NWCG Glossary of Wildland Fire (PMS 205)

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

Mid-level, parent grouping to sort and filter actions planned and implemented to address threats mitigated by the wildland fire management program.

A numerical index related to the ability of the atmosphere to disperse smoke. Different agencies use different scales [e.g., in South Carolina, the current scale is based on ventilation factor and ranges from 1 (poor) to 5 (excellent)].

Defect on the surface of a tree resulting from a wound where healing has not re-established the normal cross-section.

According to the American Meteorological Society, the height ascribed to the lowest layer of clouds or obscuring phenomena when it is reported as broken, overcast, or obscuration and not classified "thin" or "partial." The ceiling is termed unlimited when the foregoing conditions are not satisfied.

According to the American Meteorological Society, same as centigrade temperature scale, by convention. Centigrade temperature scale is a temperature scale with the ice point of water at 0 degrees and the boiling point at 100 degrees.

Method of broadcast burning in which fire is ignited in the center of the area to create a strong draft; additional fires are then ignited progressively nearer the outer control lines (sometimes in one step) as indraft increases so as to draw the flames and smoke toward the center. 

The city and state pairing for the dispatch center location

Pump which expels water by centrifugal force through the ports of a circular impeller rotating at high speed. With this type of pump, the discharge line may be shut off while the pump is running without damaging the pump or hose.

The agency official at the home unit who is responsible for authorizing and granting position certification per agency policy. The agency official is responsible for completing the agency certification block located on the inside front cover of a Position Task Book. 

Unit of measure in land survey, equal to 66 feet (20 M) (80 chains equal 1 mile). Commonly used to report fire perimeters and other fireline distances, this unit is popular in fire management because of its convenience in calculating acreage (e.g., 10 square chains equal one acre). 

Lightning in a long zigzag or apparently broken line.

The orderly line of authority within the rank of incident management organizations.

Carbonaceous material formed by incomplete combustion of an organic material, most commonly wood; remains of burned materials.

In fire simulation, a darkened area within the fire perimeter; usually indicates fire has already passed through; usually created by an opaque material blocking out a selected portion of basic scene illumination.

The vertical distance above ground scorched or blackened on a tree bole.

Hose filled with water under pressure and ready to use.

Vehicle that carries crew gear, supplies, and operational equipment for initial/extended attack.

A temporary fireline constructed at right angles to the control line and used to hold a backfire in check as a means of regulating the heat or intensity of the backfire.

A valve that permits flow of liquid through a hose or pipe in one direction but prevents a return flow. Uses include the prevention of backflow on uphill hose lays, loss of prime with centrifugal pumps and chemical contamination in fire chemical mixing systems. 

The process whereby resources first report to an incident. Check-in locations include incident command post (ICP), base or camps, staging areas, helibases, or direct to a tactical assignment. All responders, regardless of agency affiliation, report in to receive an assignment.

Burning technique in which lines of fire are started simultaneously from the apex of a ridge point, and progress downhill, maintaining position along the contour; used in hilly areas to ignite ridge points or ridge ends.

The ICS title for individuals responsible for the management of functional sections: Operations, Planning, Logistics, and Finance/Administration.

The chief of party is responsible to the sending unit dispatcher until destination is reached. Chief of party is responsible for all traveling personnel assigned on the manifest list.

Testimony or information not based on actual personal knowledge or observation, but dependent on inference of other facts or experience. For example, testimony that defendant's cigarette lighter was found in ashes of a fire.

A form of high cloud, composed of ice crystals, which seldom obscures the sun.

A written demand for a specific amount of money or other objects of value, other than ordinary obligations incurred for services, supplies, or things.

An individual, partnership, association, corporation, country, the federal government, state, or other political subdivision asserting a right, demand, or claim against another entity.

First Tier, parent grouping to sort and filter actions planned and implemented to address threats mitigated by the wildland fire management program.

Foam intended for use on Class A or woody fuels; made from hydrocarbon-based surfactant, therefore lacking the strong filming properties of Class B foam, but possessing excellent wetting properties.

Foam designed for use on Class B or flammable liquid fires; made from fluorocarbon-based surfactants, therefore capable of strong filming action, but incapable of efficient wetting of Class A fuels.

Geographic areas designed by the Clean Air Act subject to the most stringent restrictions on allowable increment of air quality deterioration. Class I areas include Forest Service wildernesses and nation memorial parks over 5,000 acres, National Parks exceeding 6,000 acres, international parks, as well as other designated lands. 

All areas of the country not designated Class I, including everything from non-Class I areas to urban areas. A greater amount of air pollution can be added to these areas than Class I.

An event dealing with a scheduled activity in a classroom setting or other controlled environment that provides instruction so as to make attendees fit or qualified for incident support activities.

A federal law enacted to ensure that air quality standards are attained and maintained. Initially passed by Congress in 1963, it has been amended several times.

Communication that does not use codes.

The prevalent or characteristic meteorological conditions of any place or region, and their extremes.

In NFDRS, one of four classifications of general climate of an area.

Points on the cumulative distribution of one fire weather/fire danger index without regard to associated fire occurrence/business.

Means of establishing a flight path to a target on a fire by referring to clock directions from the aircraft's present location, with the nose of the aircraft pointing at 12:00.

An area in which specified activities or entry are temporarily restricted to reduce risk of human-caused fires or to mitigate the risk to human health or safety by potential or on-going wildland fires.

An administrative action limiting or prohibiting access to a specific geographic or jurisdictional area for the purposes of reducing wildfire or the risk it poses to life, property, and/or resources. Example of use: "Pursuant to 36 C.F.R. 261.50 (a) and (b), it is hereby ordered that the prohibitions hereinafter set forth apply to the general forest area of the Ozark-St. Francis National Forests until further notice."

A visible cluster of minute water/ice particles in the atmosphere.

Adjective class representing the degree to which the sky is obscured by clouds. In weather forecast terminology, expected cloud cover of about 0.7 or more warrants use of this term. In the National Fire Danger Rating System, 0.6 or more cloud cover is termed "cloudy."

Refers to federal, state, and local cooperative fire programs.

The leading edge of a relatively cold air mass which displaces warmer air, causing it to rise. If the lifted air contains enough moisture, cloudiness, precipitation and even thunderstorms may result. As fronts move through a region, in the Northern Hemisphere, the winds at a given location will experience a marked shift in direction. Ahead of an approaching cold front, winds will usually shift gradually from southeast to south, and on to southwest. As a cold front passes, winds shift rapidly to west, then northwest. Typical cold front windspeeds range between 15 and 30 mph but can be much higher. 

Fireline that has been controlled. The fire has been mopped up for a safe distance inside the line and can be considered safe to leave unattended.

A method of controlling a partly dead fire edge by carefully inspecting and feeling with the hand for heat to detect any fire, digging out every live spot, and trenching any live edge.

Controls the pitch angle of the main (helicopter) rotor blades. Used as primary altitude control.

Species of vegetation that establish on a burned (or otherwise denuded) site from seed.