Fire Season 2014

[John]

Thanks so much for the update. It is a hard call as to where to go this weekend with smoke all over the Sierras.

We just feel so helpless about the fire. I wish we could do something.

[John]

New stats out this morning:

Current Situation
Total Personnel   1,422
Size   8,207 Acres
Percent of Perimeter Contained   15%
Fuels Involved   

Timber with some brushy areas
Significant Events   

12 campgrounds have been closed.

For comparison sake, when the Aspen Fire was finally out it only had something like 800 people fighting it and the total acreage burnt was approx 22000 acres. It burned for 19 days and started within the same week in July of 2013 that the French Fire did.


I am really happy to see so many firefighters involved and hope they all come home safe.

[John]

This site is freaking me out. What the hell do all of the dots mean!!??

http://wildlandfire.maps.arcgis.com/apps/PublicInformation/index.html?appid=2e59e00f5b164606adcd6e00ac250e9c

[mungeclimber]

Hot spots, bleeding edge of fire

[jeff]

information on fire locations using thermal images collected by the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) satellite.  The MODIS instrument images the entire surface of the Earth every two days (daily in northern latitudes), making observations in 36 co-registered spectral bands at moderate spatial resolutions (250, 500, and 1000 meters). Thermal information is collected at 1000-meter spatial resolution. The collected thermal information is converted to ellipse-shaped vector polygons. These collections are processed through the MODLand Rapid Response System using the algorithm described by the MOD14 Users Guide. The thermal MODIS data is shown by the color of the symbol on the map. This thermal data is collected twice a day, at 2:00 PM EST and again at 12:00 AM EST and are then processed and merged into a single map, which is available by 3:00 AM EST.

[mungeclimber]

yowzer, that's detailed!


I always wondered if it could pick up isolated campfires.

[John]

The Madera Co Sheriffs Dept found that the French Fire started from a log extending out of a fire pit into needles, like a time-delay fuse. The photos look just like the road right outside of the mine.

http://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/4013/

[NateD]

Don't know how the fight has progressed today, but here is an interesting map of the plans in a report from this morning. Interesting to potentially dozer over the top of Shuteye Pass and down the old trail running behind Fallen Eagle.

Inserting the link rather than embedding due to the large size.
http://www.goldrushcam.com/sierrasuntimes/images/2014/august/IAP-French-Fire-832014-lg.jpg

Very disturbing to also hear on Sat. how the fire was carelessly started.

Interested in hearing how smokey it was to those who went this w/e, and where you all might have climbed, considering half the ridge and SoYo was closed, with fines imposed on those entering the closed zones.

[John]

This really sucks.

Thanks for the map, Nate. I can't picture a dozer anywhere near the ridgeline at all. Crazy thought.

[susan]

Cloud cover helped suppression actions throughout the night, allowing crews and equipment to make good progress in line construction along the northwest perimeter. Today crews will continue building and reinforcing containment lines on the north, west and south perimeters. The east perimeter has burned down to the San Joaquin River. Structure defense continues in the Arnold Meadow area on the northern perimeter.

Holding on tight to the latest report from this morning on inciweb plus a hopeful forecast today with cooling temps this week. Damn miserable otherwise.

[NateD]

Did you guys head to SoYo over the w/e? Anyone else?

[susan]

No, we took Munge up on his invite thankfully, where conditions were a little smoky but tolerable. Do you want to get out there? 

[NateD]

Want, yes! Arranging it is another matter, as always. Maybe in a couple weeks, or three...

And hopefully things will have simmered down by then.

[Dave]

Passing on the weekend plans but I Iikely to be up there late Sept. Will certainly be at Hoffman on Sept trip....if anything is left by then.

[susan]

Keep wondering who would have camped there where the fire began and who started it...

One rainy day over a year ago we drove down that road by Rock Creek Camp far as we could, and at the end of it found the old mine. Anyone else here check this area out before? This appears to be the area where the fire began.

The place had the usual pile of shotgun shells littered about. It wasn't what I'd call an ideal place to camp but was fun exploring a bit. Wondered if the mine shaft had become a den... was spooky to me. The views of falls in the creek with steep cliff band had me wondering if anyone comes down there to climb or enjoy the falls right there, though it wasn't especially appealing, or easily accessed that I could tell... I could imagine someone might think it is. The photo of that fire pit looks to be this area where someone could car camp possibly with view of the creek & falls.