White River & Irving Peak Fires

August 15, 2022 Daily Update - 8:00AM

White River Fire
Acres: 516 | Contained: 0% Cause: Lightning Location: Sears Creek area of the White River drainage, approximately 14 miles northwest of Plain, WA 

Irving Peak Fire
Acres: 160 | Contained: 0% Cause: Lightning Location: Approximately 16 miles northwest of Plain, WA.

Highlights: Lightning storms that passed over the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest this past week ignited several wildfires in the Wenatchee River Ranger District. Smoke from the fires is highly visible in the Lake Wenatchee area, and recreationists are advised to stay away from the Little Wenatchee and White River Roads where these fires are burning. Aviation resources are utilizing and scooping from Lake Wenatchee; we ask water recreationists to please clear the area and stay away from these aircraft as they work.

Operations: Yesterday, moderate fire activity occurred as additional resources arrived to support firefighting efforts. Aviation efforts were put on hold in the morning due to poor visibility and smoke conditions. Crews on the White River Fire continue to assess and prepare structure protection along Sears Creek Road (FS 6404) and White River Road. Dozers will be working on spur roads off the FS 6404 Road to open and improve access to the fire area. Two aircraft are currently assigned to the incident while other initial attack aircraft are assisting; fire managers continue to gain intel from these resources to assess safe containment options as they coordinate with local, county, and state personnel. Today, Irving peak fire gained more resources; it is staffed with multiple engines, hand crews, and heavy equipment. Crews focus on scouting potential control lines and begin structure protection along Little Wenatchee Road (FS Road 6500). A Type 2 Incident Management Team has been ordered to manage the White River and Irving Peak Fires. 

Evacuations: Chelan County has issued a Level 3 evacuation (Go Now) for Sears Creek Road, White River Road is at a Level 2 (Be Prepared), and Little Wenatchee Road is at a Level 1 (Stay Alert). Emergency personnel are in the process of advising residents in the area. Residents of five homes were evacuated from the Sears Creek Area. For an interactive evacuation map of Chelan County, please visit https://tinyurl.com/whiteriverevacuationmap. To sign up for the Chelan County emergency alert system, please visit https://public.alertsense.com/signup/?regionid=1184.

Weather: A high-pressure system continues to build, resulting in hotter and drier conditions throughout the week. Temperatures today will be warming to around 82 degrees with northwest winds from 5-10 mph and gusts up to 20 mph in the afternoon.

Closures: An area closure is pending. It is recommended that the public avoid recreating in the Little Wenatchee and White River Road (FS Roads 6500 and 6400) areas. The Pacific Crest Trail is not affected by this fire.  

Restrictions: Campfires are not currently allowed anywhere within the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest. Stage 2 Restrictions are now in effect for the entire forest, including campgrounds and wilderness areas.Smoke: Current smoke forecast outlooks are available at https://wasmoke.blogspot.com.

Fire Information: Office Hours: 8:00 AM – 7:00 PM | Phone: 509-676-6558 | Online: https://inciweb.nwcg.gov/incident/8329/ | https://www.facebook.com/OkaWenNF 

White River & Irving Peak Fires August 14, 2022 Daily Update – 8:00 AM
 
White River Fire: Acres: 341 | Contained: 0% Cause: Lightning Location: Sears Creek area of the White River drainage, approximately 14 miles northwest of Plain, WA.  
Irving Peak Fire: Acres: 143 | Contained: 0% Cause: Lightning Location: Approximately 16 miles northwest of Plain, WA.
 
Highlights: Lightning storms that passed over the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest this past week ignited several wildfires in the Wenatchee River Ranger District. Smoke from the fires is highly visible in the Lake Wenatchee area, and recreationists are advised to stay away from the Little Wenatchee and White River Roads where these fires are burning. Aviation resources are utilizing and scooping from Lake Wenatchee; we ask water recreationists to please clear the area and stay away from these aircraft as they work.

Operations: Yesterday, windy conditions increased fire activity, prompting evacuation level increases for the White River Fire on Sears Creek Road (FS Road 6404). A Type 3 Incident Management Team assumed command of the White River and Irving Peak Fires yesterday, August 13, 2022, at 6:00 A.M. The Irving Peak and White River Fires are approximately 4 miles apart but are being managed by the same team. On the White River Fire, crews are implementing contain, confine, and control strategies to stop fire progression to the east of the 6404 road and to the south of the Little Wenatchee River Road. This strategy means firefighters will use a combination of natural features and constructed fire lines to actively contain this wildfire. Firefighters are working on structure protection for properties along road 6404. Aviation resources are assigned to the incident, and fire managers actively utilize their intel to assess safe containment options as they coordinate with local, county, and state personnel. On the Irving Fire today, crews will be working to scout potential control lines and will begin structure protection along the Little Wenatchee Road (FS Road 6500).

Evacuations: Chelan County has issued a Level 3 evacuation (Go Now) for Sears Creek Road, White River Road is at a Level 2 (Be Prepared), and Little Wenatchee Road is at a Level 1 (Stay Alert). Emergency personnel are in the process of advising residents in the area. Five homes were evacuated from the Sears Creek Area. For an interactive evacuation map of Chelan County, please visit https://tinyurl.com/whiteriverevacuationmap. To sign up for the Chelan County emergency alert system, please visit https://public.alertsense.com/signup/?regionid=1184.

Weather: Temperatures today will be around 77 degrees with west winds of 4 to 8 mph. A drying and warming trend will begin today, with winds expected to become lighter and temperatures warming into early next week.

Closures: An area closure is pending. It is recommended that the public avoid recreating in the Little Wenatchee and White River Road (FS Roads 6500 and 6400) areas. The Pacific Crest Trail is not affected by this fire.  

Restrictions: Campfires are not currently allowed anywhere within the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest. Stage 2 Restrictions are now in effect for the entire forest, including campgrounds and wilderness areas.

Smoke: Current smoke forecast outlooks are available at www.wasmoke.blogspot.com.

 Fire Information: Office Hours: 8:00 AM – 7:00 PM | Phone: 509-676-6558 | https://www.facebook.com/OkaWenNF 

Chelan County has issued a Level 3 evacuation (Go Now) for Sears Creek Road, White River Road is at a Level 2 (Be Prepared), and Little Wenatchee Road is at a Level 1 (Stay Alert). Emergency personnel are in the process of advising residents in the area. For an interactive evacuation map of Chelan County, please visit: https://tinyurl.com/whiteriverevacuationmap To sign up for the Chelan County emergency alert system, please visit https://public.alertsense.com/signup/?regionid=1184

The fire is 100% contained. Personnel are no longer on scene.

The Yellow Brick Fire, caused by a lightning strike on August 11, 2022, is located just outside the city of Graford, in Palo Pinto County. The fire remains at 109 acres and it is 75% contained.

Weather: Warm and dry conditions can be expected through this afternoon with light east winds and temperatures near 100 degrees. Minimum afternoon humidity will drop to around 30%. Winds will become more southerly overnight with humidity recovery to around 70%. 

Today, fifty firefighters are returning to the fire area this morning to continue mop up operations and to monitor the perimeter for hot spots. 

The Yellow Brick Fire personnel are conducting more burnout operations this afternoon. There are no changes in acreage or containment.  
 
 

Post-Fire Effects Understanding Soil Burn Severity

BAER Burned Area Emergency Response Information Brief

We tend to think of wildfire burn severity in terms of the visual impacts to above-ground vegetation, but the post-fire landscape response (erosion, flooding, and mass movement) is generally more strongly correlated to soil burn severity. When characterizing soil burn severity, looking at the vegetation is a good starting place to understand the conditions on the ground. Armed with that information, the BAER team’s watershed specialists (soil scientists, hydrologists, and geologists) ground-truth different vegetation burn intensities to tease out patterns of how fire affected and changed the properties of the soil.  Pre-fire ground cover, forest type, fire behavior, slope, aspect, and other factors all influence soil burn severity.  After field observations are collected, specialists adjust the vegetation severity map to create the soil burn severity (SBS) map.  The SBS is broken into four different classes: unburned (green), low severity (blue), moderate severity (yellow), and high severity (red).

So, what do these different classifications mean?

LOW severity areas generally have intact and recognizable litter layers (organic material on the forest floor, such as pine needles and twigs).  These litter layers may be charred, but are not consumed.  Underlying topsoil is intact and near-surface fine roots are unburned.  These soils have enough cover to protect them from erosion during rain events because their natural porosity and structure allow rain to soak into the soil instead of running off, while fine roots provide stability.  In low severity areas, burns may have been patchy—islands of green vegetation and intact canopies may be present. 

MODERATE severity areas generally have more—up to 80% of their pre-fire surface litter layers consumed by fire.  Black or gray ash may be present on the soil surface. Fine roots near the surface may be scorched and killed.  Topsoil layers are generally intact with minimal impacts to the soil’s ability to absorb moisture. Soils with moderate severity are more susceptible to erosion in post-fire rain events because they have lost protective surface cover and may have less surface stability because of root mortality.

HIGH severity areas generally have had all their pre-fire surface litter layers consumed by fire. White or gray ash may be present on the soil surface. Fine roots are often fully burned/consumed within several inches of the soil surface, and even large tree roots may have burned deep into the soil.  Soil may be powdery or grainy and loose, unable to bind together and retain water. These soils are very susceptible to erosion and often have high surface run-off during rainstorms.

So, what does the BAER team do with the SBS map?

The BAER team uses the SBS map to make predictions about how the landscape will respond after fires. Soil scientists consider where soil productivity will be degraded due to erosion losses and where sediment may move into stream channels. Hydrologists use the SBS to predict watershed response—surface runoff from high SBS areas in rainstorms can produce more “flashy” behavior in stream systems.  Geologists use the SBS to inform predictions for debris flow or other mass movement potential based on reduced soil stability in steep drainages.

BAER teams focus on emergency responses to stabilize burned areas that may impact federal lands critical infrastructure or other values located within or immediately downstream of moderate and high soil burn severity areas.

Burned Area Emergency Response (BAER) Limitations

While many wildfires cause minimal damage to the land and pose few threats to the land or people downstream, some fires result in damage that requires special efforts to reduce impacts afterwards. Loss of vegetation exposes soil to erosion; water run-off may increase and cause flooding, soil and rock may move downstream and damage property or fill reservoirs putting community water supplies and endangered species at-risk.

The Burned Area Emergency Response (BAER) program is designed to identify and manage potential risks to resources on National Forest System lands and reduce these threats through appropriate emergency measures to protect human life and safety, property, and critical natural or cultural resources. BAER is an emergency program for stabilization work that involves time-critical activities to be completed before the first damaging storm event to meet program objectives.

BAER Objectives:

• Determine whether imminent post-wildfire threats to human life and safety, property, and critical natural or cultural resources on National Forest System lands exist and take immediate actions, as appropriate, to manage the unacceptable risks.
• If emergency conditions are identified, mitigate significant threats to human life and safety, Forest Service property and other critical natural and cultural resource values.
• Prescribe emergency response actions to stabilize and prevent unacceptable degradation to natural and cultural resources, to minimize threats to life or property resulting from the effects of a fire, or to repair/replace/construct physical improvements necessary to prevent degradation of land or resources.
• Implement emergency response actions to help stabilize soil; control water, sediment and debris movement and potentially reduce threats to the BAER critical values identified above when an analysis shows that planned actions are likely to reduce risks substantially within the first year following containment of the fire.
• Monitor the implementation and effectiveness of emergency treatments that were applied on National Forest System lands.

BAER Interagency Coordination:

Post-fire emergency response is a shared responsibility. There are several Federal, State and local agencies that have emergency response responsibilities or authorities in the post-fire environment. The BAER team coordinates with these agencies to look at the full scope and scale of the situation to reduce the potential threats to human life and property. It is important that BAER efforts are communicated with all affected and interested cooperating agencies and organizations regarding other post-fire recovery and restoration efforts.

BAER treatments cannot prevent all of the potential flooding or soil erosion impacts, especially after a wildfire-changed landscape. It is important for the public to stay informed and prepared for potentially dramatic increased run-off events.

One of the most effective BAER strategies is interagency coordination to provide post-fire threat information to local cooperators who can assist affected businesses, homes, and landowners to prepare for rain events. For example, the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) has the Emergency Watershed Protection (EWP) program for post-emergency assistance on private and tribal land, the National Weather Service (NWS) has responsibility for flood warning alerts, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has flood insurance and other responsibilities if the area is a Presidentially-declared emergency, Resource Conservation Districts (RCD) and counties, as well as State and local-highway and emergency services departments, Flood Control authorities, etc. It is important that landowners work directly with NRCS and other agencies to determine appropriate actions needed to protect private structures and other assets.

BAER Process:

BAER assessment teams are staffed by specially trained professionals that may include: hydrologists, soil scientists, engineers, biologists, botanists, archeologists, and others who evaluate the burned area and prescribe temporary emergency stabilization actions on National Forest System lands to protect the land quickly and effectively. BAER assessments usually begin before a wildfire has been fully contained.

A BAER assessment team conducts field surveys and uses science-based models to rapidly evaluate and assess the burned area and prescribe emergency stabilization measures. The team generates a “Soil Burn Severity” map by using satellite imagery which is then validated and adjusted by BAER team field surveys to assess watershed conditions and model potential watershed response from the wildfire. The map identifies areas of soil burn severity by categories of very low/unburned, low, moderate, and high which may correspond to a projected increase in watershed response. The higher the burn severity, the less the soil will be able to absorb water when it rains. Without absorption, there will be increased run-off with the potential of flooding.

The BAER team presents these findings in an assessment report that identifies immediate and emergency actions needed to address post-fire risks to human life and safety, property, cultural and critical natural resources. This includes early detection and rapid response (EDRR) treatments to prevent the spread of noxious weeds into native plant communities. The BAER report describes watershed pre- and post-fire watershed response information, areas of concern for life and property, and recommended short-term emergency stabilization measures for Forest Service lands that burned.

In most cases, only a portion of the burned area is actually treated. Severely burned areas steep slopes, and places where water run-off will be excessive and may impact important resources, are focus areas and described in the BAER assessment report if they affect critical values. Response action timing is essential to ensure the emergency stabilization measures are effective.

There are a variety of emergency stabilization actions that the BAER team can recommend for Forest Service land such as mulching with agricultural straw or chipped wood to protect soil productivity, increasing road drainage to keep roads and bridges from washing-out during post-fire floods, and early detection rapid response invasive plant treatments to prevent spread of weeds into native plant communities. BAER treatments are preventative in nature but cannot prevent all damage, especially debris torrents in areas that are prone to sliding and have lost critical root structure from plants.

The Cans and Cannots of BAER:

What BAER Can Do:

• Install water or erosion control devices
• Seed or mulch for erosion control or stability reasons
• Install erosion control measures at critical cultural sites
• Install temporary barriers to protect treated or recovering areas
• Install warning signs
• Replace minor safety related facilities, like burned guard rails
• Install appropriate-sized drainage features on roads, trails
• Remove critical safety hazards
• Prevent permanent loss of T&E habitat
• Monitor BAER treatments
• Implement EDRR treatments to minimize the spread of noxious weeds into native plant communities

What BAER Cannot Do:

• Prevent all flooding and debris flows
• Replant commercial forests or grass for forage
• Excavate and interpret cultural sites
• Replace burned pasture fences
• Install interpretive signs
• Replace burned buildings, bridges, corrals, etc.
• Repair roads damaged by floods after fire
• Remove all hazard trees
• Replace burned habitat
• Monitor fire effects
• Treat pre-existing noxious weeds

BAER Funding:

Special Emergency Wildfire Suppression funds are authorized for BAER activities and the amount of these expenses varies with the severity of the fire season. Some years see little BAER activity while other years are extremely busy.

Because of the emergency nature of BAER, initial requests for funding of proposed BAER treatments are supposed to be submitted by the Forest Supervisor to the Regional Office within7 days of total containment of the fire. The Regional Forester’s approval authority for individual BAER projects is limited. Approval for BAER projects exceeding this limit is forwarded onto the Washington Office.

BAER SAFETY MESSAGE: Everyone near and downstream from the burned areas should remain alert and stay updated on weather conditions that may result in heavy rains and increased water runoff. Flash flooding may occur quickly during heavy rain events-be prepared to act. Current weather and emergency notifications can be found at the National Weather Service websites: www.weather.gov/sto/ and www.weather.gov/hnx/.

KEY ELEMENTS OF A BAER ASSESSMENT 

Forest Service BAER assessment teams are established by Forest Supervisors before wildfires are fully contained. The teams coordinate and work with the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Fish & Wildlife Service (FWS), National Weather Service (NWS), local counties, State Department of Transportation, and other federal, state, and local agencies to strategically assess potential post-fire impacts to the watersheds burned from wildland fires.

The BAER assessment teams are evaluating watershed conditions to determine the level of potential risks to human life, safety, property, critical natural and cultural-heritage resources, and determine if there are appropriate and effective emergency stabilization measures that can be implemented on federal lands in a timely manner to reduce unacceptable risks from potential flooding and debris flow threats.

The BAER assessment team conducts field surveys and uses science-based models to rapidly evaluate and assess the burned area.

BAER assessment teams are staffed by specially trained professionals that may include: hydrologists, soil scientists, engineers, geologists, biologists, botanists, archeologists, geographic information system mapping specialists, recreation and trails specialists, and others who evaluate the burned area and prescribe emergency response actions to protect the land quickly and effectively.

BAER assessments usually begin before a wildfire has been fully contained.

The BAER assessment team generates a “Soil Burn Severity” map by using satellite imagery which is then validated and adjusted by BAER team field surveys to assess watershed conditions and watershed response to the wildfire. The map identifies areas of soil burn severity by categories of low/unburned, moderate, and high which corresponds to a projected increase in watershed response.

The BAER team presents these findings and treatment recommendations to the Forest Supervisor in an assessment report that identifies immediate and emergency stabilization actions needed to address potential post-fire risks to human life and safety, property, cultural-heritage and critical natural resources on National Forest System lands.

The BAER report describes watershed pre- and post-fire response information, areas of concern for human life, safety and property, and recommended short-term emergency stabilization actions for federal lands that burned.

In most cases, only a portion of the burned area is actually treated.

If the BAER assessment team determines there may be potential emergency situations, the short-term goal is to have flood and erosion control protection measures completed before the first large, damaging rain events occur.

Timely implementation is critical if BAER emergency response actions are to be effective.

The BAER assessment team coordinates with other federal and local agencies, and counties that assist private landowners in preparing for increased run-off and potential flooding.

Federal assistance to private landowners regarding post-fire potential impacts is the primary responsibility of the NRCS through the Emergency Watershed Protection (EWP) program (www.nrcs.usda.gov/wps/portal/nrcs/main/national/programs/landscape/ewpp/)

NRCS in coordination with additional state, local and federal agencies conduct damage survey reports for the private land adjacent to and downstream from the burned areas. NRCS uses these reports, along with the BAER team’s assessment report, to develop recommended emergency measures for businesses and private home and landowners to reduce the impacts to their property from potential increased water and debris flows.

BAER SAFETY MESSAGE: Everyone near and downstream from the burned areas should remain alert and stay updated on weather conditions that may result in heavy rains and increased water runoff. Flash flooding may occur quickly during heavy rain events-be prepared to act. Current weather and emergency notifications can be found at the National Weather Service websites: www.weather.gov/sto/ and www.weather.gov/hnx/.

FOREST SERVICE BAER PROGRAM OVERVIEW

The Burned Area Emergency Response (BAER) program is designed to identify and manage potential risks to resources on National Forest System lands and reduce these threats through appropriate emergency measures to protect human life and safety, property, and critical natural or cultural resources. BAER is an emergency program for stabilization work that involves time-critical activities to be completed before the first damaging event to meet program objectives:

BAER Objectives:

-   Determine whether imminent post-wildfire threats to human life and safety, property, and critical natural or cultural resources on National Forest System lands exist and take immediate actions, as appropriate, to manage the unacceptable risks.

-   If emergency conditions are identified, mitigate significant threats to health, safety, human life, property, and critical cultural and natural resources.

-   Prescribe emergency response actions to stabilize and prevent unacceptable degradation to natural and cultural resources, to minimize threats to critical values resulting from the effects of a fire, or to repair/replace/construct physical improvements necessary to prevent degradation of land or resources.

-   Implement emergency response actions to help stabilize soil; control water, sediment and debris movement and potentially reduce threats to the BAER critical values identified above when an analysis shows that planned actions are likely to reduce risks substantially within the first year following containment of the fire.

-   Monitor the implementation and effectiveness of emergency treatments that were applied on National Forest System lands.

While many wildfires cause minimal damage to the land and pose few threats to the land or people downstream, some fires result in damage that requires special efforts to reduce impacts afterwards. Loss of vegetation exposes soil to erosion; water run-off may increase, and cause flooding, soil and rock may move downstream and damage property or fill reservoirs putting community water supplies and endangered species at-risk.

The BAER team presents these findings in an assessment report that identifies immediate and emergency actions needed to address post-fire risks to human life and safety, property, cultural and critical natural resources. This includes early detection and rapid response (EDRR) treatments to prevent the spread of noxious weeds into native plant communities. The BAER report describes watershed pre- and post-fire watershed response information, areas of concern for life and property, and recommended short-term emergency stabilization measures for Forest Service lands that burned.

In most cases, only a portion of the burned area is actually treated. Severely burned areas steep slopes, and places where water run-off will be excessive and may impact important resources, are focus areas and described in the BAER assessment report if they affect critical values. Time is critical if the emergency stabilization measures are to be effective.

A BAER assessment team conducts field surveys and uses science-based models to rapidly evaluate and assess the burned area and prescribe emergency stabilization measures. The team generates a “Soil Burn Severity” map by using satellite imagery which is then validated and adjusted by BAER team field surveys to assess watershed conditions and model potential watershed response from the wildfire. The map identifies areas of soil burn severity by categories of very low/unburned, low, moderate, and high which may correspond to a projected increase in watershed response. The higher the burn severity, the less the soil will be able to absorb water when it rains. Without absorption, there will be increased run-off with the potential of flooding.

BAER Funding:

Special Emergency Wildfire Suppression funds are authorized for BAER activities and the amount of these expenses varies with the severity of the fire season. Some years see little BAER activity while other years are extremely busy.

Because of the emergency nature of BAER, initial requests for funding of proposed BAER treatments are supposed to be submitted by the Forest Supervisor to the Regional Office within 7 days of total containment of the fire. The Regional Forester’s approval authority for individual BAER projects is limited. Approval for BAER projects exceeding this limit is to the Washington Office.

BAER SAFETY MESSAGE: Everyone near and downstream from the burned areas should remain alert and stay updated on weather conditions that may result in heavy rains and increased water runoff. Flash flooding may occur quickly during heavy rain events-be prepared to act. Current weather and emergency notifications can be found at the National Weather Service websites: www.weather.gov/sto/ and www.weather.gov/hnx/.