NWCG Glossary of Wildland Fire, PMS 205

A FireCode used by the USDA Forest Service to track and compile cost information for emergency initial attack fire suppression expenditures for A, B, C, & D size class fires on Forest Service lands.

To jettison a load of water or retardant from an aircraft, or terminate a preplanned aircraft maneuver.

A designated area where unused quantities of water or fire retardant may be jettisoned, usually to permit an airtanker to land with less than a full load.

Term frequently used in aviation operations, usually in connection with a stated altitude.

According to the American Meteorological Society, (also called vapor density). In a system of moist air, the ratio of the mass of water vapor present to the volume occupied by the mixture; that is, the density of the water vapor component.

Act of soaking up and retaining a gas in liquid or in a solid; also retention of radiant energy.

Agency-specific accounting data. Each agency assigns a specific accounting code to an incident.

Cost reports utilized for financial obligation purposes.

Any tactical plan developed by any element of ICS in support of the incident action plan.

Any fire that has not been called "out".

Resources checked in and assigned work tasks on an incident.

The thing that a person is doing when a wildland fire ignition occurs.

Further refines wildfire cause supporting data, providing information for prevention programs for targeted messaging.

Common name of activity

Type of activity or event

Date when treatment was physically completed

A device for connecting hoses of the same size with non-matching hose threads, or connecting a threaded coupling to a quick-connect coupling.

A public information description of the relative severity of the current fire danger situation.

A team that supports incident agencies by processing payments for resources. Resources may include emergency equipment, casuals, local vendors for supplies, etc.

Individual responsible for incident agency business management functions, such as personnel, procurement, fiscal, etc.

Period of seven consecutive calendar days designated in advance by the head of a department (5 U.S.C. 6101(a)).

A person hired and compensated under the Pay Plan for Emergency Workers.

Oral or written statement tending to link its maker to involvement in a particular crime.

Advanced life support skills performed by an EMS practitioner or service, e.g. intravenous fluids and drug administration.

Moving a hose lay toward a specified area from the point where the hose-carrying apparatus has stopped.

That portion of the fire with rapid fire spread with higher intensity which is normally burning with the wind and/or up slope.

According to the American Meteorological Society, the process of transport of an atmospheric property solely by the mass motion of the atmosphere; also the rate of change of the value of the advected property at a given point.

A time-sensitive alert from an NWCG Committee to the wildland fire community regarding procedural changes, equipment information and/or use updates, potential safety hazards, etc. Yellow hash-marked bordered stationary will be associated with this type of alert.

A fire-trenching or digging tool having a sharp, tempered blade, which is useful for heavy grubbing, trenching, and light cutting.

A system for, or the act of discovering, locating, and reporting fires from aircraft.

Standing and supported live and dead combustibles not in direct contact with the ground and consisting mainly of foliage, twigs, branches, stems, cones, bark, and vines.

Inclusive term applied to equipment designed to ignite wildland fuels from an aircraft.

An administrative division of a government with a specific function, or a non-governmental organization (e.g., private contractor, business, etc.) that offers a particular kind of assistance. A federal, Tribal, state or local agency that has direct fire management or land management responsibilities or that has programs and activities that support fire management activities.

The official position responsible for the management of a geographic unit or functional area. The managing officer of an agency, division thereof, or jurisdiction having statutory responsibility for incident mitigation and management. Examples: Federal Line Officer, State Forest Officer/Delegate or Fire Manager, Tribal Chairperson, Fire Chief, Police Chief, Sheriff, Mayor or County Representative.

The process whereby the employing agency or contractor documents that the individual is fully qualified to perform duties and responsibilities for a specified position.

A person working within an agency organization who processes resources to and from incidents.

A federal employee pilot or pilot contracted by a federal agency to fly agency, contracted or leased aircraft. This does not include pilots employed by an aircraft vendor as part of an aircraft services contract, such as airtanker contracts, helicopter contracts or other aircraft contracts.

Costs incurred by an agency that address the sole concern of only the agency or are not incurred with mutual benefit. Agency specific costs are not shared.

The deployment of fixed-wing or rotary aircraft on a wildland fire, to drop retardant or extinguishing agents, shuttle and deploy crews and supplies, or perform aerial reconnaissance of the overall fire situation.

Portable air (not oxygen) tanks with regulators which allow firefighters to breathe while in toxic smoke conditions. Usually rated for 30 minutes of service. Used primarily on fires involving structures or hazardous materials.

Mathematical or quantitative representation or simulation of air quality processes; e.g., emission models, receptor models, or air quality dispersion models.

An unplanned event that does substantial damage or causes serious injuries when associated with the operation of applicable aircraft. Event occurs between the time engine(s) is (are) started or rotors turning for the purpose of commencing flight, until the aircraft comes to rest with engines and propellers or rotors stopped, the brakes set or wheel chocks in place, and all persons have disembarked. 

An aircraft mishap in which there is no intent to fly. However, the power plants and/or rotors are in operation and damage is incurred requiring replacement or repair of rotors, propellers, wheels, tires, wing tips, flaps, etc., or injury is incurred requiring first-aid or medical attention.

Fixed-wing aircraft certified by FAA as being capable of transport and delivery of fire retardant solutions.

A method used to distribute various types of general or time-sensitive information from an NWCG committee to the wildland fire community. Information may include bulletins, advisories, or safety warnings, each with an associated color hash-marked bordered stationary.

A sighting device used by lookouts to determine the horizontal bearing and sometimes the vertical angle of a fire from a lookout.

A threat or an incident, natural or manmade, that warrants action to protect life, property, the environment, and public health or safety, and to minimize disruptions of government, social, or economic activities. It includes natural disasters, cyber incidents, industrial accidents, pandemics, acts of terrorism, sabotage, and destructive criminal activity targeting critical infrastructure. This also includes the effects climate change has on the threats and hazards.

A mobile weather data collection and forecasting system consisting of a communications module, weather observing module, and data interigation module. Used by incident meteorologists on an incident.

Resources dispatched to an incident, that have not yet checked in.

The amount of weight that is available for passengers and/or cargo. On the load calculation form it is the operating weight subtracted from the selected weight.