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Forest Service Releases Pagami Creek Wildfire Management Reviews
Release Date:
Contact(s): Kris Reichenbach
Forest Service Releases Pagami Creek Wildfire Management Reviews
Duluth, MN_ Today, the Forest Service released three reports reviewing overall management of the Pagami Creek Wildfire that burned across 93,000 acres on the Superior National Forest in 2011.
In the reports, fire specialists provide perspective from the local, regional, and national levels in three separate reviews of the overall management of the Pagami Creek Wildfire. The analysis in these reports was requested by the Superior National Forest Supervisor and represents one of the ways the Forest Service actively works to improve fire management by documenting and sharing lessons learned on large events like the Pagami Creek Wildfire. Key findings include:
- All actions and decisions associated with management of the Pagami Creek Wildfire were consistent with laws, regulations, and policy.
- Unexpected and unprecedented fire behavior was the key factor in the rapid, large growth of the fire on September 12. The fire moved in ways that were not only unexpected, but totally unprecedented for generations of firefighters and land managers in the area. Fire intensity stretched the operation and created problems where the system was functional—even successful—under normal conditions.
- As a result of employee actions, the public was safely evacuated.
- Due to their training and effective fire shelter deployment, employees suffered no serious physical injury when they were entrapped.
Superior National Forest Supervisor, Brenda Halter, noted that: “Even when decisions are consistent with policy and regulation, we can continue to learn and to improve our processes, particularly in extreme or unusual events.”
The following three reviews are available on the Superior National Forest website at www.fs.usda.gov/superior (see link to Pagami Creek Wildfire Reports and Information):
- Pagami Creek Fire -Summary of Decisions and Information Used in Making Decisionspresents a chronology and thorough accounting of major decision points with supporting information throughout the fire. This narrative and supporting appendix were completed by four nationally-recognized fire specialists, including: Tim Sexton, District Ranger-LaCroix Ranger District, Superior National Forest; Jim Menakis, National Fire Ecologist, Forest Service. Washington, D.C.; Morgan Pence, Fire Application Specialist, Wildland Fire Management Research Development and Application, Idaho; Ellen Bogardus-Szymaniak, Fire and Fuels Analyst, TEAMS Enterprise Unit, Forest Service.
- Pagami Creek Fire- Regional Decision Reviewevaluates the decision progression during the fire. This review was completed by James Thomas, Fire and Emergency Operations specialist, Eastern Region, Forest Service and Jim Bertelsen, President-Local NFFE Union 2138.
- Pagami Creek Fire- Summary of Consistency with Policy and Proceduresis a review of planning and implementation actions during the fire in terms of their consistency with national and local policy and procedures. The Summary was prepared by Dr. Thomas Zimmerman, retired Program Manager, Wildland Fire Management Research, Development, and Application Program, Rocky Mountain Research Station, Forest Service.