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NWCG Glossary of Wildland Fire (PMS 205)

Title Steward Status Definition
burn [injury] RMC Risk Management Committee Approved

An injury to flesh caused by a cauterizing agent, heat from a fire, or a heated object.

burn [on fire] IOSC Incident Operations Subcommittee Approved

To be on fire.

burn block FUSC Fire Use Subcommittee Approved

A discrete area within a larger prescribed or fire use project.

burn out FUSC Fire Use Subcommittee Approved

Setting fire inside a control line to consume fuel between the edge of the fire and the control line.

burn out time FUSC Fire Use Subcommittee Approved

The duration of flaming and smoldering combustion phases at a specified point within a burn or for the whole burn, expressed in convenient units of time.

burn patterns (configuration) FUSC Fire Use Subcommittee Approved

The characteristic configuration of char left by a fire. In wildland fires burn patterns are influenced by topography, wind direction, length of exposure, and type of fuel. Definitions are scale-dependent: (1) They can be used to trace a fire's origin; (2) They are influenced by severity and intensity within a stand; (3) They describe the landscape mosaic.

burn patterns (design) WFISC Wildland Fire Investigation Subcommittee Approved

Apparent and obvious design of burned material and the burning path from the area of origin.

burn severity FWS Fire Weather Subcommittee Approved

A qualitative assessment of the heat pulse directed toward the ground during a fire. Burn severity relates to soil heating, large fuel and duff consumption, consumption of the litter and organic layer beneath trees and isolated shrubs, and mortality of buried plant parts. 

Burned Area Emergency Response Team IBC Incident Business Committee Approved

BAER teams are formed to analyze post-fire conditions and to take immediate emergency stabilization action to prevent loss of life and property and critical and natural resources. It is the Agency Administrator’s responsibility to order or designate a BAER Team.

burned area rehabilitation FMB Fire Management Board Approved

The post-fire activities prescribed and implemented to rehabilitate and restore fire damaged lands.

burning WFISC Wildland Fire Investigation Subcommittee Approved

Decomposition of material by the application of heat and oxidation. Also applied to propellants and other pyrotechnic mixtures, though the proper term there is "reacting". Also often an element of the crime of arson.

burning ban FUSC Fire Use Subcommittee Approved

A declared ban on open air burning within a specified area, usually due to sustained high fire danger.

burning conditions FUSC Fire Use Subcommittee Approved

The state of the combined factors of the environment that affect fire behavior in a specified fuel type.

burning index (fire behavior) FDSC Fire Danger Subcommittee Approved

A relative number related to the contribution that fire behavior makes to the amount or effort needed to contain a fire in a specified fuel type. Doubling the burning index indicates that twice the effort will be required to contain a fire in that fuel type as was previously required, providing all other parameters are held constant. 

burning index (flame length) FDSC Fire Danger Subcommittee Approved

An estimate of the potential difficulty of fire containment as it relates to the flame length at the head of the fire.

burning index meter FBSC Fire Behavior Subcommittee Approved

A device used to determine the burning index for different combinations of burning index factors.

burning out IOSC Incident Operations Subcommittee Approved

Setting fire inside a control line to consume fuel located between the edge of the fire and the control line.

burning period FBSC Fire Behavior Subcommittee Approved

That part of each 24-hour period when fires spread most rapidly; typically from 10:00 AM to sundown.

burning priority rating FUSC Fire Use Subcommittee Approved

System of rating slash to indicate the treatment objective, whether or not burning is required to meet that objective, the fuel treatment necessary to achieve successful burning, and the time of year burning should occur.

burning rate WFISC Wildland Fire Investigation Subcommittee Approved

Rate at which a propellant and other combustibles burn.

burning rotation FUSC Fire Use Subcommittee Approved

The planned number of years between prescribed fires on a specified area.

burning torch ETC Equipment Technology Committee Approved

A flame generating device (e.g., a fount containing diesel oil or kerosene and a wick, or a backpack pump serving a flame-jet).

burnover RMC Risk Management Committee Approved

An event in which a fire moves through a location or overtakes personnel or equipment where there is no opportunity to utilize escape routes and safety zones, often resulting in personal injury or equipment damage.

Buying Team IBC Incident Business Committee Approved

A team that supports one or more incidents and is authorized to procure a wide range of services, supplies, and land and equipment rentals. In addition, the Buying Team Leader has the responsibility of coordinating property accountability with the Supply Unit Leader.

Buys Ballots Law FWS Fire Weather Subcommittee Approved

According to the American Meteorological Society, a law describing the relationship of the horizontal wind direction in the atmosphere to the pressure distribution; if one stands with the back to the wind, the pressure to the left is lower than to the right in the Northern Hemisphere.

cache ETC Equipment Technology Committee Approved

A pre-determined complement of tools, equipment and/or supplies stored in a designated location, available for incident use.

Calculated Acres

Measurement of the area estimated to be treated by a planned action. derive from perimeter

calculated acres FRSC Fire Reporting Subcommittee In Development

A measure of acres calculated (i.e., infrared) from a geospatial perimeter of a fire. More specifically, the number of acres within the current perimeter of a specific, individual incident, including unburned and unburnable islands.

calculation of probabilities FBSC Fire Behavior Subcommittee Approved

Evaluation of all factors pertinent to probable future behavior of a going fire and of the potential ability of available forces to perform fire suppression operations on a specified time schedule.

calibrated airspeed NIAC National Interagency Aviation Committee Approved

Indicated airspeed of an aircraft, corrected for position and instrument error. Equal to true airspeed in standard atmosphere at sea level.

camp NIMSIC National Incident Management System Integration Committee Approved

A geographical site within the general incident area (separate from the Incident Base) that is equipped and staffed to provide sleeping, food, water, and sanitary services to incident personnel.

Cancelled Date

Date treatment or activity status changed to Cancelled

candling FBSC Fire Behavior Subcommittee Approved

The burning of the foliage of a single tree or a small group of trees, from the bottom up.

canopy FENC Fire Environment Committee Approved

The stratum containing the crowns of the tallest vegetation present (living or dead), usually above 20 feet.

capability NCSC National Coordination System Committee In Development

The extent of someone's or something's ability to support a wildland fire.

Carbon Dioxide RMC Risk Management Committee Approved

A colorless, odorless, nonpoisonous gas, which results from fuel combustion and is normally a part of the ambient air.

Carbon Monoxide RMC Risk Management Committee Approved

A colorless, odorless, poisonous gas produced by incomplete fuel combustion.

carcinogen RMC Risk Management Committee Approved

Any substance that can cause or contribute to the production of cancer.

cardinal altitudes NIAC National Interagency Aviation Committee Approved

Odd or "even" thousand-foot (305 m) altitudes or flight levels. E.g., 5,000, 6,000, 7,000; FL 250, FL 260, and FL 270.

cardinal directions NIAC National Interagency Aviation Committee Approved

North, south, east, west; used for giving directions and information from the ground or air in describing the fire (e.g., the west flank or east flank, not right flank or left flank).

cardinal positions/directions Approved

North, south, east, west; used for giving directions and information from the ground or air in describing the fire (eg., the west flank or east flank, not right flank or left flank).

cargo chute NIAC National Interagency Aviation Committee, ETC Equipment Technology Committee Approved

A parachute designed and rigged for dropping equipment and supplies from an aircraft.

cargo compartment NIAC National Interagency Aviation Committee Approved

An internal area of an aircraft specifically designed to carry baggage or cargo.

cargo drop NIAC National Interagency Aviation Committee Approved

Dropping of equipment or supplies, with or without a parachute, from an aircraft in flight.

cargo hook NIAC National Interagency Aviation Committee, ETC Equipment Technology Committee Approved

Mechanically and electrically operated hook attached to the bottom of a helicopter to which a sling load is attached.

cargo net NIAC National Interagency Aviation Committee, ETC Equipment Technology Committee Approved

Net attached to the cargo hook of a helicopter, used to carry cargo.

cargo rack NIAC National Interagency Aviation Committee, ETC Equipment Technology Committee Approved

Externally mounted rack for transporting supplies or cargo aboard a helicopter.

carousel hook NIAC National Interagency Aviation Committee, ETC Equipment Technology Committee Approved

A remote hook attached to the end of a longline. It has four or more individual hooks which can be independently released, allowing the pilot to fly cargo loads to different locations without landing.

carried wet IOSC Incident Operations Subcommittee Archived

Booster hose carried full of water during mild weather to speed discharge of water on fire without filling or priming from tank.

carrier fuels FUSC Fire Use Subcommittee Approved

The fuels that support the flaming front of the moving fire.

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NWCG Latest Announcements

NWCG Standards for Airtanker Operations, PMS 514 - DRAFT

Date: July 18, 2024
Contact: National Interagency Aviation Committee 

A draft version of the new NWCG Standards for Airtanker Operations, PMS 514, is now available. The NWCG Standards for Airtanker Operations establishes the standards for dispatching, utilizing, and coordinating airtankers on wildland fires. As this is the first edition of these standards, the National Interagency Aviation Committee (NIAC) requests review and input into the 2025 final publication.

Please review and provide feedback by September 1st, 2024 for consideration. Feedback can be provided utilizing the NWCG Publication Review Form.

References:

NWCG Standards for Airtanker Operations, PMS 514 - DRAFT

NWCG Publications Review Form

Updated NWCG Standards for Course Delivery, PMS 901-1 and NWCG Training Course Completion Certificate, PMS 921-1

Date: July 17, 2024
Contact: Training Delivery Committee 

The Training Delivery Committee (TDC) has updated the NWCG Standards for Course Delivery, PMS 901-1 to reflect changes in the standards for course management and delivery. These changes have been reviewed and approved by the members of TDC over the past year. Significant updates include additional delivery methods, updated definitions, and instructions for the use of digital signatures on training certificates. The NWCG Training Course Completion Certificate, PMS 921-1 has been updated to lock after an electronic signature has been applied.

References:

NWCG Standards for Course Delivery, PMS 901-1

NWCG Training Course Completion Certificate, PMS 921-1

IBC Memo 24-01: OF 297 Signature Order and 2024 Fire Season Use IBC Memo 24-02: Summary of Changes for SIIBM, PMS 902

Date: July 15, 2024
Contact: Incident Business Committee 

The NWCG Incident Business Committee (IBC) has recently released two memorandums. The first provides direction on the use of the Emergency Equipment Shift Ticket, OF 297 for the 2024 fire season. Due to delays in hard copy printing, both the 2024 revision and the older version of the Emergency Equipment Shift Ticket, OF 297 are acceptable for use during the 2024 fire season.

The second memorandum documents the updates of the newly revised NWCG Standards for Interagency Incident Business Management (SIIBM), PMS 902. The summary of changes attached to the memo covers the major updates and process changes from the 2022 version.

References:

IBC Memorandum 24-01: OF 297 Signature Order and 2024 Fire Season Use

IBC Memorandum 24-02: Summary of Changes for the NWCG Standards of Interagency Incident Business Management, PMS 902

IBC Memorandum 24-02 Attachment: Summary of Changes

NWCG Standards for Rapid Extraction Module Support, PMS 552

Date: July 10, 2024
Contact: Incident Medical Unit Subcommittee 

A new publication from the Incident Medical Unit Subcommittee is now available. The NWCG Standards for Rapid Extraction Module Support, PMS 552 will be used as a guide and as an opportunity to begin to build out Rapid Extraction Module Support (REMS) modules for the remainder of Fire Year 2024. These standards will be fully implemented as the minimum standard starting in January 2025.

NWCG Standards for Rapid Extraction Module Support outlines the roles, duties, qualifications, and equipment pertinent to REMS. A REMS team, strategically stationed at wildland fires, plays a pivotal role in prioritizing swift access and medical treatment to injured or ill firefighters for safe and efficient egress off the fireline. This ensures their rapid transport to definitive medical care in cases of emergency during firefighting operations, highlighting the invaluable contribution of the REMS team to firefighter safety and well-being.

References:

NWCG Standards for Rapid Extraction Module Support, PMS 552