WILDLAND FIRE SUPPRESSION with Heavy Equipment in Spain · WILDLAND FIRE SUPPRESSION with Heavy...

WILDLAND FIRE SUPPRESSION with Heavy Equipment in Spain

Juan Bautista García EgidoDomingo Molina Terrén

1. Use and integration of heavy equipment in wildland fire suppression in Spain. Historical background

2. Types of machines used in wildland fires in Spain. Heavy equipment teams

3. Suppression Operations in wildland fires in Spain.

4. Efficiency/Performance of lines implementation. Cost

5. Lessons learned from 15 years of wildland fire suppression in Spain

6. Next Challenges (innovation and development)

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Outline

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1. Use and integration of heavy equipment in wildland fire suppression in Spain. Historical background

FOREST MAP OF SPAIN

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1. Use and integration of heavy equipment in wildland fire suppression in Spain. Historical background

-Number of Fires and area affected:

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1. Use and integration of heavy equipment in wildland fire suppression in Spain. Historical background

-Evolution of % of the Large Fires (>500 ha) and Evolution of % of area

affected by Large Fires:

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1. Use and integration of heavy equipment in wildland fire suppression in Spain. Historical background

USA 1940

CANADA (Alberta 1940)

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1. Use and integration of heavy equipment in wildland fire suppression in Spain. Historical background

Indeterminate place, Building terraces 1958

Ciudad Real, AforestationRiofrío Plough1975

FOTOTECA FORESTAL, DGB-INIA

CIUDAD REAL 1980, PumperCat/Caterpillar D7

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1. Use and integration of heavy equipment in wildland fire suppression in Spain. Historical background

Map showing the number of heavy equipment teams by Regions (Size of Icon) Map Credit: Juan José Fernández

TYPES OF FIRE AGENCIES IN SPAIN

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2. Types of machines used in wildland fires in Spain. Heavy equipment teams

Eartmoving machines:

- Dozers (68)- Excavators

Machines to cut and extract products:

- Harvesters and Feller-Bunchers

- Skidder and Forwarders

Machines with tanks:

- Pumpercats

- Skidgines

Other implements and machines:

- Walking excavators/Mulchers/Agricultural tractor with ploughs

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2. Types of machines used in wildland fires in Spain. Heavy equipment teams .

DOZERS/EXCAVATORS

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2. Types of machines used in wildland fires in Spain. Heavy equipment teams

HARVESTERS/FELLEN-BUNCHERS/SKIDDERS

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2. Types of machines used in wildland fires in Spain. Heavy equipment teams

PUMPERCATS

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2. Types of machines used in wildland fires in Spain. Heavy equipment teams

AGRICULTURAL PLOWS OVER TRACK AND WHEELEDTRACTORS. LUCKY MACHINES

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2. Types of machines used in wildland fires in Spain. Heavy equipment teams

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2. Types of machines used in wildland fires in Spain. Heavy equipment teams

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3. Suppression Operations in wildland fires in Spain. Direct attack. Fuel Models: Grass, Shrubs (4,5) and Clear Forest (11)

Ciudad RealCiudad Real

ZamoraToledo

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FUEL MODEL VEGETATION DESCRIPTION Yields km/hr IN

CONTOUR LINE

Yields km/hr IN

DOWNHILL

OPERATIONS

4 Shrubs> 2 m 0,5-1 1,5

5 y 6 Shrubs < 1 m 1,50 2

7 Shrubs de 0,5-2 m in conifers 0,50 1

8 y 9 Forest of conifers 0,50 0,7

10 Forest with debris 0,30 0,5

11 Forest clear 0,40 0,6

12 y 13 Debris predominant 0,70 0,9

Performance of construction of control lines (in Spain) with dozer according Ayala andHolguin (2000) in "La defensa contra incendios forestales. Fundamentos y experiencias".

3. Suppression Operations in wildland fires in Spain. Direct attack. Fuel Models: Grass, Shrubs (4,5) and Clear Forest (11)

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Ciudad Real

3. Suppression Operations in wildland fires in Spain. Direct attack. Fuel Models: Grass, Shrubs (4,5) and Clear Forest (11)

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3. Suppression Operations in wildland fires in Spain. Direct Attack. Fuel Models: Shrubs and Conifers (7) Forest and Debris (8, 9, 10, 12, 13)

ToledoCáceres

Lleida

Cuenca

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Cuenca

Albacete

3. Suppression Operations in wildland fires in Spain. Direct Attack. Fuel Models: Shrubs and Conifers (7) Forest and Debris (8, 9, 10, 12, 13)

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3. Suppression Operations in wildland fires in Spain. Direct Attack.

1º Dozer2º Dozer

Hand toolcrew

Dozer Boss

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3. Suppression Operations in wildland fires in Spain. Direct Attack.

Aerial Resources

2º Dozer

1º Dozer

Aerial support

1º Dozer

2º Dozer

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3. Suppression Operations in wildland fires in Spain. Paralel/Indirect Attack.

Ciudad Real

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3. Suppression Operations in wildland fires in Spain. Paralel/Indirect Attack.

Ciudad Real

Valencia

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3. Suppression Operations in wildland fires in Spain. Control of fire perimeters.

Ciudad Real

Albacete

Ciudad Real

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3. Suppression Operations in wildland fires in Spain. Creating access to other resources.

Albacete

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3. Suppression Operations in wildland fires in Spain. Creating access to other resources.

Albacete

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Firelines restoration

3. Suppression Operations in wildland fires in Spain. Creating access to other resources. Firelines restoration

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Firelines restoration

3. Suppression Operations in wildland fires in Spain. Creating access to other resources. Firelines restoration

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4. Efficiency/Performance of lines implementation

FUEL MODEL VEGETATION DESCRIPTION Yields km/hr IN

CONTOUR LINE

Yields km/hr IN

DOWNHILL

OPERATIONS

4 Shrubs> 2 m 0,5-1 1,5

5 y 6 Shrubs < 1 m 1,50 2

7 Shrubs de 0,5-2 m in conifers 0,50 1

8 y 9 Forest of conifers 0,50 0,7

10 Forest with debris 0,30 0,5

11 Forest clear 0,40 0,6

12 y 13 Debris predominant 0,70 0,9

Performance of construction of control lines (in Spain) with dozer according Ayala andHolguin (2000) in "La defensa contra incendios forestales. Fundamentos y experiencias".

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4. Efficiency/Performance of lines implementation. Costs

The service dozer and lowboy prices, for 10 hours in the presence of the team and 24 hours of on call availability with two full shifts machine operator and lowboy driver range from (Prices of Dozer Service in Castilla-La Mancha (Spain) for 2012):

- Dozer type 1> 200 hp: The hourly cost of the dozer and lowboy is about 87.2 €/hour.

- Dozer type 2 <200 hp: The hourly cost of the dozer and lowboy is about 72.1 €/hour.

The price of the extra hour in suppression tasks for dozer type 1> 200 HP: 75 €/hour + VAT (Tax) = 90.75 €/hour.

(1 Euro=$1.11 USD or $1.44C CAD).

Most Technical Conditions of the Heavy Equipment in different Regions in Spain also has a portion of work by hours, hectares or linear meters, to review firebreaks or improvement of roads.

Dozer production rate in Spain, determined by Ayala and Holguin (2000), can be determined operational costs, applying the price extra hour of 90.75 €/hour (track-type tractor Type 1). Therefore these operational costs would range between 30 €/km-303 €/km.

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Actions to ensure the intrinsic safety of the heavy equipment used in suppression wildland fires

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5. Lessons learned from 15 years of wildland fire suppression in Spain

- Heavy Equipment Sets (HES) are highly adapted to the forest environment and to wildlandfires. They have an excellent great grip and stability on steep slopes (<75 %), slippery surfaces and rough land. They have greater maneuverability than other resources.

- HES are able to handle direct attacks on high intensity (>2,5 m) fireline wildland fires.

- HES are used to implement emergency road access.

- HES are used to save time and hours of manual work in fire line control; therefore, unloading work to be allocated to other tasks.

- HES perform fire line control faster and in a less expensive manner.

- HES eliminate part of safety iusses by reducing the number of people in your work area.

- HES allow safer night time line building operations, especially where dead trees or branches(widow-makers) exist.

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5. Lessons learned from 15 years of wildland fire suppression in Spain

- In Spain, it is necessary to establish a training program for dozer boss, machine operators, and lowboy drivers to standardize and rank their capabilities (as regulated the Regional Fire Agencies) so they can fit into a system like the Incident Command System (ICS).

- In order to successfully introduction the HES and be truly effective it is also necessary to train middle managers and command officers in the equipment characteristics, types, potential utilities and integration within suppression operations.

- The integration of the figure of Strike Team Heavy Equipment in the Incident Command System of the Regional Governments is necessary.- Investigation of accidents (and near-hits) involving heavy equipment is needed in order to establish the causes and resulting conclusions.

- Is necessary to carry out the firelines restoration after the wildland fires.

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HES in Spain need the figure of Stike TeamHeavy Equipment

5. Lessons learned from 15 years of wildland fire suppression in Spain

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HES in Spain need the figure of Strike Team Heavy Equipment

Guadalajara

5. Lessons learned from 15 years of wildland fire suppression in Spain

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LESSONS LEARNED. ACCIDENTS AND INCIDENTS (Guadalajara). 2012

5. Lessons learned from 15 years of wildland fire suppression in Spain

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LESSONS LEARNED. ACCIDENTS AND INCIDENTS (Ciudad Real). 2009

5. Lessons learned from 15 years of wildland fire suppression in Spain

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LESSONS LEARNED. ACCIDENTS AND INCIDENTS. (Zamora) 2002

5. Lessons learned from 15 years of wildland fire suppression in Spain

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6. Future challenges (innovation and development)

Community Fire Shelter (Development by Safety Zone a Spanish Company)

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6. Future challenges (innovation and development)

Development tools such as water tanks approved for dozers and forwarders with CE labeling

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6. Future challenges (innovation and development)

Remote Control

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6. Future challenges (innovation and development)

Simulated virtual environments

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6. Future challenges (innovation and development)

Other types of incidents

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Summary

1. Dozers and used in Spain in fire suppression.

2. More use, more training, and more efficiency is expected in the new future.

3. We use both “direct” and “parallel attack” (along with technical fire). Indirect attack and securing the control line (latter action) too.

4. Challenges

5. Training in dozer use at all levels, from drivers to fire chiefs. And in masterFUEGO (a M. Sc. program)

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THANKS FOR YOUR ATTENTION

Juan Bautista García

jbgarcia@geacam.com

WILDLAND FIRE SUPPRESSION with Heavy Equipment in Spain

Juan Bautista García EgidoDomingo Molina Terrén