“Wildfire 2002” public meeting planned April 17

Extreme drought sparks concern

As the current drought conditions continue in Northern New Mexico, the Interagency Wildfire Management Team and the Laboratory’s Public Interface Design Study are sponsoring “Wildfire 2002” to update residents on current fire concerns and mitigation efforts underway in Los Alamos County and the surrounding area.

“Wildfire 2002” is from 6 to 9 p.m., Wednesday, April 17, in Fuller Lodge, 2132 Central Ave. in Los Alamos. It is free and open to the public.

“This is shaping up to be a worse fire season than before the Cerro Grande Fire two years ago,” warned Battalion Chief Mike Thompson of the Los Alamos Fire Department in a recently televised interview with IWMT members Carey Bare and Pat Valerio of Ecology (ESH-20) and Allen Fowler, National Environmental Policy Act coordinator for Santa Fe National Forest on Los Alamos’ Public Access Channel PAC-8.

“The combination of warmer temperatures, low humidity, wind and the absence of moisture in forest fuels are responsible for the increased threat,” explained Valerio. “The woods are basically as dry as the lumber you buy at the store.”

The “Wildfire 2002” begins with exhibits and displays from the American Red Cross, Bandelier National Monument, Los Alamos County Community Development, Los Alamos County Emergency Management, Los Alamos Fire Department, the Laboratory, the Volunteer Task Force, Family Strengths Network, Pajarito Plateau Watershed Partnership, the Nature Conservancy and the United States Forest Service.

At 7 p.m., a panel of experts from Los Alamos County, Santa Fe National Forest, Bandelier National Monument, the Volunteer Task Force and the Laboratory will discuss current fire conditions, the nearby Valle II project, local and regional mitigation efforts, and “Firewise,” a national program designed to lessen the probability of loss and to help citizens be better prepared to protect their homes and community in case of wildland fire.

Former Los Alamos County Councilor Robert Gibson of Plasma Physics (P-24) will moderate the discussion and a public question and answer session.

For more information on the “Wildfire 2002” meeting, contact Fran Talley of the Laboratory’s Public Affairs Office at 7-5225 or write to flt@lanl.gov by electronic mail.

--Fran Talley

In case of evacuation …

According to Captain Robert Repass, Los Alamos County’s emergency management coordinator and member of the Interagency Wildfire Management Team, the Los Alamos County emergency evacuation plan has been “extensively revised” for both Los Alamos and White Rock. “We've tried to account for every possible scenario,” Repass said. “Most of the improvements we've made have had to do with the sequence in which the various sections of Los Alamos and White Rock would be evacuated and their evacuation routes.

“Our goal is to use a new telephone warning system to target areas closest to the incident and remove those people from harm's way as quickly as possible,” Repass said. “The remaining sections of the town will then be called to evacuate in the order that allows the fastest exit.

He said, if theMain Hill Road was the primary evacuation route, areas close to Trinity Drive and Central Avenue would probably be evacuated early to allow those areas to clear before others such as the Western Area and North Community start adding traffic to the road.

The public is reminded to stay alert and in the case of an emergency to tune in to local radio station KRSN 1490 AM for evacuation information and instructions. Information also is available under the heading of “County Notices” or “EOC Bulletins” at http://www.lac.losalamos.nm.us online.

The Los Alamos Local Emergency Planning Committee and the Interagency Wildfire Management Team has provided information on how residents can prepare for this wildfire season (click here (Adobe Acrobat required)).