NWCG Glossary of Wildland Fire (PMS 205)

A two way radio unit on mobile apparatus (instead of base stations), usually semi-permanently attached to the apparatus.

A special fire weather forecast for a specific fire prepared by a meteorologist on site at or near the fire area.

A special weather forecast for a specific incident prepared by a meteorologist on site at or near the incident area.

The processes and procedures for activating, assembling, and transporting resources that have been requested to respond to or support an incident.

An off-incident location at which emergency service personnel and equipment are temporarily located pending assignment, release, or reassignment.

A written description of procedures used by federal, state, and local organizations for activating, assembling, and transporting resources that have been requested to respond to or support an incident.

A simplified or generalized representation of reality; a description, analogy, picture, or hypothesis to help visualize something that cannot be directly observed.

Model legislation, recommended by the Fire Marshals' Association of North America and adopted in most states, dealing with the subject of arson.

Model legislation recommended by the Fire Marshals' Association of North America and adopted by many states, regulating display of fireworks.

Moderate duty field work requires the average endurance and conditioning of an individual who possesses complete control of all their physical faculties. Occasional demands may be required for moderately strenuous activities in emergencies over long periods. The pace of work is usually set by the current environmental conditions.  Essential functions include, but are not limited to: considerable walking over irregular ground, standing for long periods, lifting 25 to 50 pounds, climbing, bending, stooping, squatting, twisting, and reaching.

Username of system that modified the record.

Date/time that the record was modified.

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 (Hercules) cargo aircraft for use in cascading retardant chemicals on wildfires. 

Rate of decrease of temperature with increasing height of an air parcel lifted at saturation via adiabatic process through an atmosphere in hydrostatic equilibrium. Rate varies according to the amount of water vapor in the parcel and is usually between 2.0 and 5.0 degrees F per 1000 feet (3.6 and 9.2 degrees C per 1000 meters). 

The fuel moisture content, weighed over all the fuel classes, at which the fire will not spread.

A turret-type nozzle usually mounted on an engine.

The orderly collection, analysis, and interpretation of environmental data to evaluate management's progress toward meeting objectives, and to identify changes in natural systems. Monitoring is also conducted on wildland fires to observe fire effects, fire behavior, or both. For example, the work done by Fire Effects Monitor (FEMO) or Field Observer (FOBS) positions. 

Climate characterized by (a) a long winter-spring dry season which includes a "cold season" followed by a short "hot season" immediately preceding the rains, (b) a summer and early autumn rainy season which is usually very wet (but highly variable from year to year), and (c) a secondary maximum of temperature immediately after the rainy season.

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.

A portion or all of a regular fire crew assigned to mop up work after the fire or a portion of the fire has been contained or controlled.

Elapsed time from containment or control of a fire until mopup is complete.

The intermingling of plant communities and their successional stages in such a manner as to give the impression of an interwoven design.

An event dealing with an accident or mishap involving on- or off-highway vehicles.

System of redistributing remaining personnel and equipment following dispatch of other forces among a network of fire stations to provide the best possible response within the fire department's direct protection area in the event of additional calls for emergency assistance. 

Progressive method of fireline construction 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 of those ahead move one space forward and resume work on the uncompleted part of the line. The last worker does not move ahead until work is completed in his/her space. Forward progress of the crew is coordinated by a crew boss. 

Piles of wood, vegetation or animal waste that generate internal heat resulting in an ignition.

A group, typically consisting of agency administrators or executives from organizations, or their designees, that provides policy guidance to incident personnel, supports resource prioritization and allocation, and enables decision making among elected and appointed officials and senior executives in other organizations, as well as those directly responsible for incident management.

A generalized term which describes the functions and activities of 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.

An incident where one or more agencies assist a jurisdictional agency or agencies. May be single or unified command.

Indication of the incident covering multiple jurisdictions.

A VHF/AM aircraft radio frequency (122.9 MHz) assigned by the FAA for use in air-to-air communications.

An incident requiring action from multiple agencies that have a statutory responsibility for incident mitigation. In ICS these incidents will be managed under unified command.

High fire frequency over a short period of time in an administrative unit, usually overtaxing the normal initial attack capability of the unit.

In FireFamily Plus, a day with both a weather observation and a number of fires equal to or greater than that determined by the user to be a significant workload.

Two or more separate points of fire origins at a fire scene; strong indication of arson.

Assistance in firefighting or investigation by fire agencies, without regard for jurisdictional boundaries.

A written or oral agreement between and among agencies/organizations and/or jurisdictions that provides a mechanism to quickly obtain assistance in the form of personnel, equipment, materials, and other associated services. The primary objective is to facilitate the rapid, short-term deployment of support prior to, during, and/or after an incident.

A geographical area between two or more jurisdictions into which those agencies would respond on initial attack.

Name of the water source.

An incendiary mixture with a jelling agent used in flamethrowers and bombs.

A legal limit on the level of atmospheric contamination. The level is established as the concentration limits needed to protect all of the public against adverse effects on public health and welfare, with an adequate safety margin. Primary standards are those related to health effects. Secondary standards are designed to protect the public welfare from effects such as visibility reduction, soiling, material damage and nuisances. 

The lead organization for developing national EMS policy and oversight, providing vision, leadership and resources for the improvement of state, regional and local EMS and emergency care systems.

The collected technical fire protection standards prepared by various committees of the National Fire Protection Association and published annually in 15 volumes.

The Fire Danger Adjective Class Rating representative of an area that best describes the potential initiation, spread, and difficulty of control during intial response. Fire Danger Adjective Class Rating: A method of normalizing rating classes across different fuel models, indexes, and weather station locations. It is a resultant descriptor of the combination of both constant and variable factors that affect the initiation, spread, and difficulty of control of wildfires on an area.

The Fire Danger Adjective Class Rating representative of an area that best describes the potential initiation, spread, and difficulty of control during intial response. Fire Danger Adjective Class Rating: A method of normalizing rating classes across different fuel models, indexes, and weather station locations. It is a resultant descriptor of the combination of both constant and variable factors that affect the initiation, spread, and difficulty of control of wildfires on an area.

A uniform fire danger rating system that focuses on the environmental factors that control the moisture content of fuels.

A code that corresponds to one of the National Fire Danger Rating System (NFDRS) fuel models representing the predominant fuel bed properties contributing towards fire spread across the fire area.