One of the most dynamic elements of wildland fire operations is the variety of environments in which we operate. Landscapes in each geographic area present unique complexities. So how do we build our local knowledge when we’re not a local?

Gathering Intelligence & Tapping Local Knowledge

Climatic trends, pests, disease, invasives, and fire history all impact fuels conditions across a landscape and have major implications for fire behavior and suppression tactics. Fire indices — critical thresholds for Energy Release Component or Burning Index, for example — are relative to the fuel types of the region. Some regions use indices that others don’t. Use these resources and actionable steps to build situational awareness on your next out-of-area assignment:

• Weather/Climatology:

  • Geographic Areas Home (Select any GA, then review the Predictive Services section) 
  • NICC Predictive Services - Outlooks 
  • National Weather Service – Fire Weather Dashboard
    • Point-and-click, 7-day forecast for anywhere 
  • Drought.gov

• Fuels/Hazards:

  • Current Fuels & Fire Behavior Advisories (NICC)
  • Fire Danger Pocket Card Search
    • Search by location to view historical fire data and average and critical indices
  • Risk Management Dashboard 
    • Contains numerous tools to assess the risks present in an area

• Upon Arrival:

  • Contact a local fire manager and request an in-briefing or in-brief packet
  • Ask about local medical response resources and protocols 
  • Tour the area, know your ground
  • Test communications in the field

Fighting fire aggressively starts with a proactive approach to gathering information. As firefighters, we are trained to continuously update our situational awareness, but when traveling to another region this may require different steps. Ultimately, it is the firefighter’s responsibility to seek out intelligence that aids safe and effective decision making in the field.

Discussion Questions: 

• What types of questions would you ask during an out-of-area in-briefing? What information do you want access to?
• You receive a resource order to another Geographic Area (GA) – choose one. Navigate to the references above and below to build awareness of conditions in the GA you selected.  
• In the absence of a formal in-briefing, is it possible to use these resources and the local knowledge of your host unit to adequately gather your own intelligence? What’s missing?
• Fuel conditions, topography, and weather should equal observed fire behavior. If not, what local knowledge do you lack which could better help correlate fuel conditions and weather?

References: 

• Geographic Areas
• Predictive Services
• Fuels/Fire Danger
• Outlooks
• Weather
• Other