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Aerial Fuels: All live and dead vegetation in the forest canopy or above surface fuels, including tree branches, twigs and cones, snags, moss and high brush.
Aerial Ignition Device (Aid): Equipment used to ignite wildland fuels from the aircraft.
Agency Dispatcher: A person working within an agency organization who processes resources to and from incidents.
Agency: Any federal, state, or county government organization participating with jurisdictional responsibilities.
Air Tanker: Fixed-wing aircraft certified by FSS as being capable of transport and delivery of fire retardant solutions.
Air Transportable Modualr Unit: A weather data collection and forecasting facility consisting of four modules, weighing a total of 282 pounds and occupying 27.1 cubic feet of space when transported. Used by incident meteorologists on an incident.
Allocated Resources: Resources dispatched to an incident that have not been checked yet.
Anchor Point: An advantageous location, usually a barrier to fire spread, from which to start constructing a fireline. The anchor point is used to minimize the chance of being flanked by the fire while the fireline is being constructed.
Aramid: The generic name for a high-strength, flame resistant synthetic fabric used in shirts and jeans of firefighters. Nomex, a brand name of aramid fabric, is the term commonly used by firefighters.
Aspect: Direction toward which a slope faces.
Assigned Reources: Resources checked in and assigned work tasks on an incident.
Assisting Agency: An agency directly contributing tactical or service resources to another agency.
Attack Time: The starting date, hour, and minute of the first suppression work on the fire.
Available Fuel: The total of the fuel that would actually burn under various environmental conditions. Fuel available for use in a motor vehicle, aircraft, or other motorized equipment.
Avaiable Resources: Resources assigned to an incident and available for assignment.
Backfire: A fire set along the inner edge of a fireline to consume the fuel in the path if a wildfire and/or change the direction of force of the fire’s convection column.
Backpack Pump: A portable sprayer with hand-pump, fed from a liquid-filled container, fitted with straps, used mainly in fire and pest control.
Bambi Bucket: A collapsible bucket slung below a helicopter. Used to dip water from a variety of sources for fire suppression.
Barrier: Any obstruction to the spread of fire. Typically an area of strip or combustible fuel.
Base Of Fire: The part of the fire perimeter opposite the head.
Behave: A system of interactive computer programs for modeling fuel and fire behavior that consists of two systems: BURN and FUEL.
Berm: A ridge of soil and debris along the outside edge of a fireline, resulting from line construction.
Bladder Bag: A collapsible backpack portable sprayer made of neoprene or high-strength nylon fabric fitted with a pump.
Blind Area: An area in which neither the ground nor it’s vegetation can be seen from a given observation point.
Blowup: Sudden increase in fireline intensity or rate of spread of a fire sufficient to preclude direct control or to upset existing suppression plans. Often accompanied by violent convection and may have other characteristics of a firestorm.
Branch: The organizational level having functional or geographical responsibility for major parts of incident operations. The branch level is organizationally between section and division/group in the operations section, and between section and unit in the logistics section. Branches are identified by Roman numeral or by functional name.
Break Left/Right: Means turn left or right. Applies in aircraft flight, usually on the drop run and when given as a command to the pilot. Implies a prompt compliance.
Breakover: A fire edge that crosses a control line or natural barrier intended to confine the fire.
Broadcast Burning: Intentional burning within well defined boundaries for reduction of fuel hazard, as a resource management treatment, or both.
Buildup: 1.) The cumulative effects of a long-term drying on current fire danger. 2.)The increase in strength of a fire management organization. 3.)The accelerated spreading of a fire with time. Towering cumulus clouds that may lead to thunderstorms later in the day.
Brush: A collective term that refers to stands of vegetation dominated by shrubbery, woody plants, or low growing trees, usually of a type undesirable for livestock or timber management.
Brush Fire: A fire burning in vegetation that is predominantly shrubs, brush and scrub growth.
Bucket Drops: The dropping of fire retardants or suppressants from specially designed buckets slung below a helicopter.
Buffer Zones: An area of reduced vegetation that separates wildlands from vulnerable residential or business developments. The barrier is similar to a green belt in that it is usually used for another purpose such as agriculture, recreation areas, parks, or golf courses.
Bump-Up Method: A progressive method of building a fireline on a wildfire without changing relative positions in the line. Work is begun with a suitable space between workers. Whenever one worker overtakes another, all workers ahead move one space forward and resume work on the uncompleted part of the line. That last worker does not move ahead until completing his/her space.
Burn Out: Setting fire inside a control line to consume fuel between the edge of the fire and the control line.
Burning Ban: A declared ban on open air burning within a specified area, usually due to sustained high Fire danger.
Burning Conditions: The state of the combined factors of the environment that affect fire behavior in A specified fuel type.
Burning Index: An estimate of the potential difficulty of fire containment as it releases to the flame length at the head of the fire. A relative number related to the contribution that the fire behavior makes to the amount or effort needed to contain a fire specified fuel type. Doubling the burning index indicates that twice the effort will be required to constrain a fire in that fuel types as was previously required, providing all other parameters are constant.
Burning Period: The part of each 24-hour period when fires spread most rapidly: typically from 10:00 AM to sundown.
Burning-Index Meter: A device used to determine the burning index for different combinations of burning-index factors.
Calculation Of Probabilities: Evaluation of all factors pertinent to probable future behavior of a going fire and of the potential ability of available forces to perform fire suppression operations on a specified time schedule.
Camp: A geographical site(s), within the general incident area, separate from the incident base, equipped and staffed to provide sleeping, food, water, and sanitary services to incident personnel.
Campfire: As used to classify the cause of a wildland fire, a fire that was started for cooking or warming that spreads sufficiently from its source to require action by a fire control agency.
Candel Or Candeling: A single tree or a very small clump of trees that is burning from the bottom up.
Canopy: The uppermost spreading, branchy layer of the vegetation.
Cardinal Points: The four chief points of the compass: North, South, East and West.
Chain: A unit of linear measurement equal to 66 feet.
Check-In: The process whereby resources first report to an incident. Check-in locations include: incident command post, incident base, camps, staging areas, helibases, helispots, or direct to the line.
Check Line: A temporary fireline constructed at right angles to the control line and used to hold a backfire in check as a means of regulating the heat or intensity of the backfire.
Clear Text: The use of plain English in radio communications transmissions. No Ten Codes are used when using Clear Text.
Clock Method: A means of establishing a target or point by reference to clock directions where the nose of the aircraft is 12 o’clock, moving clockwise to the tail at 6 o’clock. “The target is now at your 9 o’clock position.”
Closed Area: An area in which specified activities or entry are temporarily restricted to reduce risk of human-caused fires.
Closure: Legal restriction, but not necessarily elimination, of specified activities such as smoking, camping, or entry that might cause fires in a given area.
Cold Front: The leading edge of a relatively cold air mass that displaces warmer air. The heavier cold air may cause some of the warm air to be lifted. If the lifted air contains enough moisture, the result may be cloudiness, precipitation, and thunderstorms. If both air masses are dry, no clouds may form. Following the passage of a cold front in the Northern Hemisphere, westerly or northwesterly winds of 15 to 30 mph often continue for 12 to 24 hours.
Cold Trailing: A method of controlling a dead fire edge by carefully inspecting and feeling with the hand for heat to detect any fire, digging out every live spot, and trenching any live edge.
Command Staff: The command staff consists of the information officer, safety officer, and liaison officer. They report directly to the incident commander and may have an assistant or assistants, as needed.
Compacts: Formal working agreements among agencies to obtain mutual aid.
Complex: Two or more individual incidents located in the same general area that are assigned to a single Incident commander or unified command.
Condition Of Vegetation: Stage growth or degree of flammability of vegetation that forms part of a fuel complex. Herbaceous stage is at times used when referring to herbaceous vegetation alone. In grass areas minimum qualitative distinctions for stages of annual growth are usually green, curing, and dry or cured.
Configuration: How a helicopter is equipped.
Confine A Fire: The least aggressive wildfire suppression strategy that can be expected to keep the fire within established boundaries of constructed firelines under prevailing conditions.
Control Force: Personnel and equipment used to control a fire.
Control Line: An inclusive term for all constructed or natural barriers and treated fire edges used to control a fire.
Control Time: The time a fire is declared controlled.
Cooperating Agency: An agency supplying assistance including, but not limited to, direct tactical or support functions or resources to the incident control effort.
Coverage Level: Density of retardant in drop. Normally ranges from 1 to 7 and represents the number of gallons in a 100 square foot area.
Coyote Tactics: A progressive line construction duty involving self-sufficient crews which build fireline until the end of the operational period, remain at or near the point while off duty, and begin building fireline again the next operational period where they left off.
Creeping Fire: Fire burning with a low flame and spreading slowly.
Crew Boss: A person in supervisory charge of usually 16-21 firefighters and responsible for their performance, safety and welfare.
Crown Fire: A fire advances from top to top of trees or shrubs more or less independent of a surface fire. Crown fires are sometimes classed as running or dependent to distinguish the degree of independence from the surface fire.
Crown Out: A fire that rises from ground into the tree crowns and advances from treetop to treetop to intermittently ignite tree crowns as a surface fire advances.
Curing: Drying and browning of herbaceous vegetation or slash.
Dead Fuels: Fuels with no living tissue in which moisture content is governed almost entirely by atmospheric moisture (relative humidity and precipitation), dry-bulb temperature, and solar radiation.
Debris Burning: A fire spreading from any fire originally set for the purpose of clearing land or for rubbish, garbage, range, stubble, or meadow burning.
Defensible Space: An area either natural or manmade where material capable of causing a fire to spread has been treated, cleared, reduced, or changed to act as a barrier between an advancing wildland fire and the loss of life, property, or resources. In practice, defensible space is defined as an area a minimum of 30 feet around a structure that is cleared of flammable brush or vegetation.
Deputy: A qualified individual who could be delegated the authority to manage a functional operation and perform a specific task. In some cases, a Deputy could act as a relief for a superior. Deputies can be assigned to the incident commander, general staff, and branch directors.
Detection: The act or system of discovering and locating fires.
Direct Attack: Any treatment applied directly to burning fuel such as wetting, smothering or chemically quenching the fire or by physically separating the burning from unburned fuel.
Discovery: Determination that fire exists. In contrast to detection, location and reporting of a fire is not required.
Dispatch: The implementation of a command decision to move a resource or resources from one place to another.
Dispatcher: A person who receives reports of discovery and status of fires, confirms their locations, takes action promptly to provide people and equipment likely to be needed for control efforts.
Dispatch Center: A facility from which resources are assigned to an incident.
Divert: Change in aircraft assignment from one target to another or to a new fire.
Division: Divisions are used to divide an incident into geographical area or operation. Divisions are established when the number of resources exceeds the span-of-control of the operations chief. A division is located within the ICS organization between the branch and the task force/strike team.
Dozer: Any tracked vehicle with a front mounted blade used for exposing mineral soil.
Dozer Line: Fireline constructed by the front blade of a dozer.
Drainage: Area drained by a river or stream. Usually includes at least one main canyon and several side canyons.
Drift Smoke: Smoke that has drifted from its point of origin and has lost any original billow form.
Drip Torch: Hand held device for lighting fires by dripping flaming liquid fuel on the materials to be burned: consists of a fuel fount, burner and igniter. Fuel used is generally a mixture of diesel and gasoline.
Drop: That which is dropped in a cargo dropping or retardant dropping operation.
Drop Zone: The area around and immediately above the target to be dropped on.
Drought Index: A number representing the net effect of evaporation, transportation, and precipitation in producing cumulative moisture depletion in deep duff or upper soil layers.
Dry Lightning Storm: Thunderstorm in which negligible precipitation reaches the ground. Also called a dry storm.
Duff: The layer of decomposing organic materials lying below the litter layer of freshly fallen twigs, needles, and leaves and immediately above the mineral soil.
Early: Indicating drop was early or short of the target.
Elapsed Time Standards: Maximum amounts of time allowed by administrative rule for given steps of fire suppression.
Emergency Medical Technician (Emt): A health-care specialist with particular skills and knowledge in pre-hospital emergency medicine.
Energy Release Component (Erc): The computed total heat releases per unit area within the fire front at the head of a moving fire.
Engine: Any ground vehicle providing specified levels of pumping water and hose capacity, but with less than specified level of personnel.
Engine Crew: Firefighters assigned to an engine. The Fireline Handbook defines the minimum crew make-up by engine type.
Entrapment: A situation where personnel are unexpectedly caught in a fire behavior-related, life-threatening position where planned escape routes or safety zones are absent, inadequate, or compromised. An entrapment may or may not include deployment of a fire shelter for its intended purpose. These situations may or may not result in injury.
Environmental Assessment: EA’s were authorized by the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969. They are concise, analytical documents prepared with public participation that determine if an Environmental Impact Statement is needed for a particular project or action. If an EA determines an EIS is not needed, the EA becomes the document allowing agency compliance with NEPA requirements.
Environmental Impact Statement: EIS’s were authorized by the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969. Prepared with public participation they assist decision makers by providing information, analysis and an array of action alternatives, allowing managers to see the probable effects of decisions on the environment. Generally, EIS’s are written for large-scale actions or geographical areas.
Equilibrium Moisture Content: Moisture content that a fuel particle will attain of exposed for an infinite period in an environment of specified constant temperature and humidity. When a fuel particle reaches equilibrium moisture content, net exchange of moisture between it and the environment is zero.
Escape Route: A preplanned and understood route firefighters take to move to a safety zone or other low-risk area, such as an already burned area, previously constructed safety area, a meadow that won’t burn, natural rocky area that is large enough to take refuge without being burned. When escape routes deviate from a defined physical path, they should be clearly marked.
Escaped Fire: Fire that has exceeded or is expected to exceed initial attack capabilities or prescription.
Exit: A command used to indicate the direction air attack wants the tanker pilot to fly after a given Maneuver.
Extend: To drop retardant in such a way that the load slightly overlaps and lengthens a previous drop. “Extend your last drop.
Extended Attack: Situation in which a fire cannot be controlled by initial attack resources within a reasonable period of time. Additional resources usually can control the fire within 24 hours after Commencing suppression action.
Extreme Fire Behavior: “Extreme” implies a level of fire behavior characteristics that ordinarily prelude methods of direct control action. One or more of the following is usually involved: high rate of spread, Prolific crowning and/or spotting, presence of fire whirls, strong convection column. Predictability is difficult because such fires often exercise some degree of influence on their environmental and behaves erratically, sometime dangerously.
Faller: A person who fells trees.
False Alarm: A reported smoke or fire requiring no suppression; for example, brush burning under Control, mill smoke, false smoke.
Field Observer: Person responsible to the Situation Unit Leader for collecting and reporting information about an incident obtained from personal observations and interviews.
Fine Fuel Moisture: The probable moisture content of fast drying fuels which have a timelag constant of 1 hour or less: such as grass, leaves, ferns, tree moss, pine needles and small twigs.
Fingers Of A Fire: The long narrow extensions of a fire projecting from the main body.
Fire Analysis: Review of fire management actions taken on a specific fire, group of fires, or fire season in order to identify reasons for both effective and ineffective actions, and to recommend or prescribe ways and means of doing a more efficient job. Also called the hot line review.
Fire Behavior: The manner in which a fire reacts to the influence of fuel, weather, and topography.
Fire Behavior Forecast: Prediction of probable fire behavior usually prepared by a Fire Behavior Officer, in support of fire suppression or prescribed burning operations.
Fire Behavior Specialist: A person responsible to the Planning Section Chief for establishing a weather data collection system and for developing fire behavior predictions based on fire history, fuel, weather, and topography.
Fire Break: A natural or constructed barrier used to stop or check fires that may occur, or to provide a control line from which to work.
Fire Cache: A supply of fire tools and equipment assembled in planned or standard units at a strategic point for exclusive use in fire suppression.
Fire Crew: An organized group of firefighters under the leadership of a crew leader or other designated officials.
Fire Danger Rating: A fire management system that integrates the effects of selected fire danger factors into one or more qualitative or numerical indices or current protection needs.
Fire Edge: The boundary of a fire at a given moment.
Fire Effects: The physical, biological, and ecological impacts of fire on the environment.
Fire Front: The part of a fire within which continuous flaming combustion is taking place. Unless otherwise specified the fire front is assumed to the leading edge of the fire perimeter. In ground fires, the fire front may be mainly smoldering combustion.
Fire Intensity: A general term relating to the heat energy released by a fire.
Fireline: The part of a control line that is scraped or dug to mineral soil. Also called fire trail.
Fire Load: The number and size of fires historically experienced on a specified unit over a specified period at a specified index of fire danger.
Fire Management: Activities required for the protection of burnable wildland values from fire and the use of prescribed fire to meet land management objectives.
Fire Perimeter: The active burning edge of a fire or its exterior burned limits.
Fire Plow: A heavy duty, plowshare or disc plow usually pulled by a tractor to construct a fireline.
Fire Progress Map: A map maintained on a large fire to show at given times the location of the fire, deployment of suppression forces, and progress of suppression.
Fire Retardant: Any substance except plain water that by chemical or physical action reduces flammability of fuels or slows their rate of combustion.
Fire Season: 1.) Period of the year during which wildland fires are likely to occur, spread, and effect resource values sufficient to warrant organized fire management activities. 2.) A legally enacted time during which burning activities are regulated by state or local authority.
Fire Shelter: An aluminized tent offering protection by means of reflecting radiant heat and providing a volume of breathable air in a fire entrapment situation. Fire shelters should only be used in life threatening situations, as a last resort.
Fire Shelter Deployment: The removing of fire shelter from its case and using it as protection against fire.
Fire Storm: Violent convection caused by a large continuous area of intense fire. Often characterized by destructively violent surface in drafts, near and beyond the perimeter, and sometimes by tornado-like whirls.
Fire Tool Cache: A supply of fire tools and equipment assembled in planned quantities or standard units at a strategic point for exclusive use in wildland operations
Fire Triangle: Instructional aid in which the sides of a triangle are used to represent the three factors, oxygen, heat and fuel, necessary for combustion and flame production; removal of any of the three factors causes flame production to cease.
Fire Use Management Team: supports the overall fire management program by supplementing existing Incident Management Teams with a heavy emphasis on risk assessment and fire growth projection,
Fire Use Module: A team of skilled and mobile personnel dedicated primarily to prescribed fire management. These are national and interagency resources, available throughout the prescribed fire season, that can ignite, hold and monitor prescribed fire.
Fire Weather Station: A meteorological station specially equipped to measure weather elements that have an important effect on fire behavior.
Fire Weather Watch: A term used by fire weather forecasters to notify using agencies, usually 24 to 72 hours ahead of the event, that current and developing meteorological conditions may evolve into dangerous fire weather.
Fire Whirl: Spinning vortex column of ascending hot air and gases rising from a fire and carrying aloft smoke, debris, and flame. Fire whirls range in size from less than one foot to more than 500 feet in diameter. Large fire whirls have the intensity of a small tornado.
Firefighting Resources: All people and major items of equipment that can or potentially could be assigned to fires.
Flame Height: The average maximum vertical extension of flames at the leading edge of the fire front. Occasional flashes that rise above the general level of flames are not considered. Thus distance is less than the flames length if flames are tilted due to wind or slope.
Flame Length: The distance between the flame tip and the midpoint of the flame depth at the base of the flame (generally the ground surface); an indicator of fire intensity.
Flamming Front: The zone of a moving fire where the combustion is primarily flaming. Behind this flaming zone combustion is primarily glowing. Light fuels typically have shallow flaming front, where as heavy fuels have a deeper front.
Flammability: The relative eases with which fuels ignite and burn regardless of the quantity of the fuels.
Flanking Fire Suppression: Attacking a fire by working along the flanks whether simultaneously or successively from a less active anchor point and endeavoring to connect two lines at the head.
Flanks Of A Fire: The parts of a fire’s perimeter that are roughly parallel to the main direction of spread.
Flare-Up: Any sudden acceleration in rate of spread or intensification of the fire. Unlike blowup, a flare-up is of relatively short duration and does not radically change existing control plans.
Flash Fuels: Fuels such as grass, leaves, draped pine needles, fern, tree moss and some kind of slash, which ignite readily and are consumed rapidly when dry.
Flashover: 1.) Rapid combustion and/or explosion of unburned gases trapped at some distance from the main fire front. Usually occurs only in poorly ventilated topography. 2.) Stage of a fire at which all surfaces and objects within a space have been heated to their ignition temperature, and flame breaks out almost at once over the surface of all objects within the space.
Foam: The aerated solution created by forcing air into or entraining air in water containing a foam concentrate by means of suitability designed equipment or by cascading it through the air at a high velocity. Foam reduces combustion by cooling, moistening and excluding oxygen.
Follow-Up: The act of the first people who go to a fire by sending additional people or equipment to facilitate suppression. Also called reinforcement.
Forb: A plant with a soft, rather than permanent woody stem that is not a grass-like plant.
Free Burning: The condition of a fire or part of a fire that has not been slowed by natural barriers or by control measures.
Friction Loss: Pressure loss caused by the turbulent movement of water or solution against the interior surface of the fire hose, pipe, or fittings: normally measure in pressure loss per length of the hose or pipe.
Fuel: Combustible material. Includes vegetation, such as grass, leaves, ground litter, plants, shrubs and trees that feed a fire.
Fuelbreak: A natural or manmade change in fuel characteristics which affects fire behavior so that fires burning into them can be more readily controlled.
Fuel Break System: A series of modified strips or blocks tied together to form continuous strategically located fuel breaks around land units.
Fuel Bed: An array of fuels usually constructed with specific loading, depth and particle size to meet experimental requirements; also, commonly used to describe the fuel composition in neutral settings.
Fuel Loading: The amount of fuel present expressed quantitatively in terms of weight of fuel per unit area.
Fuel Model: Simulated fuel complex (or combination of vegetation types) for which all fuel descriptions required for the solution of a mathematical rate of spread model have been specified.
Fuel Moisture: The quantity of moisture in fuel expressed as a percentage of the weight when thoroughly dried at 212 degrees Fahrenheit.
Fuel Moisture Stick: A specially prepared stick or set of sticks of known dry weight continuously exposed to the weather and periodically weighed to determine changes in moisture content as an indication of moisture changes in wildland fuels.
Fuel Reduction: Manipulation, including combustion, or removal of fuels to reduce the likelihood of ignition and/or to lessen potential damage and resistance to control.
Fuel Tender: Any vehicle capable of supplying engine fuel to ground or airborne equipment.
Fuel Type: An identifiable association of fuel elements of distinctive species, form, size arrangement, or other characteristics that will cause a predictable rate of spread or resistance to control under specified weather conditions.
Fuel Type Classification: Division of wildland areas into fire hazard classes.
Fusee: A colored flare designed as a railway-warning device and widely used to ignite suppression and prescription fires.
General Staff: The group of incident management personnel reporting to the Incident Commander. They may each have a deputy, as needed. The General Staff consists of: Operations Section chief, Planning Sections chief, Logistics Section Chief, and a Finance/Administration Chief.
Geographic Area: A political boundary designated by wildland fire protection agencies, where these agencies work together in the coordination and effective utilization.
Going Fire: Any wildfire on which suppression action has not reached an extensive mop-up stage.
Ground Fire: Fire that consumes the organic material beneath the surface litter ground, such as heat fire.
Ground Fuel: All combustible materials below the surface litter, including duff, tree or shrub roots, punchy wood, peat, and sawdust that normally support a glowing combustion without flame.
Group: Groups are established to divide the incident into functional areas of operation. Groups composed of resources assembled to perform a special function not necessarily within a single geographic division. Groups, when activated, are located between branches and resources in the operation section.
Haines Index: An atmospheric index used to indicate the potential for wildfire growth by measuring the stability and dryness of the air over a fire.
Hand Crew: A number of individuals that have been organized and trained and are supervised principally for operational assignments on an incident.
Hand Line: A fireline built with hand tools.
Hazard: A fuel complex defined by kind, arrangement, volume, condition, and location that form a special threat of ignition and resistance to control.
Hazard Reduction: Ant treatment of living and dead fuels that reduces the threat of ignition and spread of fire.
Head: Pressure due to elevation of water. Equals 0.433 pounds per square inch per foot of elevation. Back pressure.
Head Of Fire: The most rapidly spreading portion of a fire’s perimeter, usually to the leeward or up slope.
Heavy Equipment Transport: Any ground vehicle capable or transporting a dozer, tractor or other piece of equipment. Also called a lowboy.
Heavy Fuels: Fuels of large diameter such as snags logs, large limbwood, which ignite and are consumed more slowly than flash fuels. Also called course fuels.
Held Line: All control line that still contains the fire when mop-up is completed. Excludes lost line, natural barriers not backfired, and unused secondary lines.
Helibase: The main location within the general incident area for parking, fueling, maintenance, and loading of helicopters. It is usually located at or near the incident base.
Helibase Crew: A crew of individuals who may be assigned to support helicopter operations.
Helicopter Tender: A ground service vehicle capable of supplying fuel and support equipment to helicopters.
Helispot: A natural or improved takeoff and landing area intended for temporary or occasional helicopter use.
Helitack: The utilization of helicopters to transport crews, equipment and fire retardants or suppressants to the fireline during the initial stages of a fire. The term also refers to the crew that performs helicopter management and attack activities.
Helitack Crew: A group of firefighters trained in the technical and logistical use of helicopters for fire suppression.
Helitack Foreman: A supervisory firefighter trained in the tactical use of helicopters for fire suppression.
Helitanker: A helicopter equipped with a fixed tank or a suspended bucket-type container that is used for aerial delivery of water or retardants.
Holding Actions: Planned actions required to achieve wildland prescribed fire management objectives. These actions have specific implementation timeframes for fire use actions, but can have less sensitive implementation demands for suppression actions.
Holding Resources: Firefighting personnel and equipment assigned to do all required fire suppression work following fireline construction but generally not including extensive mop-up.
Holdover Fire: A fire that remains dormant for a considerable time. Also called a sleeper fire.
Hook: Term used to describe making a turn from the flank and across the head.
Hose Lay: Arrangement of connected lengths of fire hose and accessories on the ground, beginning at the first pumping unit and ending at the point of water delivery.
Hotshot Crew: Intensively trained fire crew used primarily in hand line construction.
Hot Spot: A particularly active part of a fire.
Hot-Spotting: Checking the spread of fire at points of more rapid spread or special threat. Is usually the initial step in prompt control, with emphasis on first priorities.
Incendiary Fire: A wildfire willfully ignited by anyone to burn, or spread to, vegetation or property without consent of the owner or his/her agent.
An occurrence, either human-caused or natural phenomena, that requires action or support by emergency service personnel to prevent or minimize loss of life or damage to property and/or natural resources.
Incident Action Plan (IAP): Contains objectives reflecting the overall incident strategy and specific tactical actions and supporting information for the next operational period. The plan may be oral or written. When written, the plan may have a number of attachments including: incident objectives, organization assignment list, division assignment, incident radio communication plan, medical plan, traffic plan, safety plan, and incident map.
Incident Base: Location at the incident where the primary logistics functions are coordinated and administered. The Incident Command Post may be collocated with the Base. There is only one Base per incident.
Incident Command Post (Icp): Location at which primary command functions are executed. The ICP may be collocated with the incident base or other incident facilities.
Incident Command System (Ics): A standardized on-scene emergency management concept specifically designed to allow its user(s) to adopt an integrated organizational structure equal to the complexity and demands of single or multiple incidents, without being hindered by jurisdictional boundaries.
Incident Commander: Individual responsible for the management of all incident operations at the incident site.
Incident Management Team: The incident commander and appropriate general or command staff personnel assigned to manage an incident.
Incident Objectives: Statements of guidance and direction necessary for selection of appropriate strategy, and the tactical direction of resources. Incident objectives are based on realistic expectations of what can be accomplished when all allocated resources have been effectively deployed.
Indirect Attack: A method of suppression in which the control line is located some considerable distance away from the fire’s active edge. Generally done in the case of a fast-spreading or high intensity fire and to utilize natural or constructed firebreaks or fuelbreaks and favorable breaks in the topography. The intervening fuel is usually backfired; but occasionally the main fire is allowed to burn to the line, depending on conditions.
Infrared (Ir): A heat detection system used for fire detection, mapping, and hotspot identification.
Infrared Groundlink: A capability through the use of a special mobile ground station to receive air-to-ground IR imagery at an incident.
Initial Attack: The actions taken by the first resources to arrive at a wildfire to protect lives and property, and prevent further extension of the fire.
Island: An unburned area within a fire perimeter.
Job Hazard Analysis: This analysis of a project is completed by staff to identify hazards to employees and the public. It identifies hazards, corrective actions and the required safety equipment to ensure public and employee safety.
Jump Spot: Selected landing area for smokejumpers.
Jump Suit: Approved protection suit of smokejumpers.
Jurisdictional Agency: The agency having land and resources management responsibility for a specific geographical or functional area as provided by federal, state or local law.
Keech Byram Drought Index: Commonly used drought index adapted for fire management applications, with a numerical range from 0 (no moisture deficiency) to 800 (maximum drought).
Knock Down: To reduce the flame or heat on the more vigorously burning parts of a fire edge.
Ladder Fuels: Fuels that provide vertical continuity between strata, thereby allowing fire to carry from surface fuels into the crowns of trees or shrubs with relative ease. They help initiate and assure the continuation of crowning.
Large Fire: 1.) For statistical purposes, a fire burning more than a specified area of land. 2.) A fire burning with a size and intensity such that its behavior is determined by interaction between its own convection column and weather conditions above the surface.
Late: Indicating drop was late or overshot the target.
Lead Plane: Aircraft with pilot used to make trail runs over the target area to check wind, smoke conditions, topography and to lead air tankers to targets and supervise their drops.
Leapfrog Method: A system of organizing workers in fire suppression in which each crew member is assigned a specific task such as clearing or digging fireline on a specific section of control line, and when that task is completed, passes other workers in moving to a new assignment.
Light Fuels: Fast-drying fuels, generally with a comparatively high surface area-to-volume ratio, which are less than ¼ inch in diameter and have a timelag of one hour or less. These fuels readily ignite and are rapidly consumed by fire when dry.
Lightning Activity Level: A number, on a scale of 1 to 6 that reflects frequency and character of cloud-to-ground lightning. The scale is exponential, based on powers of 2.
Line Scout: A firefighter who determine the location of a fireline.
Litter: The top layer of forest floor, composed of loose debris of dead stacks, branches, twigs, and recently fallen leaves or needles; little altered in structure by decomposition.
Live Fuels: Living plants, such as trees, grasses, and shrubs, in which the seasonal moisture content cycle is controlled largely by internal physiological mechanisms, rather than by external weather influences.
Lookout: 1.) A person designed to detect and report fires from a vantage point. 2.) A location from which fires can be detected and reported. 3.) A fire crew member assigned to observe the fire and warn the crew when there is danger of becoming trapped.
Low Pass: Low altitude run over the targeted area. May be used by air attack or lead plane to get a close look at the target or to show a tanker pilot a target, which is difficult to describe. May be used by tanker pilot to get a better look at the target or to warn ground personnel of an impending drop.
Main Ridge: Prominent ridgeline separating river or creek drainages. Usually has numerous smaller ridges extending outward from both sides.
Message Center: The Message Center is part of the Incident Communications Center and is collocated or placed adjacent to it. It receives records and routes information about resources reporting to the incident, resource status and administrative and tactical traffic.
Micro-Remote Environmental Monitoring System (Micro-Rems): Mobile weather monitoring station. Micro-REMS usually accompanies an incident meteorologist and ATMU to an incident.
Mineral Soil: Soil layers below the predominantly organic horizons; soil with little combustible material.
Modular Airborne Firefighting System (Maffs): A manufactured unit consisting of five interconnecting tanks, a control pallet, and a nozzle pallet, with a capacity of 3,000 gallons, designed to be rapidly mounted inside an unmodified C-130 cargo aircraft for use in cascading retardant chemicals on wildfires.
Mop-Up: Extinguishing or removing burning material near control lines, felling snags, and trenching logs to prevent rolling after an area has burned, to make a fire safe, or to reduce residual smoke.
Mulit-Agency Coordination (Mac): A generalized term which describes the functions and activities or representatives of involved agencies and/or jurisdictions who come together to make decisions regarding the prioritizing of incidents, and the sharing and use of critical resources. The MAC organization is not part of the on-scene ICS and is not involved in developing incident strategy or tactics.
Multi-Aid Agreement: Written agreement between agencies and/or jurisdictions in which they agree to assist one another upon request, by furnishing personnel and equipment.
National Environmental Policy Act (Nepa): NEPA is the basic national law for protection of the environment, passes by Congress in 1969. It sets policy and procedures for environmental protection, and authorizes Environmental Impact Statements and Environmental Assessments to be used as analytical tools to help federal managers make decisions.
National Fire Danger Rating System: A uniform fire danger rating system that focuses on the environmental Assessments to be used as analytical tools to help federal managers make decisions.
National Fire Danger Rating System: A uniform fire danger rating system that focuses on the environmental factors that control the moisture content of fuels.
National Interagency Incident Management System (Niims): An NWCG developed program consisting of five subsystems which collectively provide a total systems approach to all-risk incident management. The subsystems are: The Incident Command System, training, qualifications and certification, supporting technologies, and publications management.
National Wildfire Coordinating Group (Nwcg): A group formed under the direction of the Secretaries of Interior and Agriculture to improve the coordination and effectiveness of wildland fire activities, and provide a forum to discuss, recommend appropriate action, or resolve issues and problems of substantive nature.
Net Value Change (Nvc): The sum of the changes in the value of natural resources affected by a fire. The basis of computing NVC is each resource’s fire-induced value change as computed and expressed on a per unit basis.
Nomex: Trade name for a fire resistant synthetic material used in the manufacturing of flight suits, pants, and shirts used by firefighters. (See Aramid).
Normal Fire Season: A season when weather, fire danger, and number and distribution of fires are about average. Period of the year that normally comprises the fire season.
On Target: Acknowledgement to tanker pilot that his drop was well placed.
Operations Branch Director: Person under the direction of the operations section chief who is responsible for implementing that portion of the incident action plan appropriate to the branch.
Operational Period: The period of time scheduled for execution of a given set of tactical actions as specified in the Incident Action Plan. Operational Periods can be of various lengths, although usually not over 24 hours.
Origin Of A Fire: Point on the ground where the fire first started.
Orthophoto Maps: Aerial photographs corrected to scale such that geographic measurement may be taken directly from prints. They may contain graphically emphasized geographic features and may provide with overlays of such features as water systems, and facility location.
Out-Of-Service Resources: Resources assigned to an incident but unable to respond for mechanical, rest, or personal reasons.
Overhead: Personnel assigned to supervisory positions, including Incident Commander, Command Staff, General Staff, Branch Directors, Supervisors, Unit Leaders, Managers and staff.
Paracargo: Anything intentionally dropped, or intended for dropping, from any aircraft by parachute, by retarding devices, or be free fall.
Parts Of A Fire: On typical free-burning fire the spread is uneven, with the main spread moving with the wind upslope. The most rapidly moving portion is designated the head of the fire, the adjoining portions of the perimeter at right angles to the head are known as the flanks, and the slowest moving portions known as the base.
Patrol: 1.) To travel over a given route to prevent, detect, and suppress fires. 2.) To go back and forth vigilantly over the length of the control line during and /or after construction to prevent breakovers, suppress spot fires, and extinguish overlooked hot spots. 3.) A person or group of persons who carry out patrol actions.
Patrol Unit: Any light, mobile unit with limited pumping and water capacity.
Planning Meeting: A meeting held regularly throughout the duration of an incident, to select specific strategies and tactics for incident control operations and to plan for needed service and support. On larger incidents, the planning meeting is a major element in the development of the Incident Action Plan.
Plow Line: Fireline constructed by a fire plow, usually drawn by a tractor or other motorized equipment.
Prescribed Burning: Controlled application of fire to wildland fuels in either their natural or modified state, under specified environmental conditions which allows the fire to be confined to a predetermined area, and produce the fire behavior and fire characteristics required to attain planned fire treatment and resource management objectives.
Pre-Treat: Laying a retardant line advance of the fire where ground cover or terrain is best for fire control action, or to reinforce a control line.
Progressive Hose Lay: A hose lay in which double shutoff wye (Y) valves are inserted in the main line at intervals and lateral lines are run from wyes to the fire edge, thus permitting continuous application of water during extension of the lay.
Progressive Method Of Line Construction: A system of organizing workers to build fireline in which they advance without changing relative positions in line.
Protection Boundary: The exterior perimeter of an area within which a specified fire agency had assumed a degree of responsibility for wildland fire control. It may include land in addition to that for which the agency has jurisdiction or contractual responsibility.
Pulaski: A combination chopping and trenching tool, which combines a single-bitted axe-blade, with a narrow adze-like trenching blade, fitted to a straight handle. Useful for grubbing or trenching in duff and matted roots.
Radiant Burn: A burn received from a radiant heat source.
Radiant Heat Flux: The amount of heat flowing through a given area in a given time, usually expressed as calories/square centimeter/second.
Radio Cache: A cache may consist of a number of portable radios, a base station and, in some cases, a repeater stored in a predetermined location for dispatch to incidents.
Rate Of Spread: The relative activity of a fire in extending its horizontal dimensions. It is expressed as rate of increase of the total perimeter of the fire, as rate of forward spread of the fire front, or as rate of increase in an area, depending on the intended use of the information. Usually it is expressed in chains or acres per hour for a specific period in the fire’s history.
Rappeling: Technique of landing specifically trained firefighters from hovering helicopters; involves sliding down ropes with aid of friction-producing devices.
Rate Of Spread: The relative activity of a fire in extending its horizontal dimensions. It is expressed as a rate of increase of the total perimeter of the fire, as rate of forward spread of the fire front, or as rate of increase in area, depending in the intended use of the information. Usually it is expressed in chains r aces per hour for a specific period in the fire’s history.
Reburn: Repeat burning of an area over which a fire has previously passed, but left fuel that later ignites when burning conditions are favorable. An area that has been reburned.
Red Card: Fire qualification card issued to fire rated persons showing their training needs and their qualifications to fill specified fire suppression and support positions in a large fire suppression or incident organization.
Red Flag Warning: Term used by fire weather forecasters to alert forecast users to an ongoing or imminent critical fire weather pattern.
Rehabilitation: The activities necessary to repair damage or disturbance caused by wildland fires or the fire suppression activity.
Reinforced Response: Those resources requested in addition to the initial attack resources.
Relative Humidity (Rh): The ration of the amount of moisture in the air, to the maximum amount of moisture that air would contain if it were saturated. The ratio of the actual vapor pressure to the saturated vapor pressure.
Remote Automatic
Weather Station (Raws): An apparatus
that automatically acquires, processes, and stores local weather data
for later transmission to the GOES Satellite, from which the data is re-transmitted
to an earth-receiving station for use in the National Fire Danger Rating
System.
Rescue Medical: Any staffed ground vehicle capable of providing medical services.
Resistance To Control: The relative difficulty of constructing and holding a control line as affected by resistance to line construction and by fire behavior. Also called difficulty of control.
Resistance To Line Construction: The relative difficulty of constructing control line as determined by the fuel, topography, and soil.
Resources: 1.) Personnel, equipment, services and supplies available, or potentially available, for assignment to incidents. Personnel and equipment are described by kind and type, e.g. ground, water, air, and may be used in tactical, support or overhead capacities at an incident. 2.) The natural resources of an area, such as timber, grass, watershed values, recreation values, and wildlife habitat.
Resource Management: A document prepared by field office staff with pubic participation and approved by field office managers that provides general guidance and direction for land management activities at a field office. The RMP identifies the need for fire in a particular area and for a specific benefit.
Resource Order: An order placed for firefighting or support resources.
Retardant: A substance or chemical agent that reduce the flammability of combustibles.
Retardant Coverage: Area of fuel covered by retardant. Also a degree of coverage fuel.
Risk: 1.) The chance of fire starting as determined by the presence and activity of causative agents. 2.) A causative agent. 3.) A number related to the potential number of firebands to which a given area will e exposed during the rating day.
Rough: The accumulation of living and dead ground and understory vegetation, especially grasses, forest litter, and draped dead needles, sometimes with addition of underbrush such as palmetto, gallberry, and wax myrtle. Most often used for southern pine types.
Routs: The paths aircraft take from departure pattern to arrival pattern destination.
Run Of A Fire: The rapid advance of the head of a fire with a marked change in fireline intensity and rate of spread from that noted before and after the advance.
Running A Fire: Behavior of a fire spreading rapidly with a well-defined head.
Saddle: Low gap or pass in a ridgeline.
Safety Zone: An area cleared of flammable material used for escape in the event the line is outflanked or in case a spot fire causes fuels outside the control line to render the line unsafe. In firing operations, crew’s progress so as to maintain a safety zones close at hand allowing the fuels inside the control line to be consumed before going ahead. Safety zones may also be constructed as integral parts of fuel breaks; they are greatly enlarged areas that can be used with relative safety by firefighters and their equipment in the event of a blowout in the vicinity.
Safety Island: An area used for escape in the event the line is outflanked or incase a spot fire causes fuels outside the control line to render the line unsafe. During an emergency, tankers may be asked to construct a safety island using retardant drops.
Salvo: Dropping the entire load of retardant at one time, or dropping a combination of tanks simultaneously.
Score Height: Average heights of foliage browning or bole blackening caused by a fire.
Scratch Line: An unfinished preliminary control line hastily established or constructed as an emergency measure to check the spread of fire.
Secondary Line: Any fireline constructed as a distance from the fire perimeter concurrently with or after a line already constructed on or near to the perimeter of the fire. Generally constructed as an insurance measure in case the fire escapes control by the primary line.
Section: That organizational level with responsibility for a major functional area of the incident, such as: operations, planning, logistics, and finance/administration. The Section is organizationally between Branch and Incident Commander.
Segment: A geographical area in which a task force/strike team leader or supervisor of a single resource is assigned authority and responsibility for the coordination of resources and implementation of planned tactics. A segment may be a portion of a division or an area inside or outside the perimeter of an incident. Segments are identified with Arabic numbers and area not used as radio designators.
Severity Funding: Funds provided to increase wildland fire suppression response capability necessitated by abnormal weather patterns, extended drought, or events causing abnormal increase in the fire potential and/or danger.
Shoulder: Where the flank and the head meet.
Simple Hose Lay: A hoselay consisting of consecutively coupled lengths of hose without laterals. The lay is extended by inserting additional lengths of hose in the line between the pumps and nozzle. Also called a single hose lay.
Single Resource: An individual, a piece of equipment and its personnel complement, or a crew or team of individuals with an identified work supervisor that can be used on an incident.
Size-Up: To evaluate a fire to determine a course of action for fire suppression.
Slash: Debris resulting from such natural events as wind, fire, or snow breakage; or such human activities as road construction, logging, pruning, thinning, or brush cutting. It includes logs, chunks, bark, branches, stumps, and broken understory trees of brush.
Slash Disposal: Treatment of slash to reduce fire hazard or for other purposes.
Sling Load: Any cargo carried beneath a helicopter and attached by a lead line and swivel.
Slop Over: The extension of a fire across a control line.
Smokejumper: A specifically trained and certified firefighter who travels to wildland fires by aircraft and parachutes to the fire.
Smoke Management: Application of fire intensities and meteorological processes to minimize degradation of air quality during prescribed fires.
Smoldering: A fire burning without flame and barely spreading.
Snag: A standing dead tree or part of a dead tree from which at least the leaves and smaller branches have fallen. Often called a stub, if less than 20 feet tall.
Span Of Control: The supervisory ratio from three-to seven individuals, with five-to-one being established as optimum.
Spark Arrester: A device installed in a chimney, flue, or exhaust pipe to stop the emission of sparks and burning fragments.
Speed Of Attack: Elapsed time from origin of fire to arrival of the first suppression force.
Split: The dropping of a partial load.
Spot Burning: A modified form of broadcast slash burning in which the greater accumulations of slash are fired and the fire is confined to these spots. Sometimes called “Jackpot Burning.”
Spot Fires: Fire ignited outside the perimeter of the main fire by a fireband.
Spot Weather Forecast: A special forecast issues to fit the time, topography, and weather of each specific fire. These forecasts are issued upon request of the user agency and are more detailed, timely, and specific than zone forecasts.
Spotter: In smokejumping, the person responsible for selecting drop targets and supervising all aspects of dropping smokejumpers.
Spotting: Behavior of a fire producing sparks or embers that are carried by the wind and which start new fires beyond the zone of direct ignition by the main fire.
Spread Component: Part of the National Fire Danger Rating System. A rating of the forward rate of spread of a head fire.
Spur Ridge: A small ridge, which extends finger-like, from a main ridge.
Staging Area: Locations set up at an incident where resources can be placed while awaiting a tactical assignment on a three-minute available basis. Staging Areas are managed by the Operations Section.
Strategy: The general plan or direction selected to accomplish incident objectives.
Strike Team: Specified combinations of the same kind and type of resources, with common communications, and a leader.
Strike Team Leader: Person responsible to a division/group supervisor for performing tactical assignments given to the strike team.
Strip Burning: Setting fire to more than one strip of fuel and providing for the strips to burn together. Frequently done in burning out against a wind where inner strips are fired first to create drafts, which pull flames and sparks away from the control line.
Strip Firing: Setting fire to more than one strip of fuel and providing for the strips to burn together. Frequently done in burning out against a wind where inner strips are fired first to create drafts, which pull flames and sparks away from the control line.
Structure Fire: Fire originating in and burning any part or all of any building, shelter or other structure.
Suppressant: An agent that extinguishes the flaming and glowing phases of combustion by direct application to the burning fuel.
Suppression: All the work of extinguishing or confirming a fire beginning with its discovery.
Suppression Crew: Two or more firefighters stationed at a strategic location for initial action on fires. Duties are essentially the same as those of individual firefighters.
Surface Fire: Fire that burns loose debris on the surface, which include dead branches, leaves, and low vegetation.
Swamper: 1.) A worker who assists fallers and/or sawyers by clearing away brush, limbs and small trees. Carries fuel, oil and tools and watches for dangerous situations. 2.) A worker on a dozer crew who pulls winch line, helps maintain equipment, ect. to speed suppression work on the fire.
Tactics: Deploying and directing resources on an incident to accomplish the objectives designed by strategy.
Target: The area or object you want a retardant drop to cover. “Your target is the right flank.”
Task Force: Any combination of single resources assembled for a particular tactical need, with common communications and a leader. A Task Force may be pre-established and sent to an incident or formed at an incident.
Temporary Flight Restrictions: A restriction requested by an agency and put into effect by the Federal Aviation Administration in the vicinity of an incident, which restricts the operation of nonessential aircraft in the airspace around that incident.
Terra Torch: Device for throwing a stream of flaming liquid, used to facilitate rapid ignition during burn out operations on a wildland fire or during prescribed fire operations.
Test Fire: A prescribed fire set to evaluate such things as fire behavior, detection performance, and control measures.
Tie-In: To connect a retardant drop with a specified point (road, stream, previous drop).
Timelag: Time needed under specified conditions for a fuel particle to lose about 63% of the difference between its initial moisture content and its equilibrium moisture content. If conditions remain unchanged, a fuel will reach 95% of its equilibrium moisture content after four timelag periods.
Torching: The ignition and flare-up of a tree or small group of trees, usually from bottom to top.
Tractor Plow: Any tractor with a plow for constructing fireline by exposing mineral soil. Also as a resource for typing purpose, a tractor plow includes the transportation and personnel for its operation.
Traffic Pattern: The path aircraft traffic flow takes when landing or taking off.
Trail: To drop tanks in sequence causing a long unbroken line.
Trench: A small ditch often constructed below a fire on sloping ground to catch rolling material.
Two-Way Radio: Radio equipment with transmitters in mobile units on the same frequency as the base station, permitting conversation in two directions using the same frequency in turn.
Type: Refers to resource capability. A Type I resource provides a greater overall capability due to power, size, capacity, ect., than would be found in a Type II resource. Resource typing provides managers with additional information in selecting the best resource for the task.
Uncontrolled Fire: Any fire that threatens to destroy life, property, or natural resources.
Underburn: A fire that consumes surface fuels but not trees or shrubs.
Undercut Line: A fireline below a fire on a slope. Should be trenched to catch rolling material. Also called underslung line.
Unified Command: In ICS, unified command is a unified team effort which allows all agencies with jurisdictional responsibility for the incident, either geographical or functional, to manage an incident by establishing a common set of incident objectives and strategies. This is accomplished without losing or abdicating authority, responsibility, and accountability.
Unit: The organizational element of an incident having functional responsibility for a specific activity in the planning, logistics, or finance/administration activity.
Vectors: Directions of fire spread as related to rate of spread calculations (in degrees from upslope).
Vee Pattern: To make two separate drops in an overlapping configuration.
Vhf: Very high frequency radio. The standard aircraft radio that all civil and most military aircraft have to communicate with Federal Aviation Administration facilities. Some frequencies are designated for tactical use also.
Volunteer Fire Department: A fire department of which some or all members are unpaid.
Water Tender: Any ground vehicle capable of transporting specified quantities of water.
Weather Information And Management System: An interactive computer system designated to accommodate the weather information needs of all federal and state natural resource management agencies. Provides timely access to weather forecasts, current and historical weather data, the National Fire Danger Rating System and the National Interagency Fire Management Integrated Databases.
Wet Line: A line of water, or water and chemical retardant, sprayed along the ground, that serves as a temporary control line from which to ignite or stop a low-intensity fire.
Wet Water: Water with added chemicals, called wetting agents, that increase water’s spreading and penetrating properties due to a reduction in surface tension.
Wetting Agent: A chemical that when added to water reduces the surface tension of the solution and causes it to spread and penetrate exposed objects more effectively than the untreated water.
Wildfire: A fire occurring on wildland that is not meeting management objectives and thus requires a suppression response.
Wildland: An area which development is essentially non-existent, except roads, railroads, powerlines, and similar transportation facilities. Structures, if any, are widely scattered.
Wildland Fire: Any non-structure fire, other than prescribed fire, that occurs in the wildland.
Wildland Fire Implementation Plan: A progressively developed assessment and operational management plan that documents the analysis and selection of strategies and describes the appropriate management response for a wildland fire being managed for resource benefits.
Wildland Fire Situation Analysis: A decision-making process that evaluates alternative suppression strategies against selected environmental, social, political, and economic criteria. Provides a record of decisions.
Wildland Fire Use: The management of naturally ignited wildland fires to accomplish specific predevelopment meet or intermingle with undeveloped wildland vegetative fuels.
Wing Span: Term of measurement used to adjust the path of a tanker.
Wind Vectors: Wind directions used to calculate fire behavior.
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Last Modified: 06/28/01 Source: www.nifc.gov/fireinfo/glossary.html