Kamloops Fire Centre 2016.04.26

The BC Wildfire Service employs expert firefighters to protect the province.

The BC Wildfire Service employs

over 1100 Type 1 firefighters and specialized personnel, who are considered among the best in the world.

These skilled firefighters must be

employees of a government agen-cy, such as the BC Wildfire Service or another formally recognized jurisdiction. This employee re-quirement is necessary to ensure that the government's needs are covered during extreme incidents such as interface fires. These fire-fighters are usually the first on-scene at a wildfire and they can be deployed rapidly to all types of

situations. They are used in the most hazardous or complex condi-tions often involving steep, diffi-cult terrain, and extreme fire be-haviour (Rank 3 or higher).

Crew members receive extensive training each year and must be fully capable of demonstrating fire behaviour knowledge, fire man-agement tactics, fire line equip-

ment use, fire line organization, communications, air operations, and orienteering. All crew mem-bers must also meet the national physical fitness requirements. For safety reasons and to maximize knowledge transfer, new recruits are assigned to experienced crews.

Fire

Zone

# of

Fires

# of

Hectares

Clearwater 0 0

Kamloops 12 24

Salmon

Arm

2 2

Vernon 1 1

Penticton 3 16

Merritt 5 93

Lillooet 4 22

WHAT IS A HECTARE?

When it comes to wildfires, size

can be an important issue. The BC

Wildfire Service keeps track of

how big a fire is by recording the

number of hectares consumed.

1 hectare (ha) is a metric unit that

equals: 10,000 square metres,

1 hectare equals about 2.47 acres.

1 hectare is about the size of an

average public sports field.

KAMLOOPS FIRE CENTRE STATISTICS: Since April 1, 2016

Total fires: 27 Total hectares: 158

All BC Wildfire Service fire-fighters are highly trained.

P A G E 2

Kamloops Fire Centre Newsletter April 2016

Rob Schweitzer is the new fire centre manager at the Kamloops Fire Centre

The Kamloops Fire Centre (KFC) will come under new management in May 2016. Murray Henry, the current fire centre manager, will be moving on to the position of deputy director of opera-tions. As an outstanding mentor and manager, Murray will be greatly missed by KFC but the Kamloops Fire Centre is also excited to welcome incoming fire centre manager Rob Schweitzer.

Murray Henry announced the changes on April 20.

“It is with great pleasure that I get to announce that Rob Schweitzer has accepted the role as the new Fire Center Manager for KFC.

“Rob has a great deal of knowledge, background and drive that will be a suit BCWS well over the next 8 months.”

Schweitzer will take command on May 9th.

Schweitzer says he is “thrilled to be rejoining the Wildfire Services division as this is where my Public Service career began almost 25 years to the day in 1991.

“Back then I thought I had the best job on Earth (which I did) working on an Initial Attack crew in Nelson. I eventually decided to begin my full time career and headed to Prince Rupert in 1995 to learn all about coastal forestry, boats, float planes and Kermode bears. In 2005, I landed in Kam-loops with the BC Timber Sales Program, the En-

gineering Branch and finally at the Thompson Rivers District as a Resource Manager where I've been since 2010. Some of you may recall my name from the 6 months I spent at the fire center in 2009 coordinating fire rehabilitation activities.

“My passions are spending time with my beautiful wife Shelley and my busy 8 year old son Ethan who can almost out drive me on the golf course already. The other big part of my life is traveling around the

province su-pervising and provid-ing feedback to hockey officials from minor to jun-

ior league levels.

“Once again, I'm very excited about taking on this opportunity, learning more about your business and more importantly getting to know all of the dedicated staff in the Fire Center.”

Check the link below for the latest information on burning restrictions in your area:

http://bcwildfire.ca/hprScripts/WildfireNews/Bans.asp

Should a fire escape, the person

undertaking the burn must attempt to control the fire if possible. They also must report the escaped fire by calling

1 800 663 5555 or *5555

Murray Henry, Kamloops Fire Centre

manager, seen here with Madeline

Maley during an address to Fire Crew

Leaders, will be moving on to the po-

sition of deputy director of opera-

tions. Rob Schweitzer will take over

the position of fire centre manager.

P A G E 3

Precipitation

Temperature Relative Humidity

These maps are for informational purposes only and should not be used to make operational decisions.

Fire Danger Rating

These maps are current for April 026, 2016

For the most recent weather maps, please visit www.bcwildfire.ca/weather

P A G E 4

Most recent forecast for Kamloops Fire Centre

Valid as of 10:30 a.m. on Monday, April 26, 2016. SYNOPSIS: A weak flow aloft will allow variable cloud today and tonight over the fire centre region. Weak instability may allow an isolated shower this afternoon or this evening. Tomorrow will have similar conditions, with variable cloud. Tempera-tures may creep up by a degree or two. OUTLOOK: Wednesday through Saturday Weak upper flow on Wednesday and Thursday will maintain occasional cloudy peri-ods. Temperatures will warm by one or two degrees each day. By Friday a digging upper trough from the northwest will bring mid-level cooling with more instability. Frequent showers will occur with upslope areas receiving the heaviest amounts. CONFIDENCE/DISCUSSION: Fair. With no significant weather systems, conditions will be affected more by local effects. Any showers that develop this afternoon and evening will be triggered by daytime heating and will dissipate after sundown. A dri-er airmass is not expected to yield any precipitation. WINDS ALOFT: 1500 metres: W-NW 10-20 km/h 3000 metres: W-NW 10-20 km/h 5000 metres: S 40 km/h 6 TO 10 DAY: Saturday through Wednesday Weak upper ridging through day 7-8 with dry and warm conditions, followed by more unstable conditions giving showers or thundershowers days 9 and 10. ZONE FORECASTS TODAY: Variable cloud with a slight chance of an afternoon shower. MAX TEMP: 16-20 MIN RH: 20% to 35% WINDS: SW 15-25 km/h and S 30 G 50 km/h in the Fraser Canyon.. TONIGHT: Variable cloud with a slight chance of an evening shower. MIN TEMP: 4-8 MAX RH: 65-80% TOMORROW: A mix of sun and cloud. MAX TEMP: 16-20 MIN RH: 15% to 25% WINDS: W 15-25 km/h, FRASER CANYON WIND: S 30 gusting 50 km/h . CHANCE OF LIGHTNING / DRY LIGHTNING Today:10/10 Tonight: 10/10 Tomorrow: 10/10

Kamloops Fire

Centre Statistics

Since April 1, 2016:

Fires to date: 27

Hectares burned: 158

Person-caused fires: 24

Lightning-caused fires: 3

2009 at this time:

Fires to date: 50

Hectares burned: 361

Person-caused fires: 48

Lightning-caused fires: 2

2003 at this time:

Fires to date: 15

Hectares burned: 43

Person-caused fires: 15

Lightning-caused fires: 0

P A G E 5

Kamloops Fire Centre Newsletter April 2016

There are several different types of BC Wildfire

Service crews. They make use of specialized

skillsets to fight fires in different ways, depend-

ing on need.

Initial Attack Crews

Initial attack firefighters operate as three-person

crews and are usually the first on the scene of a

new wildfire. There are more than 390 initial at-

tack firefighters stationed at approximately 50 ba-

ses around the province. Once fire fighters arrive at

the fire, they work quickly to set up water pumps,

remove fuel from the fire's path using chainsaws,

pulaskis or shovels, and dig fire guards to control

or extinguish the blaze. Crews are self-sufficient

can remain on a fire for up to 24 hours without re-

supply.

Rapattack Crews

During the summer months, lightning storms often

illuminate British Columbia's skies. Lightning-

caused fires mostly occur at higher elevations in

inaccessible terrain.

Rapattack firefighters use helicopters to rappel in-

to hard-to-access areas and attack these lightning-

caused fires while they are still small.

The Rapattack Program operates out of the train-

ing and residential base in Salmon Arm and shares

its office with the Salmon Arm Fire Zone staff. The

12 three-person provincial rappel crews also fill

the initial attack crew requirements of the local

Salmon Arm Fire Zone.

Parattack Crews

The Parattack program, based in Fort Saint John,

deploys firefighters and equipment by parachute

from fixed-wing aircraft. This allows more person-

nel and equipment to be deployed faster and over

greater distances. This resource is well-suited for

fires in northern boreal forests.

No previous parachuting experience is required,

but candidates must have a minimum of one year

of firefighting experience.

Unit Crews

Each year, some fires grow to sizes that require

firefighters and resources beyond normal suppres-

sion needs. In B.C., 30 highly trained 20-person

unit crews are available for deployment to these

larger fires.

Unit crews establish pumps and hose lines, dig fire

guards, use chainsaws and burn off fuel from the

fire's path. This work can take firefighters into dif-

ficult terrain amidst dry, hot and smoky conditions

for up to 14 days. Crews are self-sufficient and can

remain on a fire for up to 72 hours without re-

supply.

Like their initial attack counterparts, unit crew

members are highly mobile and can be called away

from their base to work on fires anywhere in Brit-

ish Columbia.

Rapattack crews are also used on larger fires, where

they remove timber to create helicopter landing loca-

tions.

P A G E 6

Kamloops Fire Centre Indices

The FFMC (Fine Fuel Moisture Code) is a

code that measures the dryness of fine

fuels (grasses, needles, etc.). A number of

85 or higher indicates a good chance of a

fire start from an ignition source. Once 90

or higher is reached, all the fine fuels are

available to burn.

The DMC (Duff Moisture Code) measures

about 10 cm into the ground and is an indi-

cation of whether a fire that starts will con-

tinue to burn in the duff. A number of 40

or greater would indicate that a fire will

continue to burn.

The DC is the Drought Code, measuring

deeper in the ground. A number of 300 or

greater indicates that the fire will burn

deep into the ground, providing challenges

to mop it up.

The Danger Class is the typical Fire Dan-

ger Rating that is seen on fire signage,

where 1 and 2 represent “low”, 3 is

“moderate,” 4 is “high” and 5 is “extreme.”

Want more information? Visit the website at bcwildfire.ca

Important Numbers

Report a Wildfire *5555 on a cell or 1 800 663-5555

Wildfire Information Line 1 888 3FOREST (336-7378)

Burn Registration Line 1 888 797-1717

Kamloops Fire Centre 250 554-5500

Media and Public Line 250 554-5965