Many people put the responsibility of fire prevention and suppression on the local fire departments. In this article, we will discuss various procedures and solutions to preventing, suppressing, and controlling fire within your own means. Although there are firefighters dedicated to assisting with this issue, it is ultimately the responsibility of the property owners; to put programs into place that promote ongoing prevention efforts. A solid routine of recognizing and eliminating fire hazards and delegation of responsibilities such as housekeeping, compartmentalization, maintenance of combustible equipment, can decrease the chances of a fire occurring.

A.     Passive Fire Protection Measures

When planning for a fire disaster it is best to approach it from a worst-case scenario. Consider what your backup plan will be if all current systems fail. This is where having a passive fire protection system in place can save property and potentially lives.

I.    Passive Barriers

In preparation for fire spread prevention from room to room, you should compartmentalize your home as much as possible sealing each compartment, room, closet, etc. well enough that flame nor smoke can come through. Doing so will aid in preventing the spread of a fire, and decrease the amount of property damage loss. Fire doors are good for compartmentalization.

II.   Fire Doors

Typically, fire doors protect openings in firewalls. For best safety and prevention measures, be sure to latch all fire doors securely and that they close without assistance. If you do need to prop the fire doors open, make sure to use an electromagnetic door holder device. These types of devices have sensors that release the doors when the alarm triggers by smoke or fire, and you should allow a professional to install them.

 

It is best to construct your collection storage and handling areas with two-hour, fire rated materials. Ongoing maintenance will be required to assure that any penetrations, duck work holes, electrical wiring, etc., are secure and sealed to prevent smoke from infiltrating. Compartmentalization by storing items in fireproof containers helps deter fire and water.

Community Projects: Neighborhood Watch

A.     Create an Arson Watch in Your Neighborhood Watch

Arson is a common occurrence and an under pursued nuisance. Like with other crimes, the more people that are aware of suspicious behavior and willing to work together as a community, the better the community can fight against arsonists and other criminals. One of the best-known ways to achieve this is by creating a neighborhood watch program. Everyone's schedules vary and people will have a variety of visitors. Meeting once per week to get to know your neighbors, their visitors and habits, and sharing concerns, can help when identifying and terminating arson threats.

Once a neighborhood develops a level of trust in this manner, the next step is to build closer partnerships with fire, emergency, and law enforcement agencies. Communication and understanding are key in the connection between civilians and professional agencies. Developing a neighborhood arson watch combines the efforts of the communities and officials. The idea with a neighborhood arson watch program; is to have the communities work together to aid in prevention and identification of arsonists and materials that arsonists typically use to start a fire.  

Some basic preventative measures are as follows:

• Keep the neighborhood clean of all debris and dead vegetation

• Store building materials in locked secure areas

• Store flammable liquids in a locked secure area, that is well ventilated

• Store chemicals in a locked secure, well ventilated area

Wildfire Protection Services

The W.U.I. or Wildland Urban Interface is the area where people build their homes in wildland fire prone areas. Despite the high rate of wildfire occurrences and proven property damage, more and more homeowners are building on these W.U.I. zones for privacy, recreational opportunities, and affordability.

A.     National Fire Plan

An approval of funds for the preparation and prevention efforts otherwise known as the National Fire Plan took place in 2001. The focuses being, to provide sufficient firefighting resources, restore damaged ecosystems by wildfire, and reduce fuels in forests and rangelands near communities at risk.

B.      Prescribed Fire/Controlled Burning

Burn plans are detailed outlines describing and prescribing the ideal conditions in which all trees and plants will burn the safest and most effective in the ecosystem. When creating a controlled burn plan, you want to consider and compare the temperature, level of humidity, wind direction, speed, moisture content within the vegetation to burn, and dispersal of smoke to know when the perfect fire weather occurs.

I.     History of Controlled Burning

The Daniel Boone National Forest in Kentucky utilizes controlled burning regularly. Since implementing controlled burns, the amount of unwanted fires has greatly decreased. Fire plays an integral role when influencing and reviving the life cycles of trees and vegetation. Some species rely on fire in order to reproduce.

Unfortunately, until recent efforts, extreme suppression efforts and regulation have suggested that fires of any sort in our forests were a negative thing. In addition, extreme suppression has resulted in fewer natural and necessary forest fires, leaving some of our forests unhealthy.

II.    What is "Controlled Burning"?

Controlled burning is the process intentionally igniting specific parts of a property for various land management objectives. Whether it be to reduce the amount of flammable fuels or restore the ecosystem and recycle nutrients, controlled burning is something that when performed accurately and safety, is one of the best things you can do for your woodlands.

Possessing the ability to know when an ecosystem is ready for controlled burning is a science. We refer to this perfect time when conditions align as the "burn window". Due to the uncertainty of nature, fire specialists constantly monitor conditions during the controlled burn.

III.     Controlled Burning and Air Quality

All fires affect air quality in one way or another. Things such as humidity, wind, and the type of fuels available to burn, decide the severity and direction of the fire. All fuel fires have some pollutants and smoke but temperature, materials burned, and various other factors affect the amount of smoke and its contents.

Smoke adversely affects vision, which is why wind direction and wind speed are two crucial factors of consideration. The location of the burn is important. For example, if the area of controlled burning is near a highway, the burn prescription will need to assure that the wind direction is moving away from the highway.

IV.    Disease and Insect Management

Controlled burning is necessary. Without fire in our wildlands and forests, we have had an increase in plant and tree disease and insect epidemics. Forests are also plagued with a variety of health problems such as overcrowding, and a rising population of species, which typically are eliminated by natural fire.

Also by burning out the underbrush, we greatly reduce the potential for ignition of the underbrush, and reduce the intensity of any potential fires. Piles of dead underbrush can have enough nitrogen to ignite in some cases. Controlled burning allows some passive control of the unwanted fires when they do occur.

On public lands, the Forest Service has identified areas where we can use fire as a management tool. Control burning parts of a larger fire event, can aid in managing and reducing the intensity of larger wildfires. Wildfires unlike controlled fires are far more intense and chaotic. When control burning, the coordinator who creates the burn plan assures what to be burned and when, such as type of vegetation and insect problems, which also helps for identification of plants and trees to avoid the compromise of air quality.

C.      Nature's Way of Recycling

I.    Rot

Large objects such as fallen trees and limbs will decay at a very slow rate. Some of the larger logs can take more than one hundred years to decompose. Numerous bacteria species, insects, and some wildlife aid in the decomposition process. Pine needles have a slow decomposition rate; it takes more than a year to decompose ten percent of the pine needles that drop. Accumulation of pine needles year after year will eventually burn from wildfire. Although a slow process, decomposition is still beneficial to forests and replenishes nutrients back into the soil.

II.     Wildfire

The recycling process goes much faster when wildfires occur. After wildfires occur, nitrogen, phosphorous, potassium, and other nutrients leach back into the soil as rain dissolves the ashes. Unfortunately, when there is too much accumulation of fuels on the ground, the wildfire burns with more intensity and heat, often destroys the nutrients, scorching the ground, and killing overhead trees.

III.    Which is Better, Slow or Fast Recycling?

Slow Recycling

With slow recycling or decomposition, the rotting material steadily releases nutrients back into the soil. Decomposition can go on indefinitely. The continuous release of nutrients helps maintain growth over a long period. In some parts of the world, a wildfire may occur only once every six hundred years or so. Areas such as these rely on decomposition for nutrients between wildfires.

Fast Recycling Wildfires

Nutrients are recycled much quicker with wildfires. The abundant accumulation of nutrients after a wildfire helps new seedlings, plants, and grasses grow quicker. Wildfires are nature's way of refreshing forests. Typically, the nutrients accumulated just after a wildfire, will dissipate quickly, once a rain occurs the nutrients leach back into the soil more effectively. It takes approximately three years for the nutrients to regain balance.

Our forests require a balance of slow decomposition, and fast recycling fires. Prior to the 1900s, a wildfire occurred every twenty-five years in Kentucky's forests. As of 1915, national forestry management's policies viewed wildfires as destructive, so they began putting the fires out quickly. Today, we try to help people understand the importance of fire in maintaining healthy forests.

 IV.    Why Not Use Controlled Burning Everywhere?

Some areas are more conducive to controlled burning based on location, practicality, and feasibility. Out of one year, there may be fifty or less days, in which the area coincides with the fire prescription and law regulations. Weather, temperature, moisture content within the fuels, ignition pattern feasibility, and aesthetics are deciding factors for the allowance of a controlled burn. The Daniel Boone National Forest had a core study done that shows how American Indians used fire to manage the environment in that area for over three thousand years.

I.    Purpose of Firebreaks

The purpose of a firebreak is to provide a cleared area wide enough that a fire cannot jump and keep burning, effectively stopping the fire in its tracks. Firebreaks will not stop every wildfire. In severe wildfires, firebreaks may not be as effective. Landowners are required to prepare firebreaks on their side of the property line in a place most likely to stop the fire from spreading.

II.    Preparing Firebreaks

Firebreaks can be prepared in several ways, for example, grading, ploughing, disking, hoeing, and burning. Due to the Conservation of Agricultural Resources Act however, owners should ensure that any firebreaks are prepared in such a way that causes the least amount of disturbance to the environment. The National Environmental Management Act requires us to protect biodiversity.

Procedures for Burning Firebreaks

Discuss the burn plan with your neighbors to determine mutually accepted dates and make sure to inform the FPA, in the United Kingdom or your local state and municipal official of the plan. Neighboring landowners should burn firebreaks on the same day. Otherwise, landowners should make sure to have an agent present. In addition, it is very important that there are enough people present to keep the fire from spreading.

If for some reason neighbors do not come to an agreement, give fourteen days' written notice of the planned burn days to neighbors and the FPA. If a neighbor is absent on burn days, it is acceptable to burn in their absence. If an owner will be absent longer than fourteen days during the period in which the burns usually take place, the owner must give neighbors an address and phone number where they can be contacted.

Rule Modification

An FPA official can make modifications to the rules within the ACT if the Minister approves. FPA's enforce rules on members and non-members. Local practices and issues determine requirements.

III.   Permanent Firebreaks

A permanent firebreak is a strip of fire-resistant vegetation or ground that slows the spread of fire. Firebreaks that are more complex can also be built to provide habitat for wildlife and property access.

Equipment

Typically, a crawler tractor is used for clearing firebreaks in forested areas. It may also be necessary to use a mechanical spreader for lime, fertilizer, and seed.

IV.    Location of Firebreaks

You should position firebreaks on the tops of ridges, on the contours, and throughout the forest at intervals of one eighth to one half mile. Wherever possible, tie firebreaks into existing barriers such as roads, pastures or cultivated fields. It is best to avoid tying breaks into bodies of water or streams, which could result in siltation of the water body. Also, make sure not to include logs, stumps, and other organic debris in roadbeds.

Roadbeds

Roadbeds should measure ten feet across or more. On long advanced grades, the breaks should be broken down into shorter segments of three hundred to five hundred feet. When erosion hazard is high, water diversion firebreaks can be helpful. In some circumstances, you can use vegetation to prevent erosion and provide wildlife habitat.

V.     Vegetated Firebreaks

You can create vegetative firebreaks using various methods and should be at least ten feet wide. Plowing, disking, and then seeding with a green cover crop is one of the most common methods. When you are installing vegetated firebreaks, make sure to select plants that are fire retardant and potentially a wildlife habitat.

Over seeding with legumes or rye grass can be beneficial for minimizing erosion. These types of firebreaks work well and you can maintain them by allowing cattle and other wildlife to graze the area, which keeps organic materials from accumulating.

VI.    Plowed or Disked Firebreaks

There are various types of equipment used to create plowed or disked firebreaks. Ideally, this will result in a bare area of non-flammable materials at least ten feet in width. Make sure to put these breaks in areas that only have slight risk of erosion.    

VII.   Water Diversion Firebreaks

Create water diversion firebreaks on slopes. The intensity of the slope will determine spacing and size of the firebreaks. Water diversions are typically twelve to eighteen inches high and set at a thirty to forty degree angle down the slope across the road or firebreak, re-routing water to the forested areas. Seeding and fertilizing with deep and dense vegetation can help strengthen the firebreak.

VIII.    Grazed Firebreaks

Typically, we use grazed firebreaks in areas where livestock can graze them in order to keep the vegetation short. Grazed firebreaks are on average, sixteen feet across. You can plan legumes, rye grass, grains, or Bahia grass to re-establish fire lanes.