Interesting Fire Department stuff.

[Aktungbby]

Well my 'very bad' is held against the standard set by the Cobb Mtn-Middletown fire earlier in the thread; My impression is the Canadian fire has lots of air support but not enough ground troops as yet. It's a remoter location with few roads.

the enormous fire that had already destroyed hundreds of homes and encircled a city and several communities was picked up by 70 kilometer-per-hour (44mph) winds and spread to 85,000 hectares.
The most severe part of the roaring front moved south of Fort McMurray, with no signs of stopping.
Over 1,110 firefighters, 145 helicopters, 138 pieces of heavy equipment, and 22 air tankers are fighting a total of 49 wildfires across Alberta, seven of which are currently considered to be out of control, according to the provincial government.the enormous fire that had already destroyed hundreds of homes and encircled a city and several communities was picked up by 70 kilometer-per-hour (44mph) winds and spread to 85,000 hectares.
Over 1,600 homes and buildings have been destroyed so far. The fire also reportedly caused major damage near the Fort McMurray International Airport overnight, and there are still no flights going in our out.
“It has begun to create its own weather, even creating its own high winds yesterday, and even lightning was coming from the smoke clouds,”
The most severe part of the roaring front moved south of Fort McMurray, with no signs of stopping.

A bright spot there; it's moving away from the community. Only a lot of rain will put this blaze out.

[u crank]

It's hard to comprehend the scope of this disaster. A city of 80,000 people devastated. This natural disaster has likely caused more property damage than any other catastrophic event in Canadian history.

The generosity of Canadians is truly amazing. When cars fleeing Fort Mac ran out of gas along Highway 63, they were greeted by young volunteers with trucks full of jerry cans and gas containers, filling the tanks of anyone in need.

This disaster hits home here in the East where thousands of people regularly commute to the Oil Patch in the Ft. Mac area. Everybody knows somebody who lives or works there. Lots of them will lose their jobs.

It's going to be a long and expensive recovery. Sad. Thoughts and best wishes to all the victims and the firefighters battling the blaze.

[Commander Wallace]

The pictures are truly devastating. The generosity and bravery of those in the affected areas and volunteers coming in from other areas is certainly no surprise. It may take a while but Canada will rebuild.

Best wishes and prayers to those who have been displaced and to the safety of those fire fighting units battling this blaze.

[mako88sb]

Originally Posted by fireftr18

I've been following it. I don't think "very bad" really covers it. I think this is the worse I remember hearing about. Prayers for citizens and firefighters.
I saw an article today that firefighters are finally able to get some rest after 30 hours of straight work.

A former co-worker lives up there and was able to haul his trailer to his job-site for now. Sounds like his home is ok and he's still able to work doing up-keep and maintenance. He's one of the few lucky ones as a lot of the main job providers have had to shut down because their workers are evacuated. Today, they said it could take months before people are allowed back into Ft. McMurray. Probably a worst case scenario behind that prediction but there certainly is not much in the way of rain in the forecast. They need several days worth of downpours before this fire can be brought under control.

[Aktungbby]

[em2nought]

Need to replace that maple leaf with this

[fireftr18]

http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/...icle-1.2651725

[Aktungbby]

Well fire season is upon us again just ten miles to the northeast at Lake Berryessa. 4700 acres burned: fortunately no structures are consumed...yet, but some residential evacuations and lakeside campgrounds have been ordered evacuated. This one, dubbed the 'Cold Fire' is 15% contained with steep terrain, bone dry and winds. In the air and double shot...good to have lake at hand for the copter buckets.> An army of roughly 700 firefighters from the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection and many other agencies attacked the flames with 86 engines, eight helicopters, six air tankers, five water trucks and nine bulldozers. Just a tad further North at Lake conty The Rocky Fire has consumed 27,000 acres and 24 homes as of 8/2; About 6,300 structures continued to be threatened while 12,000 people were impacted by mandatory and voluntary evacuation orders. 5% containment at this posting.

[fireftr18]

I've been following the fires out west. As always, they sound bad, with a lot of damage. Prayers for all of you Aktung.

[Aktungbby]

MOVE OVER MS O'LEARY'S COW! http://napavalleyregister.com/news/local/faulty-hot-tub-connection-blamed-for-last-fall-s-massive/article_5908efeb-f74f-5f11-9ea5-9e3e72e50896.html [QUOTE]The cause of last September’s historic Valley Fire, the third-most destructive wildfire in California’s history, was a faulty electrical connection for a hot tub, Cal Fire announced Wednesday afternoon.
The connection arced and ignited surrounding dry grass on High Valley Road on Cobb Mountain, creating a wildfire that killed four people, burned 76,000 acres, destroyed 1,955 structures and cost nearly $57 million to extinguish, Cal Fire reported. (four people also died) The circuit was not up to national standards, it was not buried 18 inches deep and it shared a trench with a water line, Cal Fire said. An electrical engineer determined that the connection was loose in the wire nut and it arced and melted the copper wire. It took a temperature of 1,981 degrees to melt the wire, investigators said. Cal Fire will be submitting its 500-page investigative report to Lake County District Attorney Don Anderson who will determine if any criminal or civil charges will be filed, officials said.[/QUOTE] http://calfire.ca.gov/fire_protection/fire_protection_firereports

[fireftr18]

http://www.firefightingnews.com/secr...ered-60-years/

A SECRET 60-year-old fire station – complete with firefighting equipment and uniforms – has been discovered in the bowels of a Black Country factory.

Staff at shopfitting company The Alan Nuttall Partnership have carried out a thorough investigation of the hidden fire base.

It had been tucked away at the large Dudley factory which has been the company’s home since 1986.

The room contained perfectly preserved uniforms, with the names of the wearers chalked above them. Scrawled names include I Silk, W Price and A Round.

Documents suggest the items date back to the early 1950s, when the local Co-op, which had its own fire brigade, operated from the building.

[Schroeder]

Funny that it would be forgotten just like that.

[Aktungbby]

5:43 PM: THIS just PM'd from my boat captain: A 4-6 acre fire in the steep heavily wooded are not 6 mile NW from my home in an area known as Cambell Creek...Evacutions are in progress and the area is barred from thru traffic. This is definitely on my side of a barrier range known As the Mayacamas just to the West of Yountville. Fortunately 2 volunteer fire stations known as Lakoya and another known as MT Veeder station are right there. It's already making TV news.

[Aktungbby]

The fire as now has gained to 50 acres and is 25% contained-local churches are refugee centers for forced evacuations. Weather, always the big factor, is on our side for now: low winds, damp fall mornings' and rain from a Pacific front expected on Friday.

[Catfish]

This looks a bit too close for comfort .. I hope all goes well and the fire be put out soon.
All the best!