned wildfires that erupted in the south destroying several hundred acres of forest.


SUMATRA - July 26, 1999 -- Another outbreak of wildfires sent a blanket of smoke over Sumatra's Riau region late last week. Analysis of weather satellite images revealed that there were approximately 167 separate blazes burning across the Indonesian island. The fires, which are a yearly occurrence, are started by farmers to clear rainforests in preparation for cultivation. Visibility was obstructed due to the smoke. Massive wildfires last year caused a major environmental catastrophe in the same region, and were made more severe by the El Nino-produced drought.


RUSSIA - July 14, 1999 -- More than 1,310,000 acres of Russia's forests have been destroyed by fires so far this year. Nearly 400 new fires broke out over the weekend as a heatwave that is being blamed for starting the blazes continued to grip the country.
RUSSIA - as of late May, forest fires raged across Russia's Far Eastern region despite continued efforts to put out the blazes. Fires in more than 16 areas have engulfed 20,700 acres of taiga forest.
May 20, 1999 - A heat wave in Russia's Far East has more than tripled the number of forest fires during the past few weeks, but authorities said the blazes were under control for the time being. Officials warned that the situation could easily worsen if the hot spell continues. Close to 7,500 acres of forest have been blackened in the eastern border region region of Khabarovsk, up from 2,475 acres in late April.
May 2, 1999 -- Forest fires continued to rage across Russia's Far Eastern region of Khabarovsk despite continued efforts to extinguish the blazes. Fires in more than 16 areas have already engulfed 20,700 acres of taiga forest. The forest fires are blamed largely on residents starting bonfires. Massive forest fires in Russia's Far East burned more than 3.7 million acres last year, and were extinguished only by autumn and winter snowfall.
April 27, 1999 -- A series of forest fires in Russia's Far East have destroyed at least 3,500 acres during the past few days.


PRIOR INFO:

AFGHANISTAN - June 21, 1999 -- Four firefighters died battling a forest fire in the mountains. The fire continued to rage out of control during the past week and has destroyed hundreds of acres of forest in the northeast of the country. Twelve communities in the Dara Pech Valley have been consumed during the past few days, forcing the relocation of 3,000 people. The fire is located 20 miles (30 km) from the provincial capital Asadabad. Officials are now concerned that it is rapidly approaching Pakistan's border town of Chitral.
June 18, 1999 -- A forest fire in northeastern Afghanistan raged out of control for the fifth day. The blaze is destroying vast amounts of the Kunar forests, which are a major source of income for the region.


May 25, 1999 -- ISRAEL AND THE PALESTINIAN TERRITORIES - Brush fires flared as temperatures soared with temperatures in the Jordan Valley reaching 113 degrees Fahrenheit (49 degrees Celsius), the HIGHEST IN A DECADE FOR THE MONTH OF MAY. Israeli firefighters battled dozens of blazes in the northern coastal region near Haifa, as forests and grasslands dried out by a severe drought went up in flames. The highest temperature recorded during the day was 113 degrees Fahrenheit (49 degrees Celsius) in the shade.


May 24, 1999 - LEBANON - experts predict that water shortages and the lack of government planning will result in a record number of bushfires throughout the country this year. "If the weather continues to be as hot as this, forest fires are going to cause disasters in the country, especially as we're short on water," said George Abu Musa, head of operations in the Civil Defense. Numerous blazes broke out in the north and the south. The fires are fanned by unseasonably hot weather and stiff breezes.


May 21, 1999 - CANADA - SAULT STE. MARIE - Forest fires across the country are keeping fire fighters busy battling the blaze and some continue to burn uncontrolled despite water bombing. A huge forest fire, 400 kilometres north of Sault Ste. Marie, has already swept over 350 square km of forest and continues to burn unchecked.
It's just one of 23 forest fires in Ontario now, 28 in Manitoba, 15 in Quebec. Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland have also experienced unusually high forest fire activity this spring. Nova Scotia has been hit with two major blazes, one in the Shag Harbour area and the other in Welshtown. Those fires led to the evacuation of about 1,100 people. The Shag Harbour fire destroyed a house, a mobile home and several sheds and hunting camps. Last year, 338 fires burned 400 hectares of land in Nova Scotia over the entire forest fire season. Twice as much property has been destroyed so far this year.
CANADA, ONTARIO - May 10, 1999 - More than 200 forest fires are raging across the north and one has destroyed more forest this year so far than all forest fires in 1998 combined during this same period.


INDIA - May 3, 1999 - Death toll from the heat wave now stands at 125.
April 26, 1999 -- A severe heat wave lingering across parts of India and Bangladesh has triggered widespread forest fires in the northern Himalayas and claimed at least 44 lives during the past week.Temperatures in the area soared to 111 degrees Fahrenheit. Meteorologists warned that the hot spell could continue until monsoon rains set in across the sub-continent in early June.

SOUTHEAST ASIA - May 2, 1999 -- Forest fires in Indonesia have reached a dangerous level as large clouds of smoke headed toward Singapore over the weekend. The fires prompted concerns that the thick haze that choked parts of Southeast Asia last year was returning. The smog has become a seasonal problem during the area's mid-year dry season, when plantations set fires as a cheap but illegal way to clear land. Satellite images showed 43 hot spots across the Indonesian island of Sumatra. Fires were also detected on the island of Borneo. Experts meeting at a pollution conference in Singapore last week said the especially fine particles from the fires pose a risk of heart disease and lung cancer. Indonesia has warned that its current economic crisis and political instability have left it with few resources to fight fires or enforce anti-burning laws.
April 19, 1999 -- Raging forest fires on the Indonesian island of Sumatra have resulted in a disastrous haze blanketing neighboring Singapore and Malaysia over the weekend. The smoky haze has pushed air pollution to dangerous levels. Environment ministers from the nine-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) called for a zero burning policy to prevent a repeat of the 1998-98 disaster that left a devastating impact on public health, the environment and tourism. Fires raging in East Kalimantan forests and brush lands during 1997 and 1998 resulted in staggering losses for Indonesia and the region. More than 17.25 million acres of forest were destroyed from those blazes. Satellite pictures showed the Sumatra fires were set to clear land.

CUBA - April 12, 1999 -- Nearly 2,000 acres of forest in Cuba's western Pinar del Rio province were devoured by spreading wildfires over the weekend. Forest rangers, volunteers and special security forces were dispatched to contain the fires that have destroyed thousands of eucalyptus and pine trees in the region, but have caused no injuries.  
April 14, 1999 -- Cuban firefighters have brought under control one of the country's largest forest fires, which devastated 19,770 acres.

NICARAGUA - April 12, 1999 -- Widespread fires raging along Nicaragua's Atlantic Coast have destroyed more than 22,400 acres) of forest and farmland during the past few weeks. The blazes have also left a dark cloud of smoke hovering over the interior of the country, prompting public health warnings by government officials. Since February, fire-fighters have battled 550 fires in the region. No injuries have been reported from the flames and damage estimates were unavailable.

BHUTAN - March 29, 1999 -- Wildfires raging across the tiny Himalayan country of Bhutan have destroyed nearly 30,000 acres (12,000 hectares) of forest since the beginning of the year, according to the country's Kuensel newspaper. More than 100 forest fires have been reported across the kingdom, and forestry officials believe that an unusually dry season has triggered the multiple blazes.


U.S.:

July 5, 1999: Flames threatening UTAH towns; CALIFORNIA battles blazes. High winds spread a wildfire over roughly 61,400 acres south of Salt Lake City.

June 27, 1999 - The fire danger in Arizona's forests is now high to extreme in most of the state. So far this year, 1,400 wildfires have broken out across Arizona and have already burned more than 37,000 acres.


VIRGINIA - officials are bracing for a severe fall fire season. The state already has lost more forestland to blazes this year, 6,000 acres, than in all of 1998, one of the worst years on record.

NORTH CAROLINA - April 12 - Huge wildfires -- One firefighter was hospitalized and more than 60 homes evacuated as a dozen wildfires continued to rage out of control in western North Carolina on Monday. The flames have now burned nearly 1,000 acres across the western part of the state. In Wilkes County, strong winds revived fires that burned 500 acres over the weekend. A dozen wildfires of various sizes burned in the Nantahala and Pisgah national forests.  
April 14, 1999 -- Residents of 60 homes near the town of Wilkesboro in western North Carolina remained under an evacuation order because of a large forest fire engulfing the area, which has burned 600 acres. By early Wednesday, the blaze was 75 percent contained.

FLORIDA - June 2, 1999 - Florida and S. Georgia (53,00 acres have burned so far - expected to take 2 weeks to contain),
May 26, 1999 -- A series of wildfires in South Florida triggered a severe automobile accident on a smoke-shrouded highway on Tuesday that left one person dead and 20 others injured. Most lanes in a 30-mile (50-km) stretch of the roadway were closed after visibility shrunk to zero. The fast-moving blazes have already destroyed more than 20,000 acres in southern Florida's Rotenberger Wildlife Management Park. In southwestern Palm Beach, firefighters worked to ignite back fires in the area to contain a blaze, which more than doubled in size overnight. More than 10,000 acres have been charred thus far. Meanwhile in northern Florida, fire crews battled a fire that swelled to 11,000 acres in the Osceola National Forest near Jacksonville.
May 1999 - As the result of an unusually dry winter and low spring precipitation, the threat of wildfires is increasing. Although the massive fire in the Everglades was contained, conditions in Florida continue to indicate a severe season.
April 20 - Vast swaths of the Florida Everglades were ablaze as winds whipped up more brush fires in the parched state. The fire forced the closure of the main east-west highway through the giant swamp, known as Alligator Alley, for a third day. It has already consumed 130,000 acres. It was expected to char at least 150,000 acres before finally dying (an area equivalent to the size of a large city).
Rainfall levels have been 90 PERCENT BELOW NORMAL during the December-through-April dry season.Wildfires consumed 500,000 acres in Florida last summer, causing $400 million in damage. Large fires are normal in the Everglades, an ecosystem that relies on flames to clear out decaying undergrowth and make way for new growth. Florida's fire season is not expected to end before mid-May.


GEORGIA - April 14 - Weeks of drought have dried out the state's forests and triggered 131 fires that destroyed 5,000 acres.
April 22, 1999 - Fire danger is very, very high. Drought is expected to extend all across eastern Georgia before significant rainfall is recieved.

TENNESSEE - April 14 - Nearly 30 weekend fires in eastern Tennessee damaged more than 3,000 acres and destroyed two vacation homes.

TEXAS - April 14 - Severe fire danger caused the governor to issue a danger alert for portions of Texas.
CALIFORNIA - June 2, 1999 - Wildfires are burning (13,900 acres burned - believed to be contained),
ARIZONA - June 2 - (11,000 acres burned so far in Grand Canyon National Park;14,600 acres near Phoenix - believed to be contained),
NEVADA - June 2 - (10,000 acres near Las Vegas)