South One Update 7/11/08
Incident: South One Wildland Fire
Released: 7/11/2008
South One Fire Update
Fire Information (540) 295-0389
Hours of Operation: 0800-2000
Florida Interagency Incident Management Gold Team
Friday, July 11, 2008, 10 a.m.
Current Status
The South One Fire is burning in fallen Atlantic White Cedar and logging slash remnants from Hurricane Isabel, on the Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge 12 miles southeast of Suffolk, Virginia.
Acreage
4,664 acres
Containment
95 percent - Increased due completed fire line construction and successful flooding operations around hot spot north of Interior Ditch
Fire Cause
The fire started in the afternoon of Monday, June 9, when logging equipment caught fire.
Resources
There are 167 people on the fire, including 1 twenty-person hand crew
Equipment includes 9 engines, 3 bulldozers, 1 Marsh Master, 1 Bombardier, 2 Excavators,
1 Harvester Saw, 1 Geoboy, and 2 helicopters
Today's Activities
&
Fire Behavior
Fire activity is expected to remain light again today and should stay that way for several more days. As many as 5 days of drying may be required before fire activity has the opportunity to increase. No fire spread has been evident since July 5, when precipitation began falling regularly in the fire area. Several areas of smoke are still evident, due to the deep pockets of peat burning in the fire interior.
Firefighters will continue vegetation reduction work and mop up operations along Corapeake Ditch, to the south of the fire today. Crews will also be maintaining the sprinkler system in this section. Efforts will continue to improve line and maintain flooding operations north of Interior Ditch. Firefighters along the eastern Riddick Ditch will resume road improvements and continue to maintain the sprinkler system from Drummond Lake south to Corapeake Ditch. Helicopters will be available to support ground crews today with water drops if necessary.
Participating Agencies & Cooperators
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Virginia State Department of Forestry, Florida Division of Forestry, The Nature Conservancy, National Park Service, U.S. Forest Service, Bureau of Indian Affairs, the North Carolina Division of Forest Resources, Dismal Swamp State Park, Chesapeake Fire Rescue, Suffolk Fire Rescue and the Civil Air Patrol.
Restrictions and Closures
Portions of the Refuge are closed to the public including: Lake Drummond, Railroad Ditch, West Ditch, Interior Ditch and Corapeake Ditch Roads. The area of the Refuge south of Corapeake Ditch Road is also closed. Washington Ditch and Jericho Ditch are open. The Dismal Swamp State Park has opened a portion of the Canal Trail, from the Visitor's Center to Kim Saunders Road. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineer Lake Drummond Reservation part of the Canal, is closed to visitors. Contact the Corps at 757-201-7642 for more information.
TFR: The temporary flight restriction over the South One Fire has been lifted. In the interest of safety, any aircraft wishing to fly into the fire area is urged to notify "Air Attack" on radio frequency 136.400 at 12 miles out. Aircraft pilots can also call ahead and notify Air Operations at (804)249-0919.
Fire Weather
Today's maximum temperature will be 87 degrees with winds from the east at 5-8 mph, and minimum relative humidity at 49%. There is a 20% chance of thunderstorms forecasted for the fire area.
Smoke
A mixture of smoke and fog in the fire area could cause visibility issues in the evenings and mornings. Drivers are urged to be extremely cautious and travel with their low beam lights on.
Other Fire Information
Suffolk Saturday bus tours of the refuge are cancelled until further notice. On the Refuge, Jericho Ditch, Washington Ditch, and Portsmouth Ditch roads are open to the public. Speed limit on Desert Road near Refuge headquarters is 35 mph due to heavy fire traffic. Further information on the Great Dismal Swamp can be found at http://www.fws.gov/northeast/greatdismalswamp/; more fire information at http://www.inciweb.org/
