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Earthquake: 3.2 M - Bombay Beach, CA Posted: 24 Mar 2009 05:15 PM PDT Bombay Beach Earthquake Swarm continues... Earthquake Details Magnitude 3.2 Date-Time Tuesday, March 24, 2009 at 23:43:15 UTC Tuesday, March 24, 2009 at 04:43:15 PM at epicenter Location 33.311°N, 115.751°W Depth 5.9 km (3.7 miles) Region SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA Distances 5 km (3 miles) SSW (204°) from Bombay Beach, CA 19 km (12 miles) E (86°) from Salton City, CA 19 km (12 miles) NW (326°) from Obsidian Butte, CA 23 km (15 miles) WNW (290°) from Niland, CA 61 km (38 miles) NNW (343°) from El Centro, CA 143 km (89 miles) ENE (65°) from San Diego, CA Location Uncertainty horizontal +/- 0.3 km (0.2 miles); depth +/- 0.9 km (0.6 miles) Parameters Nph=099, Dmin=5 km, Rmss=0.4 sec, Gp= 58°, M-type=local magnitude (ML), Version=C Source California Integrated Seismic Net: USGS Caltech CGS UCB UCSD UNR Event ID ci14434264

SMFD: State Guard transferring Huey to Metro Fire Posted: 24 Mar 2009 05:14 PM PDT State Guard giving helicopter to Metro Fire From: Sandy Loue: The California Army National Guard will be transferring a UH-1 Huey helicopter over to the Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District for use as a training craft. The transfer from the 812th Medical Detachment is scheduled to take place Wednesday at Sac Metro's air operations branch at McClellan Park, according to a news release from Sac Metro. The helicopter was built in 1970. Captain Christian Pebbles, spokesman for Metro Fire, said the department currently has one helicopter. The added second helicopter will be used for training. Sac Metro had applied for and was granted the surplus helicopter at no cost to the department. That was done with help from the California Office of Emergency Management and federal authorities, officials said. The fire agency serves approximately 600,000 people in parts of Sacramento County, Placer County and the city of Citrus Heights. Source: Sacbee - Link

Morro Bay State Park: Prescribed burns planned Posted: 24 Mar 2009 02:23 PM PDT When: Planned burns and Pile burns are planned over the next month. Where: The material to be burned is cut and piled in the Black Hill area and park boundary areas near La Loma, Kings and Carmel streets and Lower State Park Road. Why: California State Parks says the burn will reduce dead and downed diseased trees and enhance the health of the native plant communities. Who: The burns will be conducted by State Park staff, Cal Fire, and City of Morro Bay Fire Department staff. Smoke: Heavy smoke will be produced at times under permit conditions from the San Luis Obispo County Air Pollution District.

2009 Interagency Wildfire Safety Officers Conference Agenda Posted: 24 Mar 2009 02:48 PM PDT 2009 Interagency Wildfire Safety Officers Conference Agenda SAFETY OFFICERS CONFERENCE San Diego, California April 14-16, 2009 Hotel Info http://www.halfmooninn.com Registration: http://www.fs.fed.us/r5/fire/management/safety_conference/reg.php FINAL DRAFT AGENDA Ver. 03/05/09 Day 1 Time Topic Speaker Facilitator Christie Neill, Chair NPS April 14 Tuesday 0800-0900 Registration 0900-0910 START - Opening Introductions, Logistics/Bin Items Christie Neill, Cadre 0910-0930 Welcome Sue Husari, Regional Fire Director NPS 0930-1030 Engine 96 Burn-over Corral Fire Tony Duran, Los Angeles County Fire Department 1030-1045 Break 1045- 1145 Human Factors Brad Mayhew 1145 - 1300 Lunch Facilitator Bill Bondshu, CAL EMA 1300-1400 Leave Early or Stay & Defend LEOSTAD Kevin Nester, Ventura Co 1400 -1445 Insurance Hazard Mitigation Pretreatment Operations Scott Alvord / Jess Wills, Firestorm 1445-1500 Break 1500 -1545 High Reliability Organizing David Allen, NPS 1600-1630 Chino Valley WT Rollover Kirk Summers, Chino Valley Fire 1700-1900 ** MIXER – POOLSIDE ** DAY 2 April 15 Wednesday Facilitator Dave Teter, CAL FIRE 0800-0900 What you need to know about Liability Insurance Peter Soterquist, FEDS 0900-1015 Panel – 2008 CA Fire Siege CALMAC Safety Perspective State & Federal Incident Perspective Sue Husari, NPS Kim Zagaris, CAL EMA Peter Tolosano, FS Dave Teter, CAL FIRE 1015-1030 Break 1030-1100 Poison Oak Education Steve Sisler, Zanfel 1100 -1145 Indicators of Extreme Fire Behavior. What SOFs should you be looking for? Sue Husari, NPS 1145-1300 Lunch Facilitator Ken Hood, BLM 1300-1400 ALT - Smoke Related Injuries Mary Valence, Los Angeles County 1400 -1445 Natural Occurring Asbestos Dennis Geyser FS 1445-1500 Break 1500-1530 EMT Standards - Health and Safety Working Team – Update Gene Madden, FS NIMO 1530-1600 Fire Line Medic/EMT's – Fire Scope Proposal Brian Bulger, Ventura Co 1600-1645 Large Air Tanker Safety Tom Humann, CAL FIRE 1645-1700 Bin Item - 5 Minute Presentations DAY 3 April 16, Thursday Facilitator Jessica Wade, FWS Hawaiian Attire 0800-0900 Iron Fire SHF- Iron 44 Helicopter Crash – Incident within Incident Joe Molhoek, NPS 0915-1000 Critical Incident Stress Mgt Mark Jones, BLM 1000-1015 Break 1015-1100 AT & SEAT Accidents – Colorado & Minden Joe Bates / Mark Bickham BLM 1130-1300 Lunch Facilitator Peter Tolosano, FS 1300-1345 Heat Related Issues & Education Vaughn Miller, Ventura Co 1345-1445 Dutch Creek Incident – SHF - Palmer Fatality Michelle Rueugebrink, FS 1445-1500 Break 1515-1630 Seven Oaks – TCU Engine Entrapment, Fire Shelter Issues Tom Folley, CAL FIRE 1630 Close out Christie Neill & Cadre Conference Overview The 2009 California Interagency Wildfire Safety Officers Conference will be held at Humphrey's Half Moon Inn and Suites, San Diego, California, April 14th - April 16th. On-site check in will begin Tuesday, April 14th at 0800. The conference will begin promptly at 0900 and will end at 1700 on Thursday, April 16th. This year's agenda will include presentations on many interesting subjects. The conference is not organization specific; all agencies, departments and organizations with safety responsibilities at wildfires are encouraged to participate. Incident Command Team Safety Officers, ICS qualified Safety Officers, Logistics Section personnel, and Incident Commanders are specifically invited. Conference attendance is limited to 145 registrants on a first-come first-served basis. There are no tuition fees, lodging and travel costs must be paid by the attendee or his/her sponsoring agency. Lodging Information A block of rooms have been reserved, honoring both the State and Federal Per Diem rates, at Humphrey's Half Moon Inn and Suites. Specify that you are with the 2009 Interagency Wildfire Safety Officers Conference with the group identification code of Forest041109. If you choose to make lodging reservations on-line be sure to select the Group Reservation tab. Hotel Registration Deadline Date: March 15, 2009, in order to receive the conference rates. Humphrey's Half Moon Inn and Suites 2303 Shelter Island Drive, San Diego, California (800) 542-7400 http://halfmooninn.net For additional information please contact: Christie Neill christie_neill@nps.gov 530 621-5263 or Peter Tolosano ptolosano@fs.fed.us 916-640-1050 Source: www.fs.fed.us/r5 - Link

CAL FIRE: 2009 aviation safety conference canceled Posted: 24 Mar 2009 02:04 PM PDT WITH BUDGET WOES DOES SAFETY GO OUT THE WINDOW? 2009 aviation safety conference canceled No money to burn: CAL-FIRE 2009 aviation safety conference nixed Source: Sacbee -Link In the aftermath of the the worst wildfire season in California in decades, the California Department of Forestry and Fire has been forced to pull the plug on a popular annual event for its statewide aviation firefighting team. The 2009 aviation safety conference - held each spring before things heat up on the wildfire fighting front - has been canceled because there's no budget to pay for it, according to Tom Humann, the chief aviation safety officer at Cal-Fire. Humann announced the news in a private e-mail he sent to air base battalion chiefs and staff at the department's airplane and helicopter operations statewide in late January. "Despite the efforts of our chief officers to make this important event possible, there is simply no funding available," Humann wrote in the email, which was obtained by The State Worker under the Public Records Act. "I am fully aware there is no substitute for the group dynamic of our conference," Humann added. "Further it means the loss of valuable presentations from subject matter experts from outside CAL-FIRE." Humann promised he would work with chiefs in the field to develop "alternate means of getting the information out and soliciting feedback on safety issues." Janet Upton, a CAL-FIRE spokeswoman, confirmed the air safety conference has been axed due to the state budget deficit. Other conferences have been nixed, too, she said. . Upton said Humann has continued to gather safety information while attending safety gatherings. He's disseminating the information he picks up to others in the aviation team. "So, instead of having 70 people travel, he's hitting the road," Upton explained Tuesday, noting that Humann is making site visits and doing smaller group discussions to ensure that safety remains a top priority. Source: Sacbee -Link

Bombay Beach earthquake and "The Big One" in So Cal Posted: 24 Mar 2009 02:51 PM PDT From a story released yesterday before this mornings 4.8 Magnitude Earthquake in Southern California. "Scientists are watching closely to see if small faults crossing under California's Salton Sea are transferring energy to the larger, more dangerous San Andreas fault after a series of small earthquake swarms in the area." - Source: www.chron.com - Link "Scientists are particularly interested in the area because an earthquake that starts in Bombay Beach and ripples northwest along the San Andreas fault could be "The Big One" that levels Los Angeles" - Source: www.chron.com - Link Early this morning a magnitude 4.8 quake struck at 4:55 a.m. at a depth of about 3.5 miles on the eastern shore of the Salton Sea, about 2 miles from the town of Bombay Beach after this story was posted at the Chron and numerous aftershocks have occurred. The main quake was followed by at least 50 smaller aftershocks and many of these are relatively shallow-Bombay Beach earthquake Map 4.8 2009/03/24 11:55:43 33.318-115.728 5.8 4 km ( 2 mi) S of Bombay Beach, CA Early seismic warning?: "Scientists are watching the increased earthquake activity because it is near a section of the San Andreas Fault that has not popped loose in over 300 years." "Scientists are particularly interested in the area because an earthquake that starts in Bombay Beach and ripples northwest along the San Andreas fault could be "The Big One" that levels Los Angeles", said Graham Kent, a research geophysicist at the University of California, San Diego. These quakes appear to be taking place at the hazy intersection of several recently mapped faults crossing beneath the Salton Sea and the southern end of the San Andreas fault. The worry for scientists comes from a case in 1987, when a magnitude-6.2 earthquake on one of the crossing faults appeared to trigger a 6.6 quake 12 hours later on the Superstition Hills fault to the south. "The San Andreas fault is north of these crossing faults and the geometry is similar", Kent said.

Philadelphia: Fire Officer of the Year and Arsonist Posted: 24 Mar 2009 09:03 AM PDT Philadelphia arson attacks: Arson arrests so far include a rejected wannabe fireman, a volunteer firefighter and now a paid Fire officer who was lauded as Officer of the Year in 2004. Police arrested 37-year-old Robert Tracey Jr., a captain in the Coatesville Fire Department. Tracey, 37, was identified by witnesses who saw him running from the scene of Friday's fires, which were set a few blocks apart and didn't cause any injuries or significant damage, Carroll said. He was jailed in lieu of $2 million bail. Tracey, a Coatesville firefighter lauded as Officer of the Year in 2004, and quoted in recent news accounts about the arsons plaguing the city, was charged yesterday with setting two new fires, Which brought the number of 2009 arsons in Coatesville to 22. Tracey, of Charles Street in Coatesville, is accused of setting the fires Friday night in the city's West End - blocks from where he lives with his wife and five children. Fire Captain Robert F. Tracey Jr., who was promoted to a paid Captain position in the West End Fire Company last month, was place under arrest at the fire station on his 37th birthday. Tracey was the Seventh suspected arsonist arrested in this string of arson fires plaguing Coatesville, Philadelphia. Mr. Tracey had been involved with the West End Fire Company for nearly 25 years and has held several positions within the Company. Most recently, Mr. Tracey held the position of Assistant Fire Chief, but resigned from that position in February of this year to become a career firefighter with the City of Coatesville Fire Department. The former Assistant Fire Chief and once Captain of volunteers at Coatesville's West End Fire Company, Tracey was hired by Coatesville last month as a paid part-time firefighter. "We put a lot of confidence in him moving up the ranks," City Council member Kareem Johnson said. "This is a very big disappointment." Some of Tracey's neighbors shook their heads in disbelief at the news. Others said they had been suspicious of him for some time. Neighbors said Tracey was the grandson of Edward Tracey, who received an award in October 2004 for 67 years of membership in the Coatesville Fire Bureau. The fires Tracey is accused of lighting occurred a little before midnight in the 100 block of Hope Avenue and the 600 block of Madison Street. A lawn chair and a trash can were set ablaze., which caused no injuries or damage to homes. At a news conference last night, Chester County District Attorney Joseph W. Carroll said Tracey was being held at Chester County Prison, with bail set at $2 million. "I would love to say that this is the end," said Carroll, "but it is not." Tracey is the seventh arson suspect taken into custody. One of the others is a volunteer firefighter, and a third wanted to be a firefighter but was rejected referring to arson suspects Roger L. Barlow and Mark Gilliam, who were arrested Feb. 19. A firestorm of arson attacks: The Friday blazes bring to 22 the number of arson's in the city this year. They came a week after a fire badly damaged two homes. There have been at least 48 arson's in Coatesville since February 2008 and at least 18 others in nearby communities. A teenager accused of setting nine of the fires led investigators to several of the scenes and confessed in a police interview, law enforcement officials testified this month. Roger Leon Barlow Jr., 19, was held for trial after a preliminary hearing on arson and aggravated assault charges in connection with blazes that broke out in Coatesville between Jan. 2 and Feb. 3. The arsons included a massive fire that severely damaged 15 row houses. Damage in that fire alone is estimated at $1.2 million. A trial date has not been set. On cross-examination of several witnesses, defense attorney Terrence J. Marlowe pointed out that no one had seen his client set the fires and that no physical evidence pointing to him had been found. Coatesville/West End Fire Company Official Release on Arrest By Assistant Chief Robert Pacana - March 23, 2009 For Immediate Release -- On the evening of Monday, March 23, 2009, the officers of the West End Fire Company No. 3 were informed that one of its members, Robert Tracey Jr., had been arrested and charged with 2 counts of arson. Mr. Tracey had been involved with the Company for nearly 25 years and has held several positions within the Company. Most recently, Mr. Tracey held the position of Assistant Fire Chief, but resigned from that position in February of this year to become a career firefighter with the City of Coatesville Fire Department. No words are sufficient at conveying the anger, frustration and disappointment that the officers and members of the West End Fire Company feel regarding these allegations. Should Mr. Tracey be found guilty of these charges in a court of law, he will have betrayed not only the trust of Company, but also the sacred trust of the community that he served. These allegations that a firefighter may have been involved in one or more of the recent arsons that have plagued the City of Coatesville should not overshadow the hard work and dedication of the countless men and woman who risk their lives on a regular basis to ensure the safety of the community. The West End Fire Company is committed to work collaboratively with law enforcement regarding this ongoing investigation. Mr. Tracey has been suspended from the Company indefinitely pending the outcome of the case. The leadership of the West End Fire Company will provide more information as it becomes available. More sources: http://www.coatesvillefire.org - Link http://www.philly.com - Link http://www.wgal.com - Link http://www.google.com/ap - Link http://www.philly.com - link Related news: Long Island firebug firefighter kills four in Arson/Murder- Link

Earthquake 3.1 M - Southern California, Obsidian Butte, CA Posted: 24 Mar 2009 07:01 AM PDT Earthquake Details Magnitude 3.1 Date-Time Tuesday, March 24, 2009 at 13:52:51 UTC Tuesday, March 24, 2009 at 06:52:51 AM at epicenter Location 33.315°N, 115.742°W Depth 4 km (2.5 miles) Region SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA Distances 4 km (3 miles) SSW (197°) from Bombay Beach, CA 19 km (12 miles) NNW (329°) from Obsidian Butte, CA 20 km (13 miles) E (85°) from Salton City, CA 23 km (14 miles) WNW (292°) from Niland, CA 61 km (38 miles) NNW (344°) from El Centro, CA 144 km (89 miles) ENE (65°) from San Diego, CA Location Uncertainty horizontal +/- 0.3 km (0.2 miles); depth +/- 0.8 km (0.5 miles) Parameters Nph=093, Dmin=4 km, Rmss=0.32 sec, Gp= 32°, M-type=local magnitude (ML), Version=2 Source California Integrated Seismic Net: USGS Caltech CGS UCB UCSD UNR Event ID ci14433696

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