tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7478606652950905956.post5512413982728159095..comments2024-03-28T08:19:50.193-07:00Comments on Cliff Mass Weather Blog: The Wildfire Risk is Rising: How Bad Will it Be?Cliff Mass Weather Bloghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13948649423540350788noreply@blogger.comBlogger16125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7478606652950905956.post-59871036640034863442015-06-25T00:19:46.767-07:002015-06-25T00:19:46.767-07:00Why would river levels matter for wildfires? Unles...Why would river levels matter for wildfires? Unless the fire is literally in the river bed or flood plain. Once a fire is a few hundred yards away from a major river would it really make one iota of a difference? The lower snow pack is definitely a cause of concern as the ground and fuels will dry faster due to lack of snow melt permeating into the ground. Lower snowpack means less soil moisture . AnneScotthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17468671295352184752noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7478606652950905956.post-73510630835501830812015-06-24T11:08:02.714-07:002015-06-24T11:08:02.714-07:00Question - should i believe the forecast from Weat...Question - should i believe the forecast from Weather.com or Accuweather.com? Accuweather shows lower temps over the next 10 days and I so want that...Alexhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11205752419540502278noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7478606652950905956.post-71787087335822007742015-06-24T00:10:50.589-07:002015-06-24T00:10:50.589-07:00Cliff: I was in the Wenatchee area last week. The ...Cliff: I was in the Wenatchee area last week. The grass growth is exceptionally thick but had not quite reached the explosive dry level yet. I suspect it will by the end of the week. That late wet spell in eastern Washington may have delayed the onset, but at that same time made the situation worse. Tricky business predicting fire seasons, but what has happened thus far in BC should be a warning - they have already gone through 80% of their fire budget for the year (CBC).Dan McShanehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17044037213245602667noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7478606652950905956.post-15918808099280454332015-06-23T23:42:49.269-07:002015-06-23T23:42:49.269-07:00I was up in the North Fork Teanaway area last Satu...I was up in the North Fork Teanaway area last Saturday. It was insane. Areas that are nearly always still very snowy are bare... that's not news. What was surprising, though, was that July/August wildflowers were in full bloom the third week of June and it was HOT up there! The river was way down which does seem to matter when it comes to keeping fuels moist. I hope it's not bad this year but I won't be surprised if it is. I agree that natural fires are necessary for lifecycles and forest renewal but those pesky people build houses everywhere! It would be a shame if firefighters die protecting structures built in known high-risk areas. Just like the coastlines, especially the Atlantic seaboard, we need to stop building in these very dangerous places, even though they are beautiful when conditions are benign.JewelyaZhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09434569437851248356noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7478606652950905956.post-15634595924766691402015-06-23T20:20:24.156-07:002015-06-23T20:20:24.156-07:00raincoatmusic
Where are those statistics coming...raincoatmusic<br /> Where are those statistics coming from? Whole year, to date? I prefer to use official major stats from Federal agencies.. There have been a lot of brush fires, mainly man-caused. The snowpack business makes no sense...the fires are NOT in the mountains...cliff<br />Cliff Mass Weather Bloghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13948649423540350788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7478606652950905956.post-87653647710385473372015-06-23T20:16:48.835-07:002015-06-23T20:16:48.835-07:00Alligator...there is a strong possibility of thund...Alligator...there is a strong possibility of thunderstorm over the weekend...that is a big part of the threat..cliffCliff Mass Weather Bloghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13948649423540350788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7478606652950905956.post-3530659077987092512015-06-23T20:11:37.748-07:002015-06-23T20:11:37.748-07:00What do you think about the prediction of thunders...What do you think about the prediction of thundershowers this Saturday & early Sunday.<br /><br />Will it be mostly be in the Cascade mountain areas?<br /><br />John Gowdy<br />john@thegowdys.comAlligatorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13865210305320570334noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7478606652950905956.post-21351920824701012982015-06-23T17:38:37.616-07:002015-06-23T17:38:37.616-07:00Spokane County sources would counter the "les...Spokane County sources would counter the "less than normal" statement. I'm thinking many of these brush and wildland fires were municple/county incidents. http://www.krem.com/story/news/local/wildfire/2015/06/23/early-wildfire-season-explodes-with-313-fires/29190211/Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17755487778409269216noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7478606652950905956.post-30935925296158694512015-06-23T11:54:29.878-07:002015-06-23T11:54:29.878-07:00wff255,
The Interagency totals are dominated b...wff255,<br /> The Interagency totals are dominated by western fires and the stats show that to date this year is less than normal...even with all the fires in AK. Right now, there is one significant fire in the state (Olympics,which grew to 650 acres) and we had a number of brush fires. My point is that we are about to start the major fires season with very warm temperatures and lightning...cliffCliff Mass Weather Bloghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13948649423540350788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7478606652950905956.post-73064279721777583382015-06-23T11:25:21.254-07:002015-06-23T11:25:21.254-07:00So, the Queets fire is not a major fire yet, I gue...So, the Queets fire is not a major fire yet, I guess, at just 650 acres? NPS has closed the trail at mile 12 (out of 16). How comfortable should I feel hiking 6-8 miles up the Queets this weekend? (I am thinking not very and looking for another place to go)AdrianShttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10363172866314211427noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7478606652950905956.post-15357417803752686942015-06-23T11:04:34.161-07:002015-06-23T11:04:34.161-07:00I agree totally about the fireworks. Unfortunately...I agree totally about the fireworks. Unfortunately the Native American -operated firework stands are up and running in full force and one can hear fireworks going off sometimes at all hours on the weekend already. <br /><br />In California and southern Oregon homeowners are aware of the need for fire buffers between vegetation and structures. Here less so but still necessary in these conditions. Those living in suburban forested environments would be well advised to clear between their homes and the trees that surround them. Kenna Wickmanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02802821050975830973noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7478606652950905956.post-8756049621640258122015-06-23T10:57:28.386-07:002015-06-23T10:57:28.386-07:00In Re the burn ban on federal land:
States can...In Re the burn ban on federal land:<br /><br />States can't dictate what happens in federal land in their borders. It would take the BLM/NFS imposing a ban on their respective lands to do it. But that doesn't mean the state can't push for it. The respective state- level people in charge should contact their federal equivalent and advocate for a ban. Given how much of the land in the Northwest (particularly in the Rockies) is federally governed, it might be worth it to impose.<br /><br />Source: Am a lawyerAnonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07316087341868343868noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7478606652950905956.post-65651461356547553072015-06-23T10:44:48.816-07:002015-06-23T10:44:48.816-07:00If you want to see our possible future look to Ala...If you want to see our possible future look to Alaska. Over 150 fires were started just this last weekend in the state. craiger77https://www.blogger.com/profile/16644443415436554742noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7478606652950905956.post-46567756958915295952015-06-23T09:52:45.914-07:002015-06-23T09:52:45.914-07:00Cliff, I have to disagree with some of your assert...Cliff, I have to disagree with some of your assertions that the PNW wildfire season is below average so far. The NIFC statistics are for fires at a national level, not a local level. Right now, there is one large (over 400 acres) lighting caused fire burning in Olympic National Park. The local fire department I work for saw 25 natural vegetation fires last week, and we average about 125 in an entire year. Yesterday's observed Energy Release Component values (34) for our area were in about the 90th seasonal percentile and nearly 4 times the average value for this date (9). So, while the worst may be yet to come, we are already seeing conditions in Western Washington more typical of late July or early August.wff255https://www.blogger.com/profile/00000312515540408455noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7478606652950905956.post-3668968673228272222015-06-23T09:13:31.460-07:002015-06-23T09:13:31.460-07:00I found your comment "low snowpack and low ri...I found your comment "low snowpack and low river levels, neither of which have a large impact on wildfires in our region" interesting. Up in BC, these two factors play an instrumental role in determining river levels which impact surrounding soil moisture content. Also interesting is the difference between BC's & Washington's fire seasons so far. BC saw 5 times the amount of lightning this May compared to the previous 13 years. Add to that the lower than normal precip amounts and the warmer than normal conditions and we've seen a very active and early start to the forest fire season. In fact, as of June 18th, 60,000 hectares have already burnt compared to the summer average of 15,000ha and it's only June! Lots of folks concerned north of the border...meteo-matthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10485287109763310532noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7478606652950905956.post-33089349088654780542015-06-23T09:01:23.065-07:002015-06-23T09:01:23.065-07:00A few random, non-scientific observations after a ...A few random, non-scientific observations after a week exploring eastern Oregon. Most of the areas I visited in the NE had fire danger posted as "low" or "moderate." The only "high" signs I saw were near Bend.<br /><br />The Wallowas appear to have a good snowpack, with many of the trails still snowed in. Steens mountain still has some snow, thought not much.<br /><br />The various shallow lakes near Hart Mountain were in dire shape though...almost completely dry. These lakes show a lot of variability depending on the season and weather, but still, I'd think they'd be in better shape this time of year.<br /><br />- DouglasDouglashttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13400304542602805292noreply@blogger.com