NPS Fire & Aviation Blog

Norwegian Fire Managers Visit Trinity Ridge Fire Camp

Fri, 07 Dec 2012 15:50:19 -0600

The National Interagency Fire Center recently hosted two Norwegian government officials. Ole Kristian Aagaard, District Commander for Civil Defense for Sør Trøndelag (South Trøndelag County) and Torbjørn Mæhlumsveen, Chief of the Trøndelag Inter-Municipal Fire Department, joined interagency fire managers to see firsthand how the Incident Command System works in the United States. Back home in Norway, the civil service is very different than here in the United States. As a smaller country with 5 million people, emergency responses to natural and human-caused events and disasters are undertaken at a local level. Townships and counties form their own response teams and there is no equivalent to the National Incident Management System (NIMS). There are no interagency management teams that can form a nationwide cohesive strategy in response to an emergency. But in an effort to better understand how a country like the United States undertakes the national response to events such as wildland fire, Ole and Torbjørn visited the National Interagency Fire Center here in Boise.

Together, we traveled to the Trinity Ridge Fire in Featherville, Idaho, with BLM Public Affairs Specialist Ken Frederick, USFS Public Affairs Specialist Jennifer Jones, USFS Researcher David Seesholtz, and BLM Executive Administrative Assistant Toni Rohm. We visited the fire camp and toured the Incident Command Post (ICP). Public information officers discussed the role of providing information to the public, the media, ICS personnel and firefighters. They showed us around to the various sections and we saw how a well-functioning ICP works under the NIMS. Ole and Torbjørn said the ICP was an overwhelming experience. The size and complexity of the operation was something they had not seen before. To watch it firsthand was an entirely new learning experience.

The day we visited, burnout operations were taking place to protect the town of Featherville. We travelled north to view this operation and saw helicopters work efficiently, hauling water to help contain the rate of spread. When I asked Torbjørn if they had operations like this in Norway, he told me that wildfire is rare. Rainfall mixed with colder temperatures make large fire incidents uncommon.

Wildland fire may be uncommon in Norway, but there were many important lessons to take home. As part of NIMS, their visit to the fire near Featherville showed a small, yet important aspect of the overall National Response Framework. This is a model that is used for all incidents; from natural disasters to wildland fires to chemical spills and terrorist attacks. Since Norway responds to incidents at the local level and has no national response system in place, this visit to Boise helped Ole and Torbjørn gain a perspective on responding at several levels, at understanding the different levels of command, how resources are shared, and how decisions are made.

Last Weeks at CAHA

Fri, 07 Dec 2012 15:50:05 -0600

During the last few weeks of my internship, I’ve been working on a couple of projects. Last week, I finished up my performance based analysis of the Cape Hatteras Double Keepers’ Quarters. Some of the issues I addressed were the design of the sprinkler system, a headroom obstruction over both stairwells, and door swing direction. After doing both the prescriptive and performance based analyses of the same building, it is interesting to see how the code addresses certain issues in comparison to how I see them. I don’t have a lot of experience in performance based review and design, but I was able to use what I’ve learned in other areas to influence my recommendations for the DKQ.

For the most part, the areas I identified as issues mirrored the issues as defined by NFPA. A few were different, in that I discussed another aspect of a certain element than what NFPA 101 considered to be the main life safety hazard. For example, NFPA prescribes a certain headroom height over stairs so that occupants don’t have to uncomfortably descend a staircase, slowing evacuation time. The obstructions in this case are a 90° corner over each stair, and I am worried about an occupant sharply striking his head in a hurried attempt to exit the building from the second floor.

The most interesting and intellectually challenging aspect of this report was trying to find a balance between life safety/property protection and preserving the historical integrity of the building while correcting the hazards. I identified 9 areas or features of the building that were the backbone of its historical significance, such as the exterior and interior siding, floors, porch, and staircases. As much as possible, my goal was to avoid altering these 9 features. However, for a few of the issues that I identified as “Major Hazards” or “Moderate Hazards,” I did recommend some slight alterations to these features. Whenever this occurred, I tried to tailor my recommendation to preserve at least some of these features’ character to give visitors and staff a feeling of what the original was like.

This week, I went back down to Hatteras to do a demonstration on hydrant flow testing. The park purchased a Hose Monster Flow Test Kit that we used to prevent water damage to the surrounding area. During the test, a few employees noted that in the many years they have been employed by CAHA, they have never seen a hydrant being flow tested. Though this is somewhat alarming, the newfound interest in hydrant testing echoes the park-wide effort to make major improvements to fire and life safety systems. The segment of piping that we did flow test had a very low flow rate, roughly 270 gpm, but did not spit out any large debris and the water cleared of any rust and dirt in only a few seconds.

As I finish out my last few days in the Outer Banks, I’m uploading all the fire protection systems information that I got from my inventory into a spreadsheet for upload into FMSS. The most notable trend that I noticed through all of my “inventorying” was the overly complicated sprinkler systems protecting park buildings. Both the Outer Banks Group HQ (where I work) and the Fort Raleigh Visitor Center have pre-action sprinkler systems installed. Neither has any exposure to the elements and both are fully heated. As a result, the Visitor Center has been having some issues with the alarm system falsely activating and the sprinkler system charging. Both buildings, in my opinion, are perfect candidates for a common wet-pipe sprinkler system, so I’m curious as to the reasoning behind the pre-action systems.

I’ve thoroughly enjoyed my time here at CAHA, and I’m proud to have helped jump start what will hopefully be a nationwide increase in Park Service fire protection professionals. I’ve both learned a lot about practical fire protection and been able to educate staff on how to improve the protection of visitors and resources. I want to thank Brian Johnson at NIFC for giving me this opportunity, Jon Anglin at the Outer Banks Group for being a great supervisor, Jim King and Andy Wilson for teaching me a lot about protecting important structures and their occupants, and all of the welcoming CAHA staff who helped me out along the way. I look forward to the continuing partnership between the University of Maryland and the National Park Service giving FPE students a chance to contribute what they know at the Park and Regional level, increasing fire safety nationwide.

PEFO Update

Fri, 03 Aug 2012 18:46:00 -0600

At this point, I have been to nearly all of the structures in the park to conduct the annual fire safety building inspections. The bulidings did pretty well, and there were no really serious issues. As is common throughout the Park Service, ITM on the portable fire extinguishers was not being performed, or at least noted, each month. The park is in the process of fixing this issue with their revived building safety warden program. This week I have been working on putting my findings into work order requests.

Another project I have worked briefly on was the park's Building Warden Program. This program was developed several years ago for use at the park for a monthly safety check of each building. In the past few years however, the implementation of the program faltered. PEFO is now making an honest effort to restart the program. Each division of the park management has one employee assigned as a building warden for a period of time. Their duties include acconting for other staff during emergencies and conducting a simple monthly safety check of their building. There is a check sheet to be filled out that includes inspections of fire extinguishers, first aid kits, exit signs, emergency lights, electrical panels, and fire exits. This inspection sheet is due each month at the park's Safety Committe meeting where issues can be discussed. If there is a more severe problem discovered during the inspection, the building wardens are instructed to report their finding immediately. Hopefully with a strict deadline and follow up discussion, these inspections will be done routinely. I met briefly with each building warden and sat in on the safety committe meeting during their discussion of the program.

I am currently in the final stages of my report on the fire protection evaluation of the Painted Desert Visitor Center and Administration building. This was a project Brian Johnson asked each of the interns to work on for a historic structure at their park. We were asked to look at the buildings in a prescriptive manner (straight from the code requirements) and a performance based manner (what are the real hazards and solutions). This was a good project and used some of the knowledge from class. It was a way to use the classroom learning from ENFP 250 and portions of ENFP 411 in the real world. It's an important reminder that the code is often just a starting point, especially for existing and historic structures.

Last week I assisted the PSFC with the training of several employees in the use of fire extinguishers. At PEFO, employees are provided a hands-on fire extinguisher training opportunity each year. There is a very cool training device called a BullEx that the park uses. It is a propane fueled burner (similar to a grill, but big fire) that employees put out with a water extinguisher. It is electronically controlled and can simulate different class fires.

Additionally, I have just started looking at the park's Occupant Emergency Plan for the administration building. This document lays out the procedures and responsibilities of employees during several different types of emergencies, including fires. I hope to clarify and update it in the next few days.

It's not been all work and no play though... Luckily, Arizona is a diverse landscape and I have been able to enjoy it on my days off. I've been almost all the way through the state, from Phoenix to Flagstaff and a weekend at the Grand Canyon. It's unbelievable that just 2 hours north of 110 degree Phoenix you can be over 12,000 ft on top of the highest mountain in Arizona, where it's just a touch above 60.

Wildland Fire Leadership and Career Development Videos Posted on Lessons Learned Website

Thu, 26 Jul 2012 06:34:18 -0600

Over the past several months I have been working on video projects. The first four videos featuring interviews with career firefighters have now been uploaded onto the Wildland Fire Lessons Learned Center's (LLC) YouTube page. Answering questions about their career experiences, mentors and mentoring, Sue Husari from the National Park Service, Jim Cook from the U.S. Forest Service, Chris Wilcox from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and Jeff Arnberger from the Bureau of Land Management provide valuable information for young firefighters looking to turn their summer job into a full-time career.

My experience creating these videos taught me some pretty cool skills. I had never created a product using video editing software before, so there was quite a learning curve before I could submit my videos to the LLC. I first began editing the videos using Adobe Premiere Elements, a very basic editing tool. Unfortunately it did not have the capacity I needed in order to create decent videos and I instead switched to Adobe Premiere Pro CS5, a top of the line and easy to learn video editor. From there I was able to create transitions, insert photos, music tracks and test the videos before final publication. This allowed me to create the kinds of videos I envisioned for publication on the LLC YouTube page.

There are three more interviews in the works: Jun Kinoshita, Fire Archeologist at Yosemite National Park, Ben Jacobs, Fuels Specialist at Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks, and Brit Rosso, Center Manager for the Wildand Fire Lessons Learned Center. During my travels to Sequoia and Kings Canyon, I interviewed Ben and Brit. Jun was in Boise, Idaho and I was able to interview him during his visit. All three interviewees have added their own key insights regarding career development and mentoring. I look forward to completing them and making these three interviews available as a resource as well.

NCTC

Mon, 23 Jul 2012 06:34:18 -0600

Of these last two weeks at Cape Hatteras, I only actually spent half of the time in North Carolina. The week of July 9^th, my supervisor and I spent a week taking part in the Park Structural Fire Coordinator seminar at NCTC in West Virginia. As anyone familiar with the most recent installment of A123 can tell you, every park in the country had to appoint a Structural Fire Coordinator to oversee day to day structural fire protection activity. Unfortunately, the furthest extent of many of these appointees knowledge of structural fire protection is calling the alarm company to find out why they got five TROUBLE SIGNAL emails at 3 o'clock in the morning. While a few PSFCs do have a firefighting background, the majority are LE and Facilities Management personnel who have taken on the PSFC job as a collateral duty.

This 3-day long class helped to expand this knowledge of fire protection, essentially a crash course in structural fire protection. Teachers included Jim King, Brian Johnson, Donna Baumgaertner, Andy Wilson of the Smithsonian, Don Boucher, Matt Kim, and myself. These FP professionals gave lessons on everything from alarm systems to the Life Safety Code to on-site inspections.

Matt and I did a lesson on portable fire extinguishers during the second day of class. The major issue country-wide when it comes to PFEs is that they are simply not inspected. For the most part, they are installed, just not kept up to date on monthly and yearly inspections. As with everything, ITM is critical with PFEs, so we explained the required steps during a monthly inspection. It could be catastrophic to run up to a trashcan fire only to find that the extinguisher's hose is blocked or the gauge is busted and no suppressant comes out. We had some PFEs as props and had two of the students do a mock inspection to demonstrate.

Additionally, we gave some insight into how extinguishers work, the different classifications for which they are designed, and proper placement/spacing of extinguishers. As for the latter, we have an issue here at HQ that is totally the opposite of what one would expect; next to the break room, we have 4 extinguishers within a 40 ft. span.

Overall, the class was a great success in my opinion. I was glad to be able to help where I could, and I learned as much, if not more, than I taught. The NCTC campus is fantastic as well, there are lots of great hiking trails and exhibits (see below) and the food was quite a few steps above the UMD North Campus diner. Students and instructors alike took advantage of this opportunity and went for walks, ate together, and talked over "just one" beer at the NCTC pub.

In addition to a great training campus, NCTC is home to some great exhibits and trails that allow you to see some of West Virginia's (and elsewhere's) natural beauty.

Upon returning to CAHA, I put some of what I learned to use almost immediately. I started putting together flip-style emergency/evacuation plans for our HQ and have made up several evacuation diagrams for the buildings around Fort Raleigh.

I'm continuing to inventory the fire protection systems around the park. I've started compiling all of the deficiencies I've found thus far into a spreadsheet, and I will be hopefully turning them into work orders within the next week. My prescriptive analysis of the Cape Hatteras Double Keepers Quarters is coming along as well.

View of the DKQ from the nationally recognized Cape Hatteras Lighthouse

I've gotten the floor plans from our Facilities Management folks and have the square footage and NFPA 101-calculated occupancies on paper. Monday I will be making the hour and a half trip down to the Hatteras Lighthouse area to get a few more specifics on the structure, then I will be spending time during the rest of the week compiling a comprehensive, code-based report.

First Impression of Keweenaw National Historical Park

Wed, 18 Jul 2012 09:56:00 -0600

When I first found out that I was going to work for the National Park Service, my mind was instantly filled with thoughts of zany adventures with a lovable gang of talking bears. After realizing that this assumption was mainly based on my exposure to Yogi Bear as a kid, I decided it was probably best to revisit my expectations. I then imagined that I would be in the middle of a giant forest where I would live in a cabin on a cliff with a perpetual sunset out on the horizon, but then I realized that this too was a little farfetched and had almost nothing to do with fire protection engineering (the reason I had gotten my internship).

Finally, I formed a more realistic expectation for what I was to expect. I had figured I would be in a forest somewhere designing and inspecting fire protection systems in secluded lodges, forts and other similar structures. Though I am sure that this expectation may be similar to someone's duties in the NPS, I was to soon find out that it was not exactly what I would be doing. I had braced myself in the weeks before my departure for a land of seclusion where there would scarcely be cell phone service let alone internet connection, but what I found surprised me.

When I arrived at Keweenaw National Historical Park I found that there was indeed excellent cell phone service and that instead of a thick forest, the park was surrounded by a quaint village. I was also, by no means, going to be some form of secluded mountain man as I had imagined in my various day dreams of my summer internships. Instead I found myself with my own office and working with a group of amazing and amiable people. I also found that I was not, in fact, going to be protecting forts or lodges, but instead I was going to be assessing the existing fire safety systems in several of the park's existing buildings as well as reviewing the Emergency Action Plan of the park and lend a hand in further developing the subsection of the plan that deals with fire. So overall it is not what I expected, but it has been fun so far regardless.

The community that surrounds the park is called Calumet and during its heyday was a huge mining town that rivaled many of the surrounding communities in the Upper Peninsula complete with a theatre and several large department stores. Yet since the closing of the mines, the population of the community had drastically fallen from around 30,000 to under 3,000. Because of this drastic population drop there are too few people to occupy all of the buildings in the community which has left many houses and stores vacant. Yet, though these stores and houses aren't filled with people, they are teeming with the history of the people that once lived in Calumet. This history is so saturated in every locally quarried sandstone foundation that the excess history flows through the streets.

At least, this is the only way I can explain how the locals all know so much about the history of their town. Every resident of the area adjacent to the park seems to be an expert in some facet of the areas vast history. I have had the pleasure of meeting people that have told me about a large variety of topics ranging from the politics of mining to the existence of a speakeasy beneath a local bar. Yet, no matter what their expertise of local history is, the one universal constant that I have found in all of the residents of Calumet I have met is that they are all genuinely nice people. If I were to get a dollar for every time I met someone in Calumet that didn't greet me with a warm smile I'd be pretty mad because I would not be receiving any dollars at all.

Besides the history and beauty of the small town itself, the park is also surrounded by wonderful places to see. Within 10 minutes I can drive from my apartment building to the shores of Lake Superior where I can take pictures and go rock hunting to my heart's content. On the other hand, by driving 25 minutes in the other direction I can find myself in the city of Houghton. Since Houghton is next to Michigan Tech University, the city has everything a college student could need including a music shop where I have decided to take weekly guitar lessons with a really engaging instructor. One thing I was very surprised to find was that although Houghton has two pretty nice coffee shops, the best ones that I have found in the Upper Peninsula so far are right in Downtown Calumet. To date, I have spent countless hours sitting outside of these shops drinking a coffee or sipping an espresso while reading a book and cannot think of a more enjoyable way to spend my free time. Though, when I do want to do things other than reading and drinking coffee I have found that I have many activities to fill my time with such as mountain biking, camping or just hanging out with the amazing group of friends that I have made so far.

So if there is any merit in the notion that the first impression is the most important than I would have to say that Calumet and Keweenaw National Historical Park have made an amazing impression on me and I look forward to the rest of my time here.

Seasonal Interpretive Training at Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks

Mon, 09 Jul 2012 08:56:24 -0600

In late May and early June I traveled to Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks to take part in an interpretive training course. I did this because a very important part of my job description is "educator and communicator." It is not my job to simply sit in front of a computer screen and create videos and write articles. No, it has been necessary for me meet face-to-face with people and help them understand what fire means to the National Park Service.

Before heading off to the Sierra, I took an online course on the art of interpretation, or as Freeman Tilden wrote "an educational activity which aims to reveal meanings and relationships through the use of original objects, by firsthand experience, and by illustrative media, rather than simply to communicate factual information." The class, "Foundations of Interpretation" was free through the Eppley Institute available online at eppley.org. Additionally, I've brushed up on my fire and NPS knowledge by reading relevant books and articles, as well as keeping informed of current fire activities. Lastly, I give periodic tours of the facilities here at the National Interagency Fire Center (NIFC), so my speaking skills are gradually improving. Needless to say, I was excited to travel to California to apply what I've already learned to my classroom experience.

When I arrived at the park, I was stunned by everything I saw. The towering sequoias were simply astounding to look at. The drive into the park from Fresno to Grant Grove showed such an outstanding ecological difference: In the valley I was surrounded by farms, then brush, chaparral, foothills, forests and then finally the giant forests of the Grant Grove. I drove through and made my way to the Lodgepole campsite where I stayed the night.

On the first day we trained in Grant Grove in Kings Canyon. I met the training cadre and the seasonal employees that were there for the training with me. We discussed the NPS mission: what that mission means to us and various ways that message is imparted to the greater public. We also saw a fire interpretive lesson from Deb Schweizer, the Fire Communication and Education Specialist for the park. She helped us understand the ecological benefits of fire and the key elements of the park fire management program. Plus, she helped us understand the many challenges that come with interpreting fire.

Day two was at Ash Mountain in the foothills of Sequoia National Park. We saw presentations regarding the air quality, wildlife issues, cultural awareness, and climate change in Sequoia and Kings Canyon Parks. Each presentation equipped the seasonal employees with a general understanding of current issues facing the parks. The training, after all, was focused on Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks, the place where all these new employees would be working all summer. I played the part of outside observer, someone who was there for the experience, especially since NIFC does not frequently do hands-on interpretation. Still, I gained so much knowledge about creating interpretive programs, that I feel it was still worth it for me to attend the course.

There were in fact many universal interpretive lessons that the cadre taught us. Matt Fagan, the Sequoia North District Interpreter, was especially adept at explaining how to use tangibles, intangibles and universal concepts in order to connect with visitors and help visitors connect to the parks. For example, an interpretive ranger might explain the importance of the giant sequoia trees in a way that connects them to the pioneering spirit of early America. Or perhaps the ranger might explain how black bears protect their cubs by comparing such behavior to the way people raise their children--in turn creating those intangible and tangible connections between the audience and the subject.

On the third and fourth days of training, we made practical use of the lessons we learned. We spent time writing goals, objectives and themes, and applied them to an interpretive program plan. We discussed interpretive skills and techniques, worked on program introductions and conclusions, and how to anticipate different kinds of issues. Lastly, we discussed different courses that are available through the Eppley Institute.

The last activity we participated in was a tour through Crystal Cave in the foothills of Sequoia National Park. There, we observed cave tour guide Matt Springer apply many of the tools and techniques we had learned throughout the week.

My trip wasn't all training though. I spent one day hiking the Lakes Trail to Emerald Lake in the high Sierra. During the climb, I observed the changing vegetation from dense pine forests to the rugged and sparse foxtail pine stands and rocky outcroppings of the higher elevations. I saw a bear and several yellow-bellied marmots. I stood at the Watchtower and took in a fantastic view of the Tokopah Valley, then ate lunch at Emerald Lake.

Overall, the training was a fantastic experience. I was well prepared coming in by studying the fundamentals of interpretation beforehand. The hands-on training I received in the park brought context to what I had already learned. From park-specific informational training to the universal and transferable interpretive lessons we received, the training was valuable on every level. I made some valuable connections with both the training cadre and the incoming seasonal interpreters who took the course with me. The setting we received the training in also made it worthwhile. Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks are beautiful places to visit, and the interpretive staff was well prepared to train the incoming interpreters. I only hope I will have a chance to visit the area again in the near future--either for work or recreation.

Systems Inventory and Hatteras DKQ

Fri, 06 Jul 2012 17:28:34 -0600

I'm writing this blog entry a little bit earlier in the pay period than the last one because next week I will out of the office, attending the Park Structural Fire Coordinator Conference in West Virginia.

Recently, I've been continuing to take inventory of the Park's fire protection systems. One of the questionable trends that I've noticed is that maintenance areas are pretty cluttered, and do not typically contain any fire protection other than portable fire extinguishers. As some of these areas are going to be used for welding and cutting, this ties right in with the hot work policy that I have been developing. As I continue to look around the Park, I will be submitting groups of work orders to correct some of these critical deficiencies.

For our analysis of a historical structure, I will be using the Double Keeper's Quarters down near Buxton, on Hatteras Island. Originally built in 1854, the ex-living quarters are now used as a visitor center and exhibit hall for visitors who come to see the famous Hatteras Lighthouse. The building was retrofitted with concealed sprinklers, but their placement is dubious and the stairs and exits are still the originals, so their code compliance will be interesting to look at. The building is roughly an hour and fifteen minute drive from HQ. It is hard to believe that the National Seashore extends another 30 miles from that down to Ocracoke, with a ferry ride thrown in for good measure.

This is an old photo of the DKQ found on the InsideNPS Historical Structures page, most likely taken pre-sprinkler system.

In 1999, the lighthouse, Double Keeper's Quarters, Principle Keeper's Quarters and four other buildings were all moved a few hundred yards down the seashore in one piece. They were put onto steel beams, placed on wheels, and rolled down to the new area. This was done because of the growing threat of erosion. The ocean has been slowly eroding away the beach, and the decision was made to make the move. I only wish I had been there to see it, below is a picture I found on Google.

Credit: http://www.mytripolog.com/2009/05/buxton-home-of-cape-hatteras-part-2/

We got in our Hose Monster Flow Test Kit last week (below), so I am excited to get out and flow test some hydrants in the next few weeks. It's starting to feel like summer here, so the hydrant flowing will be a welcome task.

Like I said above, next week I will be at the Fish and Wildlife Service's National Conservation Training Center in West Virginia. Jim King, the SE Region's Structural Fire Manager, set up a conference for PSFCs to learn a little more about the various fire protection strategies that they will be employing. From the rough schedule put out a few weeks ago, it looks like Matt and I may be helping with some of the instruction. Though it is not the typical SFPE or NFPA conference that many FPEs may think of, it should be a good learning experience and will give me good exposure to how continuing education plays a critical role in the evolution of fire protection. And the lodging/campus looks pretty nice too.

I'll be sure to post pictures in my next entry.

First Thoughts and Fire Protection in the Desert

Tue, 03 Jul 2012 16:16:20 -0600

Like a few of the other interns, I thought that fire protection with the National Park Service was all about the grand lodges, forests, wildfires, and keeping parks safe in the wildland urban interface. When I found out that I was going to be working at the Petrified Forest this summer doing fire protection, it sent a few jokes my way. Surely, the forest of petrified wood, located in the middle of the desert, would be safe from fires. Below is a photo of just one of the logs located here at the park.

The jokes were fun, but in reality, there is more to fire protection in the Park Service than Smokey the Bear and wildfires. While wildfires are no joke, structural fire is a very real hazard throughout the Park Service, and here at PEFO. Part of the challenge here, as with many parks, is the remoteness and dependency on outside fire departments. Here at PEFO, if a structural fire were to occur, it will take the fire department at least 45 minutes to arrive – after the call is made. This fact makes fire prevention and emergency preparedness even more important.

I have been working on a few different projects the past few weeks. It is of great interest to the park to install automatic sprinklers in the buildings here for several reasons. The primary goal is to get protection in the visitor center and headquarters building, as well as the employee housing. The installation of these sprinklers will keep people safe from fire, and will also reduce the impact of a fire to the historic buildings, irreplaceable collections, and personal property. To move towards this goal, I have been working on a project description and scope of work to install these systems.

Last week, I was able to work with the Park Structural Fire Coordinator and perform the annual flow tests of all of the fire hydrants here at the park. This ensures that the hydrants are operating properly, and that the water supply remains adequate and reliable. The park has a nifty device that attaches to the hydrant and has a built-in pitot gauge which helps simplify the pressure reading process (see image below).

In the next few weeks, I hope to help the park with their annual building fire inspections to ensure that fire and life safety measures are being maintained and the buildings are safe.

On a different note, the monsoon season is here, and last week it rained for the first time in months. I am looking forward to seeing water flowing down the Puerco River that runs through the park. At the moment, it's hard to believe it's a river...

Structural Fire Protection, Weeks 2 and 3 at CAHA

Thu, 28 Jun 2012 18:57:00 -0600

When I first applied to the National Park Service, I imagined that if I was offered a position, it would be in some remote northwestern park. My uninformed expectation of NPS structural fire protection was essentially making sure that some lodge in Yellowstone or Glacier National Park was safe from wildfires. Upon being offered a summer position at Cape Hatteras, I thought "that sounds cool, but what could burn on a beach, lifeguard stands?" Man, was I wrong. There are dozens of buildings here scattered around various islands, each housing important people, exhibits, and machinery. The people work hard every day to give tourists an informative, safe, and fun experience that they will enjoy. From Ocracoke to Wright Brothers National Memorial, Park buildings are mixed in with the seashore, wildlife preserves, and the typical beach scenery. While the current fire protection is sometimes not up to par, I quickly came to realize that I will have a busy and interesting summer making sure that I assist however I can in noting and improving these buildings' life and property safety.

These last two weeks, I got out to see a little more of the National Seashore, with a trip down to the Bodie Island Lighthouse. A new deluge sprinkler system is being put into place in a small building at the base of the lighthouse, called the "Oil House." Some pictures of the lighthouse and interior of the Oil House are below.

The design phase has been completed, with installation of the riser and underground feed piping being the current stage of work. The Southeast Regional Structural Fire Coordinator, Jim King, came up from Atlanta to give his required input to the project. Unfortunately, some 230 ft. of underground piping had already been buried with its code compliance still up in the air. Fortunately, after some code research and communication, it was determined that the pipe can be used in the current system.

A picture of the Bodie Island Lighthouse under renovation. The Oil House is the small white building at its base.

This is the interior of the Oil House leading into the lighthouse stairs.

I've also been working on putting together an inventory of the current fire protection systems in place around CAHA. So far, my reviews have been limited to the Fort Raleigh area, but I expect to get out to some of the more distant areas within the next few weeks. Below are some pictures of the areas I've looked at and some problematic features, which I will be helping to address during the rest of my stay here.

This is the inside of a storage building called the Bally Building. The sprinkler branch line runs along the underside of the exposed ductwork, with sprinklers every 9 feet or so. Its lowest point is about 6 feet below the actual ceiling (Upper left).

This is a close-up of one of the sprinklers along the previously mentioned branch line. It is, for some reason, in a cage.

This is the inside of one temperature-controlled metal storage enclosure (out of 3) in the Museum Resource Building. The enclosures are within a sprinklered building, but there is no suppression within the enclosures themselves, where the important documents and artifacts are kept. We are thinking of extending the sprinkler system from the Museum Resource Building into the enclosures. The only issue is that the storage in Room 1 comes to well within 18 inches of the ceiling, so design and placement of sprinklers will be crucial. Some of the documents will have to be moved as well.

Also, the historical staff isn't ecstatic about having water in with their documents, but as Jim King and many others have said, "There are ways to bring documents back from water damage, there is no way to bring them back from ashes." Once that room is hot enough to activate the sprinklers, the documents are in danger, if not already destroyed.

This is the view from my cubicle of a sprinkler head and smoke detector. Both of which are properly spaced and maintained.

Over the next few weeks, I plan on continuing with this inventory/assessment, traveling over to Bodie Island and Wright Brothers National Memorial. I'm also going to work on some emergency evacuation plans for park buildings and start putting together a flow testing program for the hydrants around the park.

Minor fire safety issues

Fri, 15 Jun 2012 14:42:00 -0600

Last Friday, Andy and I went down to Prince William Forest Park (PWRI) to take a look at the cabins conditions. We found some interesting problems that need to be addressed from a fire safety point of view. I'll let the following pictures do the talking...

Pile of dead leaves under wooden construction building

When you see it...

More dead stuff

Oh hi there

Anyway, these four pictures basically summarize the problems that we found.

I'm finishing up a recommendation report to give to PWRI. Now whether they will follow the recommendations will probably depend on the staffing and the cabin's historical value. With that in mind, I formed my main recommendation to be a free of maintenance as possible. The last thing I need to do is a cost estimate and I'm interested in learning the process that goes with it.

I think I'll start working on the Old Stone House pretty soon. Hopefully, I'll visit the Rock Creek Park next week to take a look around.

Changing my topic, on Wednesday I did some flow testing with Tony Ashdown at the National Mall. I found flow testing to be pretty fun!

I really wish there was a preview button... I'm sorry if the formatting isn't quite right.

Intern Introduction

Fri, 08 Jun 2012 16:30:00 -0600

Hi everyone. My name is Eric, and this summer I will be working in the Petrified Forest National Park as a Structural Fire Intern. I am a senior at the University of Maryland, expecting to graduate in December with a degree in Fire Protection Engineering.

After a long (2200 mi) drive from home, I finally arrived here in Arizona. It is quite a different location than I'm used to. It is relatively remote, there are essentially no trees or shade, it's nearly always sunny, and there is no humidity! But so far so good! The park is great, and I recommend a visit at some point to explore the history and natural beauty that is protected here.

I've been here for a week now, and have begun working on projects concerning the structural fire protection capabilities here at the park. One of the main goals is to investigate installing automatic sprinkler systems and updating the fire alarms in the visitor center, concessions facility, offices, and employee housing.

I am excited to be here, and hope that I am able to apply my education to the benefit of the facilities, employees, and visitors of Petrified Forest National Park.

Structural Fire Summer Internship 2012

Thu, 07 Jun 2012 10:33:00 -0600

My name is Hyeon, but I also go by Matt. I’m pretty sure everyone will have an easier time going by the second option. I’m a senior at the University of Maryland’s fire protection engineering program. Why did I choose fire protection engineering? Even I don’t know the answer to that question. Perhaps I was drawn to it by my inner pyromaniac.

Pyromania thoughts aside, it already has been two weeks since I started working at the National Capital Regional Office (NCRO) under Don Boucher, The Regional Fire and Emergency Manager. I’ll also be working with Andrew Wilson who recently retired from the Smithsonian Institute and is working as a volunteer with the NPS. For Don, I’m working on putting together a list of funded construction projects that may need some form of fire safety review. At the same time I’m working on a project for Prince William Forest Park to solve their issues with the fire alarm system. In few days, I’ll start working on another project for Rock Creek Park to look that the Old Stone House’s fire alarm system and fire suppression system. Throw in some small projects like fixing a life safety deficiency at the regional office; hopefully I’ll be busy for couple of weeks.

So far the major downside of the internship has to be the Washington DC traffic. Especially since my car has manual transmission… Hopefully I not going to burn my clutch, but my left leg is going to get a workout over the summer.

A Brief Introduction

Wed, 06 Jun 2012 13:00:09 -0600

My name is Kevin Ruth and I am going into my senior year at the University of Maryland as a Fire Protection Engineer. I first became interested in the field of Fire Protection Engineering because fire had fascinated me since I was a child and I yearned to learn the science of how it worked. Through my studies I began to find that I had a particular interest in the protection of historic structures. It is very upsetting to me to think how much culture and history a fire can take away from a community by burning down important historic structures. That is why I choose the National Park Service because I knew that in a little way I would be helping preserve the history of a community.

Besides being a Fire Protection Engineer I am also a man of a million hobbies. It is not because I am good at a million things, but rather I try a million things and then realize after a while that I am not too good at them. A few of the things I love doing regardless of my level of skill in them is filmmaking, photography and comedy. I've been making films for a couple of years now and found that most of my work can be classified as comedy. Either because I wanted it to be comedy or I tried to do something serious and it came out so bad it was funny; regardless, people laugh. That's actually what got me into performing comedy, which I have been doing seriously since freshman year of college. I joined a sketch comedy group called Sketchup at the University of Maryland. I also am known to do some stand-up when I can find an open-mic night in the area and found that there are few thing I enjoy more than people laughing at a joke or story that I have told them. Photography has always been a slight hobby, but has recently gained much more appeal for some reason. I used to use an old film camera, but stopped after realizing how expensive it was to develop the pictures. I'm hoping that through my experience at the park I will be able to not only better myself as a fire protection engineer, but also spend my free time developing my skills in some of the things I love doing.

[Written June 6th 2012]

My First Week at Cape Hatteras

Wed, 06 Jun 2012 13:00:09 -0600

My name is Dan, and I will be a senior in the University of Maryland's Fire Protection Engineering department this fall. Before visiting Maryland during my senior year of High school, I had no idea that Fire Protection was even an engineering discipline. As a kid, I loved fireworks, campfires, really anything to do with fire, but I'd always been told not to play with matches. After watching a short presentation by an FPE professor during my first tour of UMD where the main theme was the exact opposite of that rule, I knew then and there what my profession was going to be. Growing up in Richmond, VA watching UVa and VCU games for the first 16 years of my life, I quickly transferred my loyalty and am currently a die-hard fan of all things Terps.

I've been down at the NPS Outer Banks Group Headquarters for 5 days now as this summer's Structural Fire Intern, working with Jon Anglin, the Park's Operations Chief and Structural/Wildland Fire Management Officer. This week, I've already been involved in some really interesting, hands-on Fire Protection work. I performed a Life Safety Code analysis of a Lost Colony building and some proposed plans for it. Unfortunately, it did not quite meet NFPA 101's standards, but I look forward to discussing further plans for it next week with Jim King, the South-East Region's Structural Fire Management Officer. Since taking a Life Safety Code course sophomore year, I have really enjoyed this sort of work, and I know I will be able to put what I've learned to good use here in the Outer Banks.

As far as getting familiar with the area, I moved in Sunday afternoon to Park housing on Roanoke Island. I'm living right down the street from where I'm working, so gas costs are luckily not going to be a problem this summer. Tuesday, I was able to take a ride in the Park Service's 6-seater Cessna single-prop plane down to Ocracoke Island, giving me a great view of the area that I was going to be working in. It was an awesome opportunity, the only step left to take is finally signing up for that skydiving lesson that I've always wanted to try.