NWCG Glossary of Wildland Fire (PMS 205)

A point in time during a 24-hour Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) day.

Recording all time presented by others. Personnel time recorders record time from the Crew Time Report, SF-261, to the Incident Time Report, OF-288. Equipment time recorders record time from the Emergency Equipment Shift Ticket, OF-297, to the Emergency Equipment Use Invoice, OF-286.

Functional unit within the Finance/Administration Section responsible for recording personnel time and managing the commissary.

Graph showing the increase in temperature at a specified point in a fire as a function of time, beginning with ignition and ending with burnout.

Tracking on-shift time of incident resources. Timekeeping is accomplished on the Crew Time Report, SF-261, or the Emergency Equipment Shift Ticket, OF-297.

Time needed under specified conditions for a fuel particle to lose about 63 percent of the difference between its initial moisture content and its equilibrium moisture content. If conditions remain unchanged, a fuel will reach 95 percent of its equilibrium moisture content after 4 timelag periods. 

The dead fuel moisture content corresponding to the various timelag fuel classes.

Burnable organic material (duff, peat, rotten wood, etc.) with a high surface to volume ratio.

Nozzle tips used to change orifice size of a hose stream.

A map that shows the positions of features, and also represents their vertical position in a measurable form.

Ignition and subsequent envelopment in flames, usually from bottom to top, of a tree or small group of trees.

A professional firesetter-for-hire.

To set fire to property deliberately and maliciously.

The burning of the foliage of a single tree or a small group of trees, from the bottom up.

All plant material both living and dead that can burn in a worst case situation.

The capability to move, position, and utilize established forces to meet existing and anticipated fire protection needs nationwide.

Sum of lightning and human-caused risk values.

Particles emitted from a pollution source regardless of size. Federal and state ambient and emission standards exist for TSP.

That portion of a heliport or helispot where the helicopter lands.

The hours of a day (a daily tour-of-duty) and the days of an administrative workweek (a weekly tour-of-duty) that constitutes an employee's regularly scheduled administrative workweek.

An area of land divided by township lines and range lines which is approximately 36 miles square. Each township is divided into 36 parts, each approximately one mile square, called sections. Township lines, which are 6 miles apart, run east and west parallel to the Base Line (and also parallel to lines of latitude).

Relating to a harmful effect by a poisonous substance on the human body by physical contact, ingestion, or inhalation.

A chemical or mixture that may present an unreasonable risk of injury to health or the environment.

Replacement of railroad tracks or ties. Can be done with hand crews or a track renewal train.

A rubber tired or tracked rider-controlled automotive vehicle, used in wildland fire management for pulling a disk or a plow to construct fireline by exposing mineral soil.

A steel tracked vehicle with or without a front mounted blade equipped with a plow for exposing mineral soil. Sometimes a tractor plow with a front mounted blade is referred to as a dozer plow.

Traffic flow that is prescribed for aircraft landing at, taxiing on, and taking off from, an airport. Usual components of a traffic pattern are upwind leg, crosswind leg, downwind leg, base leg, and final approach.

An unbroken line of retardant used for constructing a retardant line.

Combustible material, such as rolled rag, blankets and newspapers, or flammable liquid, used to spread fire from one area to others; usually used in conjunction with an incendiary device.

An individual who has met all required training and position experience for a specified position and is approved by their home unit's certifying official, to initiate a performance based training assignment in order to become qualified in the position.

A position-qualified individual who provides instruction to a trainee in the classroom, on-the-job, or on an incident. While many of the requirements of the trainer/coach are similar to the evaluator, it is important that the roles of training and evaluation remain separate. 

A scheduled activity that provides instruction to make attendees fit, qualified, or proficient in a particular area. This is a planned event.

An organizational unit limited to a training center that coordinates the delivery of national or geographic area/regional training.

The ICS management process in which the on-scene incident commander at a specified time hands off command responsibilities to the incident commander that will be taking over incident command.

An electrical device for changing the voltage of alternating current.

Soneone who lacks stable or permanent housing and frequently moves from place to place. Can include illigal immigrants.

In the 1978 version of NFDRS, the herbaceous stage when herbaceous fuel moisture is between 120% and 30%.

Area of change between advancing, lateral, and backing vectors.

Lift that is gained when a helicopter translates from a hover into forward flight; additional lift increases with increasing airspeed and is derived by the rotor system moving into undisturbed air.

A measure of the average rate of the horizontal transport of air within the Mixing Layer. May also be the wind speed at the final height of plume rise. Generally refers to the rate at which emissions will be transported from one area to another.

Base map of the planning unit showing all roads, trails, heliports, and airfields existing and programmed for construction.

Compensable time en route to or from an emergency incident.

Map showing the time required for the initial attack crew to reach various parts of a protection unit from specified positions.

Acreage of treatment polygon as calculated with GIS

Describes major class of treatment.

Unique identifier for fuels treatment polygon(s).