Forest model lit on fire shows just how important it is to be FireSmart

 

Whitecourt Deputy Fire Chief Wayne Andrusiak wanted to showcase just how important the FireSmart projects are to Whitecourt and surrounding areas, and why treating forests can make all the difference. By showcasing how quickly fire can move in a cluttered forest and how dangerous it would be to fight a fire within that type of environment, he hoped he could really send the message home.

Andrusiak just needed to create the ideal scenario. Enter in a roasting container, paper trees, and a little toy house. “The reason I wanted to do something like this is because I’ve been around wildland fires, and the rate that they spread and the heat that comes off a fire, people really wouldn’t have a good understanding unless they were right there. I think this model is a good illustration of how a wildfire actually spreads.”

When asked what it’s like to be on the ground fighting a fire, Wayne didn’t mince words. “To be frank, it’s very intense and it’s frightening. Firefighters die in the bush every year, not so much in Canada but we lose a lot of wildland firefighters in the States and that’s simply to do with the speed in which a wildfire can spread.”

In the model (pictured) there is a treated area with a little home, and a non-treated area. In the treated area, the trees are spaced out to three metres, the ground has been cleared up and maintained to reduce the chances of a ground fire lighting up more trees, and the trees have also been treated by removing branches under two metres. There is also an ignition-free space around the home. “You can see from the model how much better access there would be for our firefighters and the reduced fuel also reduces the resources we would need to actually fight the fire.”

The non-treated side was made to represent a lot of the forests around Whitecourt prior to their FireSmart treatments. The dryer lint represented the debris on the ground such as broken branches, brush, high grasses, and decaying vegetation while the headless matchsticks represented downed trees. The orange trees played the role of dead trees while the green ones represented ones that are alive.

“If we’re talking about 100 tons of fuel per hectare in an untreated forest and as little as 40 tons per hectare in a treated forest, that’s a lot less fuel in an area to burn.” As soon as Wayne flicked the lighter, fire began to work its way through the model. The fire moved quickly along the ground igniting trees as it moved closer to the treated portion of the pan. Once there, the fire dissipated very quickly showing just how significant the FireSmart efforts are.

“It was very good. I wasn’t sure if the fire would stop at our fire break, but I knew the intensity would be greatly slowed and that buys our people time to save homes and infrastructure. I’m happy with how it turned out.” To see the video of the model being lit up, visit the Whitecourt Press Facebook page.