(Waupun) The Waupun Fire Department recently had the opportunity to conduct wildland fire training at the Marsh Haven Nature Center. Officials with the agency say crews practiced different management techniques such as using several varieties of suppression equipment as well as establishing back-burn and fire lines to control the spread of flames.
With many of the plants, grasses, and brush still dormant, combined with low relative humidity levels this time of year, wildland fires can quickly get out of control. According to the Western Fire Chiefs Association, wildfires move at an average of 14-miles-per-hour.
The speed of a wildfire varies depending on the terrain, the type of fuel available, and weather conditions. Rising smoke and heat can dry out fuel further up the slope of a hill, so fire burns more quickly uphill. Wildfires can also quickly get out of control when flames move from the ground to the tops of trees.
The Waupun Fire Department say when conditions like low humidity and wind get intermixed with a mass grouping of dry fuel, life and property are at risk. They add that is why it is important their teams are ready to go out and serve.
The agency is also reminding all of Waupun and neighboring residents to check before they burn. They note that even the smallest trash fire can burn up hundreds of acres in hours.
–Photos courtesy of the Waupun Fire Department Facebook page
