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NWCG Glossary of Wildland Fire (PMS 205)

Title Steward Status Definition
ABCD Miscellaneous DMC Data Management Committee, IBC Incident Business Committee Approved

A FireCode used by the USDA Forest Service to track and compile cost information for emergency initial attack fire suppression expenditures for A, B, C, & D size class fires on Forest Service lands.

abort NIAC National Interagency Aviation Committee Approved

To jettison a load of water or retardant from an aircraft, or terminate a preplanned aircraft maneuver.

abort area NIAC National Interagency Aviation Committee Approved

A designated area where unused quantities of water or fire retardant may be jettisoned, usually to permit an airtanker to land with less than a full load.

Above Ground Level NIAC National Interagency Aviation Committee Approved

Term frequently used in aviation operations, usually in connection with a stated altitude.

absolute humidity FWS Fire Weather Subcommittee Approved

According to the American Meteorological Society, (also called vapor density). In a system of moist air, the ratio of the mass of water vapor present to the volume occupied by the mixture; that is, the density of the water vapor component.

absorption CEPC Communication, Education, and Prevention Committee Approved

Act of soaking up and retaining a gas in liquid or in a solid; also retention of radiant energy.

accelerant CEPC Communication, Education, and Prevention Committee Approved

Material (usually a flammable liquid) used to initiate or increase the spread of a fire.

acceptable fire risk FUSC Fire Use Subcommittee Approved

The potential fire loss a community is willing to accept rather than provide resources to reduce such losses.

accessibility burn FUSC Fire Use Subcommittee Approved

The burning of understory prior to the sale of forest products to improve the efficiency of timber marking and harvesting.

accident (event) NCSC National Coordination System Committee Approved

An event, usually managed by organizations external to the fire community, for which the primary focus is for dealing with an accident and assistance to potential victims. This category includes accidents such as: automobile, aircraft, train, watercraft, and industrial.

accounting code IBC Incident Business Committee Approved

Agency-specific accounting data. Each agency assigns a specific accounting code to an incident.

accrual reports IBC Incident Business Committee Approved

Cost reports utilized for financial obligation purposes.

action plan NIMSIC National Incident Management System Integration Committee Archived

Any tactical plan developed by any element of ICS in support of the incident action plan.

active crown fire FBSC Fire Behavior Subcommittee, IOSC Incident Operations Subcommittee Approved

A fire in which a solid flame develops in the crowns of trees, but the surface and crown phases advance as a linked unit dependent on each other.

active fire IOSC Incident Operations Subcommittee Approved

Any fire that has not been called "out".

active resources IBC Incident Business Committee Archived

Resources checked in and assigned work tasks on an incident.

activity (fire cause) CEPC Communication, Education, and Prevention Committee Approved

The thing that a person is doing when a wildland fire ignition occurs.

activity fuels FUSC Fire Use Subcommittee Approved

Fuels resulting from, or altered by, forestry practices such as timber harvest or thinning, as opposed to naturally created fuels.

activity group CEPC Communication, Education, and Prevention Committee Approved

Further refines wildfire cause supporting data, providing information for prevention programs for targeted messaging.

activity name CEPC Communication, Education, and Prevention Committee Approved

Common name of activity

activity type CEPC Communication, Education, and Prevention Committee Approved

Type of activity or event

actual completion date FMC Fuels Management Committee Approved

Date when treatment was physically completed

Actual Time En Route NIAC National Interagency Aviation Committee Approved

Term used in flight planning/following to document actual time spent flying between points.

Actual Time of Arrival NIAC National Interagency Aviation Committee Approved

Term used in flight planning/following to document time of arrival at a point.

Actual Time of Departure NIAC National Interagency Aviation Committee Approved

Term used in flight planning/following to document time of departure from a point.

adapter ETC Equipment Technology Committee Approved

A device for connecting hoses of the same size with non-matching hose threads, or connecting a threaded coupling to a quick-connect coupling.

adiabatic process FWS Fire Weather Subcommittee Approved

According to the American Meteorological Society, a process in which a system does not interact with its surroundings by virtue of a temperature difference between them. In an adiabatic process any change in internal energy (for a system of fixed mass) is solely a consequence of working. For an ideal gas and for most atmospheric systems, compression results in warming, expansion results in cooling.

adjective rating FWS Fire Weather Subcommittee Approved

A public information description of the relative severity of the current fire danger situation.

Administrative Payment Team IBC Incident Business Committee Approved

A team that supports incident agencies by processing payments for resources. Resources may include emergency equipment, casuals, local vendors for supplies, etc.

Administrative Representative IBC Incident Business Committee Approved

Individual responsible for incident agency business management functions, such as personnel, procurement, fiscal, etc.

administrative workweek IBC Incident Business Committee Approved

Period of seven consecutive calendar days designated in advance by the head of a department (5 U.S.C. 6101(a)).

Administratively Determined IBC Incident Business Committee Approved

A person hired and compensated under the Pay Plan for Emergency Workers.

admission CEPC Communication, Education, and Prevention Committee Approved

Oral or written statement tending to link its maker to involvement in a particular crime.

Advanced Life Support RMC Risk Management Committee Approved

Advanced life support skills performed by an EMS practitioner or service, e.g. intravenous fluids and drug administration.

advancing a line IOSC Incident Operations Subcommittee Approved

Moving a hose lay toward a specified area from the point where the hose-carrying apparatus has stopped.

advancing fire WFISC Wildland Fire Investigation Subcommittee Approved

That portion of the fire with rapid fire spread with higher intensity which is normally burning with the wind and/or up slope.

advancing front combustion stage FBSC Fire Behavior Subcommittee Approved

The period of combustion when a fire is spreading, usually accompanied by flaming combustion that releases heat to sustain the convection column.

advection FWS Fire Weather Subcommittee Approved

According to the American Meteorological Society, the process of transport of an atmospheric property solely by the mass motion of the atmosphere; also the rate of change of the value of the advected property at a given point.

Advisory RMC Risk Management Committee Approved

A time-sensitive alert from an NWCG Committee to the wildland fire community regarding procedural changes, equipment information and/or use updates, potential safety hazards, etc. Yellow hash-marked bordered stationary will be associated with this type of alert.

Adze Hoe ETC Equipment Technology Committee Approved

A fire-trenching or digging tool having a sharp, tempered blade, which is useful for heavy grubbing, trenching, and light cutting.

aerial detection IASS Interagency Aerial Supervision Subcommittee Approved

A system for, or the act of discovering, locating, and reporting fires from aircraft.

aerial fuels FUSC Fire Use Subcommittee Approved

Standing and supported live and dead combustibles not in direct contact with the ground and consisting mainly of foliage, twigs, branches, stems, cones, bark, and vines.

aerial ignition IOSC Incident Operations Subcommittee, NIAC National Interagency Aviation Committee Approved

Ignition of fuels by dropping incendiary devices or materials from aircraft.

Aerial Ignition Device NIAC National Interagency Aviation Committee, ETC Equipment Technology Committee Approved

Inclusive term applied to equipment designed to ignite wildland fuels from an aircraft.

aerial reconnaissance IASS Interagency Aerial Supervision Subcommittee Approved

Use of aircraft for detecting and observing fire behavior, values-at-risk, suppression activity, and other critical factors to facilitate command decisions on strategy and tactics needed for fire suppression.

aerial torch IHOPS Interagency Helicopter Operations Subcommittee Approved

An ignition device suspended under a helicopter, capable of dispensing ignited fuel to the ground for assistance in burning out or backfiring.

affidavit CEPC Communication, Education, and Prevention Committee Approved

A statement of declaration in writing and affirmed before an official with authority to administer an oath; a statement of declaration alleging fact to support the issuance of a search or arrest warrant.

After Action Review RMC Risk Management Committee Approved

A structured review or de-brief process of an event, focused on performance standards, that enables participants to discover for themselves what happened, why it happened, and how to sustain strengths and improve on weaknesses. After action reviews, informal or formal, follow the same general format, involve the exchange of ideas and observations, and focus on improving performance.

age category CEPC Communication, Education, and Prevention Committee In Development

A way to group people based on their chronological age and their position in the life cycle as it relates to the age demographic. This information provides valuable insight to Communication, Education, and Prevention personnel in developing products to reach and educate on wildland fire prevention.

agency NIMSIC National Incident Management System Integration Committee Archived

An administrative division of a government with a specific function, or a non-governmental organization (e.g., private contractor, business, etc.) that offers a particular kind of assistance. A federal, tribal, state or local agency that has direct fire management or land management responsibilities or that has programs and activities that support fire management activities.

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NWCG Latest Announcements

NWCG Risk Management Committee Releases Safety Bulletin: 24-001 Use of Respirators on Wildland Fires

Date: November 7, 2024
Contact: Risk Management Committee

The Risk Management Committee (RMC) has released Safety Bulletin: 24-001 Use of Respirators on Wildland Fires. As wildland fire respirators are available through several established vendors, wildland fire personnel need to understand regulations and limitations of respirator use in the workplace.

Safety Bulletin 24-001 outlines the following topics regarding respirator use for wildland fires:

  • Requirements for Respirator Use
  • Voluntary Respirator Use
  • Current Respirator Options
  • Unknown Risks of Respirator Use

This bulletin also provides mitigation recommendations to help reduce smoke exposure for wildland firefighting efforts.

References:

NWCG Safety Bulletin: 24-001 Use of Respirators on Wildland Fires

NWCG Smoke Management Guide for Prescribed Fire, PMS 420-3

VIDEO: Protecting Wildfire Personnel from Smoke - How Incident Management Teams Address Smokes Risks

VIDEO: Smoke, Knowing the Risks

The Incident Position Standards and Next Generation Position Task Book are now available for Medical Unit Leader (MEDL)

Date: October 16, 2024
Contact: Incident Medical Subcommittee

NWCG is excited to announce that the NWCG Incident Position Standards for Medical Unit Leader, PMS 350-39 and NWCG Position Task Book for Medical Unit Leader (MEDL), PMS 311-39 are now available.

The Performance Support Package, which for MEDL includes the Incident Position Standards and Next Generation Position Task Book, were developed through the Incident Performance and Training Modernization (IPTM) effort. The Performance Support Package will support trainees, those qualified in the position, and evaluators.

References:

NWCG Medical Unit Leader Position Page

NWCG Incident Position Standards for Medical Unit Leader, PMS 350-39

NWCG Position Task Book for Medical Unit Leader (MEDL), PMS 311-39

The Wildland Fire Learning Portal is Now Available

Date: October 9, 2024
Contact: Wildland Fire Learning Portal

The Wildland Fire Learning Portal (WFLP) is back online following a migration to a new learning management system (LMS) application. The WFLP team is actively addressing any issues that may arise as a result of the update, and appreciates your patience as the team works to enhance your experience. NWCG will share information from the WFLP as it is available.

Should you have any issues with accessing or using the WFLP, please use the link below to submit a ticket through the Help Center.

References:

Wildland Fire Learning Portal

Wildland Fire Learning Portal Help Center

NWCG Equipment Technology Committee Releases New Equipment Bulletins

Date: September 27, 2024
Contact: Equipment Technology Committee

The Equipment Technology Committee (ETC) has released three new Equipment Bulletins:

  • ETC-EB-24-003 Diesel exhaust fluid (DEF) in fuel containers.
  • ETC-EB-24-004 Two-compartment fuel and oil container (Dolmar) unavailable in the United States (US) and reminders for upkeeping current inventories.
  • ETC-EB-24-005 Personal Protective Equipment (PPE): Inspection, Care, and Maintenance.

These bulletins remind field going personnel of important issues related to equipment for wildland firefighting efforts.

References:

NWCG Alerts

ETC-EB-24-003 Diesel exhaust fluid (DEF) in fuel containers

ETC-EB-24-004 Two-compartment fuel and oil container (Dolmar) unavailable in the United States (US) and reminders for upkeeping current inventories

ETC-EB-24-005 Personal Protective Equipment (PPE): Inspection, Care, and Maintenance