Last week, the Central Arizona Wildland Response Team, consisting of Phoenix area fire departments and other entities, underwent training to respond to structure fires and wildfires.
The Arizona Department of Forestry and Fire Management, the U.S. Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management also take part in the fire training efforts.
“There’s multiple drills that the folks will run through. Over the last couple of days we had water-pumping operations. Engines were out there. They were going and refreshing all of the engine operation. We had sand table exercises, radio communications," said Tiffany Davila, a public affairs officer with the state.
Davila says other training sessions will be held in different parts of the state to ensure crews throughout Arizona are ready after a dry winter.
"There’s special requirements, special certifications so that’s why we have to all work together and make sure we’re on the same page so that we are fighting fire cohesively as one unit," she said.
Davila also says many areas across the state remain untouched by fire over the last couple of years. As a result, the fire officials’ activities will concentrate on these areas.
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Highschoolers across six BIE-run schools in South Dakota, Oklahoma, Montana and New Mexico are already participating, including Northwest High School in Shiprock on the Navajo Nation. -
The study found that permafrost can thaw during intense wildfires in Alaska and Canada, which contributes to a warming climate feedback loop. -
The team, led by a Boise State University civil engineering researcher, looked at half a million wildfire starts, and hundreds of attributes about them. Beyond the obvious weather variables like wind speed, temperature and humidity, they also considered human factors like density of development. -
The 11 senators and representatives - all Democrats - said that the consolidation of four Department of Interior agencies' wildfire programs is being done "without adequate analysis, transparency, or planning to prevent disruption during what is expected to be a significant fire season or to safeguard long-term wildfire preparedness." -
Hikers and bikers who use Dove Valley Trail in Scottsdale may want to consider other options while the city does some work to reduce wildfire risk and improve emergency access.
