2011 was a record breaking year for wildfires, but so far 2012 has been quiet.
"We are about at that same time frame as last year when fire started popping up, but we haven't had any fires or outbreaks at this time," said Rhea Cooper the Assistant Chief, Incident Response Commander for the TFS.
It's not for a lack of fuel. While the recent rain we've received has made the grass nice and green, it's also helping it grow.
"The long term forecast for the weather indicates that we're not going to immediately come out of this drought that we are currently in," Cooper said.
Beside the vegetation, firefighters have to worry about the winds that start to spike up this time of year.
"If you've lived in West Texas for any amount of time, you know that spring time and wind go together. What we are experiencing today is high wind and low humidity," Cooper said.
Up to this point, it's been a very mild fire season. This has given crews with the Texas Forest Service, the opportunity to do maintenance on their equipment, and recover from last year.
"We have had a little bit of moisture early on and you do see things greening up. That's where the optimism comes in, but I don't want it to be false optimism," Cooper said.
Which has them preparing for the worst and hoping for the best.
"We are about at that same time frame as last year when fire started popping up, but we haven't had any fires or outbreaks at this time," said Rhea Cooper the Assistant Chief, Incident Response Commander for the TFS.
It's not for a lack of fuel. While the recent rain we've received has made the grass nice and green, it's also helping it grow.
"The long term forecast for the weather indicates that we're not going to immediately come out of this drought that we are currently in," Cooper said.
Beside the vegetation, firefighters have to worry about the winds that start to spike up this time of year.
"If you've lived in West Texas for any amount of time, you know that spring time and wind go together. What we are experiencing today is high wind and low humidity," Cooper said.
Up to this point, it's been a very mild fire season. This has given crews with the Texas Forest Service, the opportunity to do maintenance on their equipment, and recover from last year.
"We have had a little bit of moisture early on and you do see things greening up. That's where the optimism comes in, but I don't want it to be false optimism," Cooper said.
Which has them preparing for the worst and hoping for the best.
Comments
The headline on the home page reads "has been quite". Huh? Please fix that--it's just sad.
Dr. J.
March 2, 2012 at 7:05 am
The ehadline on the home page reads "has been quite". Huh? Please fix that--it's just sad.
Dr. J.
March 2, 2012 at 7:04 am
