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Northeast Regional Strategy Committee Newsletter

May 2020


The purpose of the Northeast Regional Strategy Committee (NE RSC) is to provide strategic oversight and participating organization (federal, state, local, non-profit) coordination to ensure policy coordination, cross-boundary communication, accountability, facilitate sharing of resources, and effective implementation of the Cohesive Strategy and related long-term strategies to address wildfire preparedness and suppression, hazardous fuels reduction, landscape restoration and rehabilitation of wildlands, and assistance to communities.
Table of Contents  

 

COVID-19 News for Wildland Fire Management

 
  • The National Wildfire Coordinating Group (NWCG) has updated their guidance on infectious diseases that may occur on a wildland fire incident. “Infectious Disease Guidance for Wildland Fire Incidents
  • The Fire Management Board (FMB) has provided guidance on how federal agencies with wildland fire responsibilities will make adjustments to annual wildland fire training and physical testing activities this year during the COVID-19 pandemic.  The FMB is a mechanism for coordinated and integrated federal wildland fire program management and implementation. Here is a link to the official memo from the Fire Management Board.
  • Forest Service Coronavirus (Covid-19) Updates - The Forest Service is taking the risks presented by COVID-19 seriously and is following USDA and CDC public health guidance as we continue to offer services to the public. Visitors to our National Forests and Grasslands are urged to take the precautions recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
  • Working Different: The Wildland Fire Lessons Learned Center blog post “Thinking Outside the Stratosphere” says “goodbye, normal” and ponders how wildland fire can meet the challenges of a fire season with coronavirus. The post closes with a link to contagious outbreak-related reports in the LLC’s Incident Review Database. [FLN Networker]
  • This US Fire Administration website provides information on COVID-19 resources for fire and EMS departments on: Funding, Planning & Response, Infection Control, and Behavioral Health.
  • FEMA makes additional $100 million available to fire/EMS for COVID-19 response. Grant application period open: April 28 to May 15, Learn more about this opportunity
  • There are three official, government-wide sources of up-to-date information about the coronavirus: Coronavirus.gov, CDC.gov/coronavirus, and USA.gov/coronavirus.
 * Additional Northeast Regional Wildland Fire/COVID-19 information
                           

The RSG! Program has created the ‘Are YOU Wildfire Ready?’ campaign


May 4, 2020

Across the country, our fire and emergency response agencies are on the frontlines facing the COVID-19 pandemic. As they work tirelessly to keep communities safe during these challenging and uncertain times, the majority of residents in the U.S. find themselves under stay-at-home orders. There are actions those living in the Wildland-Urban Interface (WUI) can take to reduce their risk and do their part in creating a wildfire ready community while they’re at home.

The RSG! Program has created the ‘Are YOU Wildfire Ready?’ campaign that will consist of weekly challenges for residents living in wildland areas. Each week we will issue a new challenge to residents, with resources and advice to help them harden their home or mitigate their property. Information will be shared on the RSG Twitter and IAFC Wildland Fire Programs Facebook, with additional details made available on our website. We recognize access to resources and capacity varies, and we encourage each resident to take as much action as possible to reduce their risk.

We encourage you to share the weekly challenges with residents in your area. Share the information we post on social media, get the word out during your planned, virtual community engagements with the community. The more residents engaged in these challenges, the safer communities will be.

Contributed by Taylor Munday and Jennifer Deitz, International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC)

Working across boundaries to help protect communities


Blog Post created by megan.fitzgerald-mcgowan

Apr 14, 2020
One of the benefits of the Firewise USA program is that it brings residents together to have structure and a voice. We've all heard that wildfires don't recognize boundaries and how it is important for landowners (individuals, private companies, government, etc.) to work together. Being organized can make it easier to partner with neighboring landowners on wildfire risk reduction projects. Brad Wright with the Virginia Department of Forestry shares with us the power of relationships and what they can lead to.

 Brush Mountain West Fuels Break Cross Boundaries Accomplishment

On January 22, 2020 the Eastern Divide Ranger District of the GW & Jefferson National Forest conducted an 18 acre controlled burn along the top of Brush Mountain outside of the Town of Blacksburg VA. The Virginia Department of Forestry (VDOF) assisted with the burn to address a shared goal with USDA Forest Service-George Washington/Jefferson National Forest (USFS-GW/JEFF), to reduce the threat to the Wildland Urban Interface. 


Plans for the controlled burn started 3 years earlier as part of mitigation efforts for the adjoining Wildland Urban Interface community of Laurel Ridge as a Cross Boundaries project.

The Cross Boundaries Program allowed for both agencies to effectively achieve a common goal by:
  • Strategically focusing on high risk areas
  • No boundaries allow for work on abutting properties
  • Collaborative planning, implementing, sharing success and lessons learned
  • Allow limited funding and resources to go further
  • Providing the same message
Even before planning for the controlled burn started the VDOF had been working with the Laurel Ridge Community since 2008 to mitigate its risk of wildfire through the Firewise USA Program. One of the original mitigation objectives in the Community Wildfire Protection Plan for Laurel Ridge was for a fuels break to be established and maintained along the adjoining USFS-GW/JEFF boundary. 
 
Although this project was small in acreage it was big in impact and helped set the stage for another Cross Boundaries project along the same mountain range to protect another Wildland Urban Interface Community.

Last fall I had the opportunity to visit Laurel Ridge and see the preparation being done ahead of this project.  Residents adjacent to the proposed fuel break had taken steps to improve the ignition resistance of their homes and home ignition zone.  They understood that in order for the controlled burn to happen, they had to do their part to help create the best possible outcome.

A big thank you to Brad, the Virginia Department of Forestry, the George Washington/Jefferson National Forest, and Laurel Ridge for sharing your story!  Has your community found success through its participation in Firewise USA in engaging partners in landscape level projects? Share your story with us by emailing firewise@nfpa.org.

What will it take for you and your neighbors to take action?  Visit Firewise.org more to learn more about how to organize your community and steps towards increasing your chances of withstanding a wildfire.

As we navigate the evolving situation with COVID-19, NFPA remains committed to supporting you with the resources you need to minimize risk and help prevent loss, injuries, and death from fire, electrical, and other hazards. For information on NFPA’s response to the coronavirus, please visit our webpage.  
 
Photo credit: courtesy of Brad Wright, Map of the area burned to create a fuels break for the Laurel Ridge Community and USFS and DOF resources working together to burn and hold the unit.
 
 

Why InFORM is your solution to wildfire reporting


May 5, 2020

The Interagency Fire Occurrence Reporting Modules – or InFORM, for short – drastically streamlines the business of wildland fire reporting. Not only does InFORM eliminate redundant data entry, it also improves the quality, completeness, and usability of that data.

InFORM Capabilities
Because InFORM is built on top of Integrated Reporting of Wildland-Fire Information (IRWIN), it is able to utilize all IRWIN tools, data, and domains.
  • Provides the most real-time access to fire occurrence data available
  • Provides access to historical fire occurrence data
  • Records one official record per fire event, regardless of agency jurisdiction
  • Detects duplicate records across and within agencies and provides one authoritative source for fire records
  • Allows other IRWIN connected systems to collect fire reporting data (WFDSS, FAMWeb209, WildCAD)
  • Automatically derives spatial data given the reported location of an ignition
  • Automatically joins point data to fire perimeter data
  • Collects the minimum required fire report inputs most commonly required
  • Allows users to enter, edit, and certify fire reporting data
  • Allows users to create Final Fire Reports and summary reports from fire records
  • Allows users to upload complete Final Fire Report records and link firefighting resources/usage records to Final Fire Reports
  • Allows users to report wildfires where trespass has occurred or is suspected
InFORM Applications

InFORM is comprised of three applications: two for field use – called Survey123 and Collector – and one web-based application – called Inspector – that is best utilized on a desktop or laptop computer.

Survey123 is a great tool for non-federal and tribal agencies, because it allows users to submit incidents to IRWIN without WildCAD. When run from a GPS-enabled cell phone or tablet at the fire scene, Survey123 can automatically capture the fire’s location as a point. Point data can be entered to initiate the record only or expanded to meet the data needs of a final fire report.

Collector is the best tool for submitting polygon data on smaller fires. Collector can be used on a GPS-enabled cell phone or tablet to capture a perimeter for any incident reported through IRWIN.

Inspector is a web-based application that users can view, edit, and input fire report data directly into the IRWIN environment. Under normal circumstances, most of the data in a fire report will have been entered through upstream applications, such as WildCAD and FAMWeb209. Inspector is used to review and edit that data, complete all required data fields, and certify the report as “final.” Inspector replaces fire occurrence reporting systems for federal agencies.
 
See the complete article at: NASF Blog on InFORM

Go to the website:  Interagency Fire Occurrence Reporting Modules (InFORM)

LANDFIRE Proves Critical to First Nationwide Tool on Wildfire Risk to Communities


Posted April 29, 2020

Mayors, city councilors and county commissioners have a lot on their minds.

Questions of policing, budgeting, or public health gobble up time and attention week after week, leaving little room for assessing risk of potential dangers like wildfire – especially for the part-time leaders who make up the bulk of the nation’s local officials.

There’s plenty of data out there on fire risk, and plenty of risk. A third of U.S. homes are in what’s known as the wildland urban interface – the space where forests and homes intermingle. But wildfire risk models tend to be steeped in the kind of jargon that simplifies communication for fire scientists but lives outside the lexicon of the average elected official.
 

That’s just one of several reasons the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Forest Service created a tool called “Wildfire Risk to Communities.” The new website boils down fire risk for every community in the United States and presents it through a simple online map interface designed with the general public in mind.

“I think most communities with a significant wildfire risk are aware of that, but the impetus to take action is competing with everything else,” said Frank Fay of the Forest Service. “It’s a virus, or it’s your police force, or it’s zoning … there’s just a lot of things to do.”

It’s the first time that wildfire risk has been mapped on a national scale. The tool’s models zeroed in on homes using U.S. Census data, then added weather data from the National Weather Service, topography from the USGS, fire history information from the Rocky Mountain Research Station in Missoula, MT, and a base map of vegetation and fuels from LANDFIRE, an interagency partnership whose datasets are built by remote sensing scientists at the U.S. Geological Survey’s (USGS) Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Center near Sioux Falls, SD.

The tool isn’t meant to replace local or regional risk assessments, Fay said. It’s nationally consistent, but not fine-tuned at the community level, for example. It also assumes that all homes have the same risk, as it doesn’t factor in risk mitigation steps homeowners or communities may have already taken.

It does, however, allow communities to take stock of their risk and see what can be done to address it. It also lets communities gauge their risk against others in a way that wasn’t possible before, offering links to helpful programs or grants that can be used to address and reduce wildfire risk.
 

The Wildland Fire Learning Portal


The Wildland Fire Learning Portal (Learning Portal) is an enterprise learning management system that enables the national wildland fire community to better meet their education and training needs.

To view public contents of the page including Geographic Area training schedules, visitors can log in as a guest and select the specific "Geographic Area" information using the drop down menu at the top of the page. Visitors to the portal who plan to complete training within the Wildland Fire Learning Portal immediately can elect to create a new account.


 

4th Annual National Cohesive Strategy Workshop is POSTPONED!

 
 
POSTPONED until October 4-8, 2021 in Asheville, NC
 

Other NE-MW Wildfire News


Solving for wildfire disasters: a lecture to MIT students [NFPA Fire Break – Wildfire Safety Blog]

Addressing wildland fire challenges [US Fire Administration – FEMA]

With peak wildfire season under way, DEP promotes fire safety (New Jersey) [Essex News Daily]

Minnesota, Wisconsin wildfire crews ready for busiest time of year [Duluth News Tribune]
           
200+ acres: Wisconsin DNR fire crews respond to wildfire in Juneau County [fox6now.com]

The future of wildfire: a year-round challenge requires a year-round workforce [Wildfire Today Blog]

Forest fire that burned 1500 acres in South Jersey caused by lightning, officials say [nj.com]
 

Meetings and Trainings


Regional

May 4-17, 2020: Minnesota Northwoods Prescribed Fire Training Exchange (TREX) [POSTPONED]

May 27, 2020 - 11 AM Eastern/ 10 AM: WEBINAR - Central LANDFIRE Remap in the North Central United States

June 6-12, 2020: Mid Atlantic Compact Wildfire Training Academy, McHenry, MD [CANCELLED]

June 16-18, 2020: NE-MW Fire Supervisors Committee Meeting, Burlington, VT [Changed to VIRTUAL]

September 14-17, 2020: Roscommon Equipment Center Workshop, Roscommon, MI

September 22-24, 2020 – NE Regional LANDFIRE Training, Westborough, MA

December 1-3, 2020 – NE Regional LANDFIRE Training, IDFTSS Training (12/3) & NE RSC Face-to-Face Meeting (12/3), Milwaukee, WI
 

National

October 26-30, 2020: 4th Annual National Cohesive Strategy Workshop, Asheville, North Carolina [POSTPONED until October 4-8, 2021]

October 26-November 6, 2020: Southern Blue Ridge TREX, Pickens, SC

November 2-6, 2020: IAFC 2020 WUI Conference, Reno NV
 
Subscribe to this Newsletter
The Northeast Regional Strategy Committee (NE RSC) delivers articles and stories each month that demonstrate the collaborative efforts of agencies, organizations and communities supporting and promoting the three goals of the Cohesive Strategy: Restoring Resilient Landscapes, Creating Fire Adapted Communities and Responding to Wildfire. 
 
This news update is our primary communication tool with our partners and the public. Looking for more Northeast Region Cohesive Strategy information or past published news update issues? Go to:  http://northeasternwildfire.net
 
GOT NEWS? Does your agency, organization or community have a wildland fire management project or event you'd like to see featured in the NE RSC News Update? Tell us about it! Submissions should be sent by the end of each month to appear in the next monthly issue. Just email to Larry Mastic.
 
 
 
Key Contacts:
Dave Celino

Chair
Chief Fire Warden
Mass. Dept. of Conservation and Recreation

Larry Mastic
Coordinator, Northeast Region
Cohesive Wildland Fire Management Strategy


Important Links
Retrieving Northeast (NE) and National Cohesive Strategy (CS) documents and reports
All things CS plus past NE Regional Strategy Committee news updates








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