NWCG Glossary of Wildland Fire (PMS 205)

A point that displays the real-time location of a wildland fire resource.

Fire suppression planning tool providing a relative expression (in five classes) of fire effects on all resources (not the value of the resources themselves).

The natural resources of an area, such as timber, grass, watershed values, recreation values, and wildlife habitat.

Personnel and equipment available or potentially available for assignment to incident operations and for which status is maintained. Resources are described by kind and type.

Resources Unit staff track the location and status of all resources assigned to an incident. They ensure all assigned resources have checked in at the incident.

A device that is designed to protect the wearer from the adverse effects of inhalation hazards by removing contaminants from the surrounding air or by supplying clean air from a safe source.

Administrative entity that provides resources in response to the incident.

Agency with primary responsibility for fire suppression on any particular land area.

Airspace of defined dimensions identified by an area on the surface of the earth within the flight of an aircraft, which is subject to restrictions (but not wholly prohibited).

Aircraft that is generally used for cargo, retardant dropping, agricultural operations, survey work and other specific projects, and may not transport passengers.

Measures taken by jurisdictional agencies to impose bans and standards of use on certain human activities that could lead to the cause of wildland fire. Restrictions may be applied to: smoking in designated areas; open flame; mechanical operations in high-risk areas; and off-road use.

A substance or chemical agent which reduces the flammability of combustibles.

Ground facilities for mixing, storing, and loading fire retardant into airtankers.

Area of fuel covered and degree of coverage on the fuel by a fire retardant, usually expressed in terms of gallons per hundred square feet (liters per square meter).

Fire retardant cascaded from an airtanker or helitanker.

An order to an airtanker pilot to return to the retardant base and await further instructions; mission completed, further loads not required.

The resource has returned from the assignment but is not yet available for dispatch.

Hose fitting that performs the functions of a Siamese or a wye (i.e., to combine the flow from two lines into a single line or to permit two lines to be taken from a single line).

Flow characteristics of liquid fire retardants, especially their cohesiveness or ability to hold together while falling through the air.

Science of deformation and flow of fire retardants and other liquids, especially of the cohesiveness bodies and stress-strain relationship of their particles.

A long-handled combination rake and cutting tool, the blade of which is constructed of a single row of mowing machine cutter teeth fastened to a piece of angle iron.

A long narrow elevation of land; a steep slope or similar range of hills or mountains.

An elongated area of relatively high atmospheric pressure extending from the center of a high-pressure region.

A method to document a fire scene using right angle measurements off of a base line.

RR: Process of treating or removing flamable vegetation from the Railroad Right-of-Way (ROW).
Debris/open burning: Use of fire to clear vegetation, debris and brush within a right-of-way.

A fire started by igniting the full perimeter of the intended burn area so that the ensuing fire fronts converge toward the center of the burn. Set around the outer perimeter of a resource to establish a protective black-line-buffer.

A causative agent.

A number related to the potential of firebrands to which a given area will be exposed during the rating day.

A chance of suffering harm or loss.

The chance of fire starting as determined by the presence and activity of causative agents.

An appraisal of the interaction of hazard, exposure, and effects to a given set of values in a given area.

Systematic process to comprehend the nature of risk, express and evaluate risk, with the available knowledge.

A number related to the probability of a firebrand igniting a fire.

A continuous, five-step process that provides a systematic method for identifying and managing the risks associated with any operation.

Identifiable human activity that historically has been a major cause of wildfires on a protection unit; one of the eight general causes listed on the standard fire report.

Portion of human-caused fires that have occurred on a protection unit chargeable to a specific risk source; calculated for each day of the week for each risk source.

Hose coupling in which the lugs used for tightening or loosening are semicircular in shape and designed to pass over obstructions.

A turbulent altocumulus-type cloud formation found in the lee of some large mountain barriers. The air in the cloud rotates around an axis parallel to the range. Also sometimes refers to part of the cloud base along the leading edge of a cumulonimbus cloud; it is formed by rolling action in the wind shear region between cool downdrafts within the cloud and warm updrafts outside the cloud.

Assembly of airfoils (rotor blades), together with a hub and attachments, that rotates about an axis to provide lift and/or thrust on a helicopter.

Air turbulence occurring under and around the main rotor of an operating helicopter.

The main rotor arc in feet and inches (meters). Used for planning helispot clearance.

The accumulation of living and dead ground and understory vegetation, especially grasses, forest litter, and draped dead needles, sometimes with addition of underbrush such as palmetto, gallberry, and wax myrtle. Most often used for southern pine types.

Reduction of fire hazard in rough, usually by prescribed burning.

Rapid advance of the head of a fire, characterized by a marked transition in fireline intensity and rate of spread with respect to that noted before and after the advance.

Behavior of a fire spreading rapidly with a well defined head.