HIGHLIGHTS OF NOTABLE DISASTERS OF 2012

PART 9: 2012 WILDFIRES(In Chronological Order)

Walter Hays, Global Alliance for Disaster Reduction, Vienna,

Virginia, USA 

PLANET EARTH HAS HUNDREDS OF “WILDFIRE

LABORATORIES” EVERY YEAR

Each Wildfire Provides Valuable Lessons on Disaster Risk

Reduction

Natural Phenomena that Cause Disasters

Planet Earth’s atmospheric-lithospheric interactions create favorable conditions for:

Wildfires

YOUR YOUR COMMUNITYCOMMUNITY

YOUR YOUR COMMUNITYCOMMUNITYDATA BASES DATA BASES

AND INFORMATIONAND INFORMATIONDATA BASES DATA BASES AND INFORMATIONAND INFORMATION

HAZARDS: GROUND SHAKING GROUND FAILURE SURFACE FAULTING TECTONIC DEFORMATION TSUNAMI RUN UP AFTERSHOCKS

•WILDFIRE HAZARDS •INVENTORY•VULNERABILITY•LOCATION

RISK ASSESSMENTRISK ASSESSMENT

RISK

ACCEPTABLE RISK

UNACCEPTABLE RISK

RISK REDUCTION FOR RISK REDUCTION FOR WILDFIRESWILDFIRES

•PREVENTION/MITIGATION•PREPAREDNESS•EMERGENCY RESPONSE•RECOVERY and RECONSTRUCTION• EDUCATIONAL SURGE

POLICY OPTIONSPOLICY OPTIONS

SCIENCE OF WILDFIRES

WILDFIRES are conflagrations caused by

lightning discharges (or acts of man) in wilderness areas close enough to one or more urban

interfaces that they threaten people, property, infrastructure, and

business enterprise.

WILDFIRES are conflagrations caused by

lightning discharges (or acts of man) in wilderness areas close enough to one or more urban

interfaces that they threaten people, property, infrastructure, and

business enterprise.

WILDFIRE HAZARDS (AKA POTENTIAL DISASTER AGENTS)

• FIRE

• HOT GASES AND SMOKE

• HOT SPOTS

• BURNED OUT SLOPES (with increased susceptibility to insect infestation, erosion, and landslides)

WILDFIRE HAZARDS (AKA POTENTIAL DISASTER AGENTS)

• SUNDOWNER WINDS

• SANTA ANNA WINDS

• LOCAL CHANGES IN AIR QUALITY

• LOCAL CHANGES IN WEATHER

LIGHTNING STRIKES

WILDFIRESWILDFIRES

MANMADE FIRES

PROXIMITY OF URBAN AREA TO THE WILDLAND FIRE

WIND SPEED AND DIRECTION (DAY/NIGHT CHANGES)

DRYNESS

HIGH TEMPERATURES

LOCAL FUEL SUPPLY

CAUSES OF FIRES

CAUSES OF FIRES

DISASTER LABORATORIES

DISASTER LABORATORIES

WILDFIRES CAN CAUSE HIGH-RISK SITUATIONS

People, property, infrastructure, business enterprise, government, natural resources, and the environment are at risk.

WILDFIRES IN COLORADO (USA)

March 20-31 – JULY 13, 2012

WILDFIRE WARNING: SPRING 2012 WAS

PREDICTED TO BE DRIER THAN NORMAL FROM THE

SOUTHERN PLAINS TO THE SOUTHWEST

DURING MARCH, PARTS OF TEXAS, OKLAHOMA, NEW MEXICO, KANSAS AND COLORADO WERE UNDER A HIGH WILDFIRE ALERT

AS A RESULT OF HIGH TEMPERATURES, HIGH WINDS,

LOW HUMIDITY, AND DRY VEGETATION

THE WILDFIRE SEASON BEGINS: MARCH 2012

LOWER NORTH FORK WILDFIRE, SW OF DENVER; MARCH 27

LOWER NORTH FORK WILDFIRE: MARCH 27

SLURRY FIRE RETARDENT: LOWER NORTH FORK WILDFIRE; MARCH 27

THE 2012 HIGH PARK, CO WILDFIRE;

Worst wildfire in Colorado’s history

HIGH PARK WILDFIRE

Located 26 km (15 miles) West of Fort Collins, the lightning-caused fire had burned 85 square acres and destroyed 181 homes between June 6 and June 17.

More than 1,630 firefighters were working on the partially contained fire on Saturday, June 16th.

VERY DIFFICULT FIREFIGHTING CONDITIONS BECAME WORSE

Firefighting crews, working for 11 days just to get a difficult fire in a difficult terrain under 45 percent control, suddenly faced hot, dry, “sundowner” winds of 800 kph (500 mph) with temperatures of 90 degrees F on Sunday.

HIGH PARK, CO WILDFIRE ON JUNE 11TH

ONE OF THE FIREFIGHTING HELICOPTERS: JUNE 15, 2012

REFILLING FOR ANOTHER WATER DROP

EVACUATIONS ORDERED

Initially, 3,000 people received notices to evacuate.

BELLVUE, CO: HIGH PARK FIRE;JUNE 30

INITIAL REPORTS

• Mandatory evacuation was ordered for residents of 7,400 homes

• 28 homes destroyed.

• 4,500 acres burned near Conifer, a foothills community 33 km (20 miles) southwest of Denver

• High winds hindered slurry flights

• Two deaths reported

NATIONAL RESPONSE

• Firefighters from across the USA and Canada were dispatched to Colorado to increase the number of firefighters on the ground from 100 to 450.

COLORADO SPRINGS, CO

• Waldo Canyon fire started June 25th.

• More than 32,000 evacuated, but more than 21,000 evacuation messages were NOT delivered.

• Air Force Academy threatened

• 350 homes burned.

• President Obama visited: June 29.

WALDO CANYON FIRE: 21,000 EVACUATION MESSAGES UN-DELIVERED; JUNE 27

WALDO CANYON FIRE BURNED 15,000 ACRES NEAR AIR FORCE ACADEMY

PRESIDENT OBAMA VIEWS DAMAGE: COLORADO SPRINGS; JUNE 29

WALDO CANYON FIRE: COLORADO SPRINGS; JUNE 30

WALDO CANYON FIRE: COLORADO SPRINGS; JUNE 30

A SURVIVOR OF WALDO CANYON FIRE: COLORADO SPRINGS; JUNE 30

BURNED HOMES: COLORADO SPRINGS: JULY 1

BURNED OUT HOMES: COLORADO SPRINGS: JULY 1

BURNED CARS AND HOMES: COLORADO SPRINGS: JULY 1

32,000 EVACUATED FROM COLORADO SPRINGS: JULY 2

WALDO CANYON FIRE: COLORADO SPRINGS: JULY 2

WALDO CANYON FIRE: COLORADO SPRINGS: JULY 2

EASTWARD MOVEMENT OF WALDO CANYON FIRE STOPPED: JULY 5

WE WILL REBUILD: COLORADO SPRINGS; JULY 5

STATUS OF COLORADO FIRES JULY 8, 2012

WILDFIRE NEAR ATHENS, GREECE

June 16, 2012

ATHENS, GREECE AREA

PAST WILDFIRES IN GREECE

• Hundreds of other wildfires have raged throughout Greece, most recently in 2009.

IT’S “FIRE SEASON” AGAIN IN GREECE

Every Summer, Greece faces the nightmare of destructive forest fires linked either to the inevitable heat wave or to arsonists.

In 2007, 80 people died in dozens of major wildfires across Greece

THE FIRE BROKE OUT SATURDAY, JUNE 16TH

WHERE WORKERS HAD BEEN WELDING

BAD TIMING

The timing of the unwanted fire coincided with Greece’s election to deal with the economic crisis.

THYMARI, GREECE: JUNE 16, 2012

FIRE FIGHTERS AND VOLUNTEERS: THYMARI, GREECE

ONE OF SEVEN FIRE FIGHTING PLANES: THYMARI, GREECE; JUNE 16

WILDFIRE IN NORTHERN CALIFORNIA

20 PERCENT CONTROLLEDJULY 15, 2012

2,000 firefighters are trying to control the “Robbers

Wildfire” that is burning in a steep, heavily wooded area of Placer County about 83 km (50 miles) northeast of

Sacramento, the capitol

THE WILDFIRE BROKE OUT ON JULY 11

INITIALLY, 300 FIREFIGHTERS WERE ENGAGED; LATER 2,000

TANKERS TRYING TO SUPPRESS THE FIRE