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North Carolina

North Carolina

Largest Refuge Fire of 2008 Declared Out

January 2009

The Evans Road Fire, ignited by lightning on June 1 near Pocosin Lakes National Wildlife Refuge in North Carolina, grew quickly onto the refuge eventually burning more than 41,500 acres. The fire was fully contained after several months of hard work by firefighters and finally declared out on January 5, 2009.

Despite the hot and dry weather conditions which lingered over the Evans Road Fire, firefighters made good progress controlling the incident. Pumps, sprinklers, and miles of hose were used to flood areas which continued to smolder deep into the soil throughout the incident in some areas burning several feet deep.

Typical of swampy areas, peat soils consisting of organic matter burned and held intense heat. Soaking the peat with water was the only way to fully extinguish the underground fire. About 21.6 million gallons of water were pumped into the fire area during one 24-hour period.

A major safety concern was standing hazard trees with root systems burned and weakened by the fire. Such unstable trees can fall unexpectedly near people or onto a hot area causing the fire to flare-up.

The refuge is managed largely to restore, enhance and protect wetland habitats for waterfowl and other animal and plant species.

	Stilted trees resulting from fire burning deep into the peat soils of the Pocosin Lakes National Wildlife Refuge remain as a visible reminder of the Evans Road Fire.

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The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service manages public land in every U.S. state and territory, including 547 national wildlife refuges and 69 national fish hatcheries.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service manages 75 million burnable acres, including 24 million acres of forest/brushland and 4 million acres of grassland.

More than 50% of U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service lands in the continental U.S. (and more than 90% in Alaska) include fire-adapted ecosystems with vegetation dependent on periodic fire.

An average of 500 wildfires burn 260,000 acres each year on U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service lands. The Service also burns about 300,000 acres a year using prescribed fire.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service annual fire program budget is approximately $80 million.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service employs more than 530 permanent fire professionals, along with 270 seasonal and temporary fire employees during fire season.

More than 3,000 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service employees are qualified to assist with wildland fire management on an interagency basis.

The U.S. Fish and Wildland Service Fire Management Program protects more than 700 communities and wildland-urban interface areas.

Historically, an acre was the amount of land tillable by one man behind an ox in one day. This measures 90% of a football field. There are 640 acres in a square mile.

More than 90% of the hazardous fuels reduction by U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is completed using prescribed fire.