Abstract

Wildland Fire Mitigation, Response, and Recovery: Small Jurisdiction, Big Risk.
Track: Wildland Fire Management
Authors: Eric Schmidt

Between August 2011 and September 2012, Douglas County, NV burned over 17,000 acres in wildland fires. Leveraging Esri GIS technology, Douglas County's GIS Division has elevated local firefighters' use of spatial data and tools in their tactical and strategic approach to wildland fire. Gone are the days of rough sketching an active fire boundary on a decade's old 7.5 minute quads. GIS has arrived on scene and has become an essential part of wildland fire mitigation, response, and recovery. Douglas County's GIS Division now keeps a dynamic supply of maps and data flowing throughout an incident. Additionally, Web-based GIS viewers inform the public of where the fires are burning, specific evacuation zones, and locations of evacuation centers. We will discuss our implementation of GIS in support of wildland fire as well as the protocols that go into action before, during, and after smoke fills the air.