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Show BLM Fire Crews Prepare For Future Fire Seasons Preparing for the protection of homes is the focus for BLM fire crews as they complete two fuel reduction projects during October - National Fire Prevention Month. In an effort to lower fire intensity and increase firefighter and public safety, BLM fire fighters and fuel crews are working to create defense zones around southern Utah communities. Wildland-urban interface problems, where homes are built adjacent to the wildlands, occur all over the West. This past summer, sum-mer, approximately 2,875 struc-(See struc-(See FIRE on page 5A) Fire From Page 4A tures were lost due to wildfire, and evacuation procedures forced landowners from their homes in southern Utah. Fortunately, no homes were lost during the Big Wash and Eagle Fires as flames burned adjacent to structures, but communities watched closely as the Sequoia and Big Wash fires burned, in ' case more evacuations and protective pro-tective measures were needed. In order to reduce the threat of catastrophic fire two fuel reduction projects were completed com-pleted near the Cedar Highland Subdivision and New Harmony, Utah, during October. The Cedar Highland project is a shaded fuel break created on the north and west sides of the subdivision, near the "C." The (See FIRE on page 7A) Fire From Page 5A New Harmony (Ash Creek) project is a fuel break that was created south of Mountain Springs and Harmony View Subdivisions and east of New Harmony. The debris left from the vegetation removal will be burned during the winter. These fuel breaks will not stop a fire's progression by itself, but should reduce the ; intensity of the fire behavior to a level that fire fighters should be able to suppress it before it moves into the communities. Crews have already began working in Wide Draw north of Paragonah, part of the Parowan Front project. Over the next sev- : eral years, approximately 2,500 acres will have tree removal done in areas from North of Kanarraville to Utah Highway 20. This project is being implemented imple-mented in cooperation with the . Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation, Sportsmen for Fish and Wildlife, the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, and Bureau of Land Management, and will also benefit southern --Utah's --Utah's deer herds. For further information about these projects please visit www.ut.blm.govccifc under the Wildland Urban Interface but- ton. Homeowners can also gain information to help them lower the risk of a wildfire destroying . their home at www.firewise.org or www.ut.blm.govccifchome- ' safety.htm |
