While most of the big ones in the NW this year were lightning-caused, a fair number of them are listed in Inciweb as "cause under investigation," which means they were human-caused (the NWS records all the lightning strikes, so that's pretty accurate). That includes two big fires in North Central Washington which together (they came within a few miles of merging) have burned almost 400,000 acres.

Over the years, I've spent quite a few hours putting out other people's campfires, usually well back in wilderness areas, which were not properly extinguished (from the looks, they evidently used a small bottle of water like the one shown in the video, completely inadequate). Some were smoldering in roots and duff. It was fortunate that none of those had "blown up" yet. I figured it was my duty to take care of these the best I could. In the latest case, my QiWiz titanium potty trowel, although great for its intended purpose, was a bit inadequate as a firefighting tool. I was able to dig down to the smoldering roots, though, to uncover the charred section, and then made a lot of trips to water.


Edited by OregonMouse (09/18/15 05:12 PM)
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May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous, leading to the most amazing view--E. Abbey