The International Association of Wildland Fire, in cooperation with the NWCG Safety & Health Working Team, is pleased to issue this “Preliminary Announcement” for the 10th IAWF Wildland Fire Safety Summit.
We are in negotiations with a specific venue at this time, so the following information is “tentative”; we hope to finalize the specific details within the next 30 days.
Location: Phoenix, Arizona USA
Dates: April 28-30, 2009 (Tuesday - Thursday)
Conference Chair: Dick Mangan
Major emphasis areas for the Safety Summit will include:
1. 10 years after the Tri-Data Study: what is different?
2. Aviation Safety on Wildfire Operations;
3. Issues in Wildfire Safety around the World;
4. Safety in the emerging Wildland-Urban Interface.
5. New research in Wildland Fighter Safety practices, training and equipment
6. Firefighter Health and Fitness
IAWF needs your help!

If you would like to be a part of the Safety Summit Committee, or have ideas for topics that should be included, please let us know! Contact Chair Dick Mangan at 406-543-0013 or email: blackbull (at) bigsky.net.

We have a new email address at the IAWF. It is:

ExecDir

**(a_t)**

iawfonline dot org.

Of course, remove the “*( )*” around the “at”. And it is not case-sensitive.

We had to make the change because of massive amounts of spam we have been receiving at the original address. Please update your address books.

A Google search for the old address shows 1,140 places where the address is in plain view for robots that are searching for email addresses to add to spammers lists.  We ask that you please do not place this new email address on web pages, unless it is modified as we did above.

Plans for “The ‘88 Fires: Yellowstone and Beyond” conference are coming together.

The program committee has been very busy in the last two weeks evaluating the presentation abstracts that were submitted. They were very pleased with the quality of the abstracts and we are even more certain that the conference is going to be excellent!

The final details of the program are still being put together, but we just added some new events:

1. A Monday evening session organized by Joe Stutler, “We Were There: Stories from the Fires of ‘88″. Come hear from the Incident Commanders and Area Commanders who managed The ‘88 fires in the Greater Yellowstone Area. There are lessons to be learned from the stories of those who were there and played central roles in the management of the fires.
2. An evening session on firefighter and fire management liability that will draw on the ThirtyMile incident.
3. Special sessions on fire education, fire and the media, and fire in the mind and on the land (the latter organized by a group of environmentalists who have worked closely with fire managers).

More information about the conference, including registration, is HERE. An outline of the program is HERE.

The May/June issue of Wildfire magazine focuses on Community Awareness. It will be full of valuable information for Fire Chiefs, Fire Management Staff, Duty Officers, and Line Personnel. The main article tells the story of a community that took action to mitigate their risk of catastrophic loss in the event of a wildland fire.The story is told primarily by community sparkplugs, Roger and Kathy Mitchell from Bow, Washington.Their situation is not unique.The Blue Ribbon Panel on Wildland Urban Interface Fire reports over 51,000 communities in the US alone (countless when the international picture is considered) are faced with the annual burden of wildfire season.

Look forward to this issue where a community’s on-going success story unfolds.This dedicated group of property owners has created an energy that is literally spreading like wildfire.Their success has been tremendous and the word has gotten out. Now many of the surrounding communities are seeking information and advice on how they too can reduce their risk. Since a collaborative model was used, not one Agency or Fire District has taken an unreasonable workload; the community has done the lion’s share and continues to be the leaders in their geographic area.

Anyone interested in the growing Wildland Urban Interface problem will be relieved to read that success is possible.Communities can and will take action, especially if they are supported with information, techniques and tools.Other articles support the theme of Community Awareness and provide key and timely information on Firewise Communities/USA, Teamwork and Collaboration, and the new Community Guide to Preparing and Implementing a Community Wildfire Protection Plan.

Keep an eye on your mailboxes, as this issue will be arriving in mid-June.Not receiving Wildfire Magazine?Become a member of IAWF!Find out how at www.iawfonline.org/membership