NWCG Glossary of Wildland Fire, PMS 205

An area in which specified activities or entry are temporarily restricted to reduce risk of human-caused fires or to mitigate the risk to human health or safety by potential or on-going wildland fires.

An administrative action limiting or prohibiting access to a specific geographic or jurisdictional area for the purposes of reducing wildfire or the risk it poses to life, property, and/or resources. Example of use: "Pursuant to 36 C.F.R. 261.50 (a) and (b), it is hereby ordered that the prohibitions hereinafter set forth apply to the general forest area of the Ozark-St. Francis National Forests until further notice."

A visible cluster of minute water/ice particles in the atmosphere.

Adjective class representing the degree to which the sky is obscured by clouds. In weather forecast terminology, expected cloud cover of about 0.7 or more warrants use of this term. In the National Fire Danger Rating System, 0.6 or more cloud cover is termed "cloudy."

Refers to federal, state, and local cooperative fire programs.

Protective material applied to a hose jacket to produce a smooth finish. Impregnate process in which a dye or chemical is forced into the yarns to mildew treat or coat the jacket for various reasons.

The leading edge of a relatively cold air mass which displaces warmer air, causing it to rise. If the lifted air contains enough moisture, cloudiness, precipitation and even thunderstorms may result. As fronts move through a region, in the Northern Hemisphere, the winds at a given location will experience a marked shift in direction. Ahead of an approaching cold front, winds will usually shift gradually from southeast to south, and on to southwest. As a cold front passes, winds shift rapidly to west, then northwest. Typical cold front windspeeds range between 15 and 30 mph but can be much higher. 

Fireline that has been controlled. The fire has been mopped up for a safe distance inside the line and can be considered safe to leave unattended.

A method of controlling a partly dead fire edge by carefully inspecting and feeling with the hand for heat to detect any fire, digging out every live spot, and trenching any live edge.

Controls the pitch angle of the main (helicopter) rotor blades. Used as primary altitude control.

Species of vegetation that establish on a burned (or otherwise denuded) site from seed.

A nozzle is designed to provide either a solid stream or a fixed spray pattern suitable for applying water, wet water or foam solution.

Two attached straight stream nozzle tips of different orifice size used to increase or restrict water flow.

The rapid oxidation of fuel in which heat and usually flame are produced. Combustion can be divided into four phases: preignition, flaming, smoldering, and glowing.

The relative amount of time a fire burns in the flaming phase of combustion, as compared to smoldering combustion. A ratio of the amount of fuel that is consumed in flaming combustion compared to the amount of fuel consumed during the smoldering phase, in which more of the fuel material is emitted as smoke particles because it is not turned into carbon dioxide and water. 

Total time required for a specified fuel component to be completely consumed.

Rate of heat release per unit of burning area per unit of time.

The act of directing, ordering, or controlling by virtue of explicit statutory, regulatory, or delegated authority.

The working environment within the influence of a particular leader or chain of command. The command climate is based on the subordinates' understanding of how they are expected to perform, how they are treated, and how they must conform to the leader's style. 

How leaders present themselves to others. The personal attributes and traits that determine whether leaders are worthy of trust and respect from their subordinates.

A group of incident personnel that the Incident Commander or Unified Command assigns to support the command function at an ICP. Command staff often include a PIO, a Safety Officer, and a Liaison Officer, who have assistants as necessary. Additional positions may be needed, depending on the incident.

Additional information describing the feature.

A vehicle required to be registered which is used or maintained for the transportaiton of persons for hire, compensation, or profit or designed, used or maintained primarily for the transportation of property.

Anything used to generate income. The phrase "used for commerical purposes" means the carriage of persons or property for any fare, fee, rate, charge or other consideration, or directly or indirectly in connection with any business, or other undertaking intended for profit. (18 USC 31 (a)(10))

Communications Unit staff install and test communications equipment, supervise and operate the incident communications center, distribute and recover communications equipment assigned to incident personnel, and maintain and repair communications equipment on site.Most complex incidents have an incident Communications Plan. Staff in the Communications Unit produce this plan, as they are responsible for assigning radio frequencies; establishing voice and data networks for command, tactical, support, and air units; setting up on-scene telephoneand public-address equipment; and providing any necessary off-incident communication links.

An event initiated by local private or government organizations that require non-emergency services for a general gathering such as a concert, convention, or parade. 

A plan developed in the collaborative framework established by the Wildland Fire Leadership Council and agreed to by state, Tribal, and local government, local fire department, other stakeholders and federal land management agencies managing land in the vicinity of the planning area. A Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP) identifies and prioritizes areas for hazardous fuel reduction treatments and recommends the types and methods of treatment on Federal and non-Federal land that will protect one or more at-risk communities and essential infrastructure and recommends measures to reduce structural ignitability throughout the at-risk community. A CWPP may address issues such as wildfire response, hazard mitigation, community preparedness, or structure protection - or all of the above. 

A formal working agreement among agencies to obtain mutual aid.

Spacing between fuel particles.

Any piece of (fire) equipment having a full complement of personnel.

The practice of comparing and contrasting the fire damage on different surfaces of an object that has been subjected to the oncoming fire.

An investigative technique that involves comparing same sized indicators within an indicator category at separate locations; looking for either differences or similarities in appearance.

An instrument used for showing direction, consisting of a magnetic needle swinging freely on a pivot and pointing to magnetic north.

A circle, graduated in degrees, printed on some charts or marked on the ground at an airport or heliport. It is used as a reference to either true or magnetic direction.

Person responsible to the Compensation/Claims Unit Leader for administrative matters arising from serious injuries and fatalities occurring on the incident.

Compensation and Claims Unit staff are responsible for financial concerns resulting from property damage, injuries, or fatalities at the incident. The specific activities vary depending on the incident. Staff handling injury compensation ensure that all forms needed by workers’ compensation programs and local agencies are completed. These staff also typically maintain files on injuries and illnesses associated with the incident and obtain written witness statements. Since Medical Unit staff may also perform some of these tasks, the Medical and the Compensation and Claims Units should coordinate closely. The Compensation and Claims Unit staff may assist with civil tort claims investigations involving incident property, and the staff maintain logs on the claims, obtain witness statements, and document investigations and agency follow-up activities.

A broad description that groups core behaviors necessary to perform a specific function.

Any item which can produce sufficient heat over a sufficient duration of time capable of bringing forest fuels to their ignition temperature and sustain open flame combustion.

Day/Month/Year local program intends to complete the treatment or activity

Fiscal Quarter local program intends to complete the treatment or activity

Fiscal Year local program intends to complete the treatment or activity

The Globally Unique Identifier (GUID) of the complex.

The name of the complex that the fire is assigned.

A generic term used to describe foam systems consisting of an air compressor (or air source), a water pump, and foam solution.

Term used in calculating from performance charts the permissible helicopter payload at which a helicopter is capable of hovering in ground effect or hovering out of ground effect, based on pressure altitude and air temperature.

A substance that has been concentrated; specifically, a liquid that has been made denser, as by the removal of some of its water.

A model that is a diagram or description of a set of relationships between factors that describe how a system works, such as an ecological model.

The process by which a gas becomes a liquid.

Depiction of the degree of departure from historical fire regimes, possibly resulting in alterations of key ecosystem components. These classes categorize and describe vegetation composition and structure conditions that currently exist inside the Fire Regime Groups. Based on the coarse-scale national data, they serve as generalized wildfire rankings. The risk of loss of key ecosystem components from wildfires increases from Condition Class 1 (lowest risk) to Condition Class 3 (highest risk).