Wildfire Response – Be Ready Early

Low snowpacks in most of the province, pre-existing drought conditions, warm weather and reports of hangover fires all indicate a possible increase in the chances of an early start to the wildfire season. The picture above is of an early March 2015 fire in the southern interior. Note the snow on the mountains.

A snowy spring may reduce the risk but I suggest it is prudent to be ready for wildfires as soon as your area is snow free. Depending on the fuels and values all you need is a bad half hour to incur major losses even if there isn’t a widespread area of elevated fire danger. Low elevation and south facing sites will be the first to dry to the danger point.

Worksite Wildfire on First Day of Fire Danger Rating 3

Training

Start organizing your required training early. The wildfire activity in recent years has generated a lot of interest from industry, community groups and rural residents. Courses are booking fast.

Under the Wildfire Act and Regulations industry and the public have specific requirements to report and respond to a wildfire. The required minimum training for all workers in all industries that may have to deal with a wildfire is the 16 hour S100/S185 course. Annual refreshers are required. There are often also contractual and insurance obligations that mirror the Act and Regs.

As discussed in my Jan 12 post, the current content is out of date and incomplete, particularly regarding some key safety information and initial response guidelines. Instructors are not assessed for experience or quality of their presentation. There is no central student data base.

Day 2 Industry S100 Training

As I feared several groups are working on the training to make it fit their circumstances. There is a very good chance we end up with various responders going to the same fire that are trained to different standards. Stay tuned, we are working on this to try and ensure standardized, timely, achievable, effective, up to date and cost-efficient training is available before the 2024 wildfire season.

Pump Service

If you didn’t service your pumps in the fall get them in now. Most of the small engine shops will welcome the work and have good turnaround time as snowblower repairs are slowing down and summer lawnmower season hasn’t got rolling yet. Try to find a service provider that can test the pump by pumping water for 15 minutes and document the discharge pressure.

Pressure Gauge for Checking Pump Discharge Pressure

Synthetic Fuel

In a quiet year pumps may sit unused for extended periods of time. Most current small engine issues are fuel related. Discard any old fuel from previous years as modern fuel starts to deteriorate in as little as a month. I strongly recommend you fill the tank with synthetic fuel after service. Run the engine for five minutes to ensure the synthetic fuel cycles through the fuel system then store the pumps where they are ready for rapid deployment. Synthetic fuel is quite expensive but will eliminate almost all your small engine problems and increase reliability when you need it. It remains stable for up to two years. Regular fuel can be used for continual running during any response. Stihl, Husqvarna and Aspen are the three brands I am familiar with.

Aspen Two-stroke Synthetic Fuel

Tanks

Most tanks used for wildfire response had previous working lives and internal rust and scaling may be occurring. Inspect your tank to make sure it is in good enough condition for the job. Organize a replacement if not. Before filling and sending it out to the worksite or storage location flush it until the outflow runs clear. Check the shut off valve to ensure it is functioning properly. Tanks with low outlets may be more likely to allow debris to enter the pump more often than tanks with top mount pumps. Any debris in the pump chamber may cause problems. Consider a filter between the tank outlet and pump intake. Cleaning the filter is way faster and easier than taking the cover off the pump chamber.

Y filter for use between tank outlet and pump intake

Hose

Check your hose cache and make sure you have enough to get water where you might need it. Inspect them to make sure they are in good condition. Check to make sure you have lined hose. You will be able to feel a rubbery lining on the inside of each length.

Each length of unlined hose in a water delivery system causes unnecessary pressure loss and will substantially reduce the amount of water available at the nozzle(s).

As the weather warms run your hoses out, hook them to a water supply and check them for leaks and damage. Repair or replace as required. I haven’t heard of any supply issues with hose. Clean and dry them then re-roll and store in clean dry location free of oils and out of the sun. Keep your best hoses aside for emergency use only.

Fingers crossed we have a wet spring but I suggest you make sure you and your people are trained and equipped early.

I will talk about response assessment, objectives and tactics as the weather warms.

Talk soon

Doug