On May 17, 2007 the National Park Service Fire Management Leadership Board, accompanied by Bandelier National Monument park staff, participated in a guided tour of the Cerro Grande Fire area seven years after it escaped prescription on May 5, 2000. USDA Forest Service Region 3 representatives were also present. The NPS Intermountain Region provided logistics and administrative support.
Former Bandelier Fire Management Officer Al King, along with Ed Hiatt, Grand Canyon North Rim Fire Management Officer provided on the scene interpretation of the key management decisions and the development of the project from planning to execution of the Upper Frijoles #1 and #5 prescribed fire. The combination of factors that resulted in conversion to the wildfire known as the Cerro Grande Fire was then explained. The group traversed five stations where themes were discussed and pictures were used to depict the scene.
The purpose of the meeting was both to familiarize the national leadership with the event, while using the occasion to integrate lessons learned. The result of the integrated discussion was the realization by the NPS fire leadership of the need for certain procedures to be set in place in preparation for a similar event in the future.
Several visual aids and products were assembled for the session that will benefit future students of this fire and the Bandelier National Monument fire program. A formal staff ride of the fire perimeter is offered annually by the Fire Use Training Academy (FUTA) as a component of its burn boss curriculum.
A staff ride is a planned learning event that has been used effectively by various branches of the U.S. military since the early 1900’s. The common purpose shared by staff rides is to further the development of leaders. The systematic study of wildland fire sites can help wildland firefighters and managers see how leaders’ decisions and followers’ behaviors influence tactical outcomes on fires, how terrain and weather influence both fire and human behavior on fires, and how technology, tactics and organization interact in a wildland fire setting at any complexity level.
Cerro Grande Staff Ride Contact:
Travis Dotson, FUTA Field Coordinator
Phone: (505) 842-3455
Bandelier Fire Management Program Contact:
Gary Kemp, Fire Management Officer
Phone: (505) 672-3861 x 550
*This story supports the National Fire Plan |
