WILDFIRE
With the historic Heat Dome the forest has become a WildFire threat.
To report a wildfire: call 1 800 663-5555 or *5555 from a cell phone
Keeping informed is critical to knowing what is and is not happening.
Provincial Emergency Info: www.emergencyinfobc.gov.bc.ca
Use Twitter? So do they – sign up for tweets from @EmergencyInfoBC
The BC Wildfire Service has up-to-date info on where fires are happening.
You can see this on your computer via this link BC Wildfire Service. This is where you find the map on the right. They also have an App for your mobile device. Look for it the Apple App Store or Google Play Services. The App can get you the same info without you having to be on your computer.
The Emergencies page of the Regional District of Kootenay-Boundary is the main government source for info on local evacuation alerts, emergencies and information. You can sign-up for getting alerts about fire and evacuation. They give you the option of using the Voyent App for your mobile device or getting your notifications via TEXT, EMAIL or VOICE CALL.
Canadian Wildland Fire Information System Inreractive Map – This may not be as Up To Date as the local and provincial services.
Firesmoke forecasts
For fires developing just south of us
FIRMS US/CANADA Fire Information for Resource Management System US/Canada is replacing the USDA service below.
If you’re looking for the map on the right this is where you find it. IT can also show you animations of how the fires have developed over time.
You can also find out information on how to link your software (such as Google Earth Pro) to this site for up-to-date stats and maps.
Using software you are more familiar with to browse the geography. Also Google Earth allows for projections and displays other than flat maps as show on the left.
US Dept. of Agriculture Active Fire Mapping System
InciWeb is an interagency all-risk incident information management system: for Washington State
For Twitter alerts see the sidebar on the right.
WIND
Sometimes we have clear air but hear there is fire nearby; other times we have a problem seeing across the valley. Why is that?
The wind drives the smoke (and the fires).
The websites above let you see where the fires are … but which way is the wind blowing? You can see that on the windfinder site. The lighter tracks in the purple in the image on the right are moving tracks that show you the direction of the wind.
WIND, FIRE and RAIN
A lot of the information provided on the websites above is piece-meal – either Fire OR Wind but not both.
zoom.earth offers a combined display of all 3 elements – or just the ones you are interested in. It take data from various sources, FIRMS is one of those, and allows the visitor to zoom in on anywhere on earth and see what is going on within the last 10 minutes. Thanks Jamie Stewart for the heads-up on this.