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Shenandoah National Park now has
better, more accessible information to help it provide
improved protection to structures within and near its
boundary. This was made possible by a partnership of
a National Park Service Northeast Regional Office-sponsored
Student Conservation Association (SCA) Fire Education
Corps (FEC) and an award-winning methodology developed
by Shenandoah National Park employees.
The SCA FEC used the Wildland Hazard
Assessment Methodology (WHAM) to complete the work.
WHAM was developed by employees of Shenandoah National
Park and was beta-tested by the SCA-FEC Virginia Partnership
Team. The crew conducted fire assessments and collected
GPS data from communities along the park’s boundary
and from all structures within the Park. The information
was collected in a Microsoft Access Database and mapped
in ArcView.
The assessment data consists of home
evaluations based on wildland-home fire prevention standards,
topographic features, well mapped roads of and to the
communities, resident and official contacts, and local
fire department contacts and response capabilities.
Data was collected by the SCA FEC, referred to as the
“Virginia Partnership Team” during the summer
of 2003. In 2004, additional structures within the park
were assessed. After sorting this data, two hard-copy
collections were organized. One collection has information
on structures maintained by ARAMARK, the Park’s
concessionaire; a second showed all high-risk structures
within the park, both ARAMARK and NPS. The latter was
provided to the park’s fire management office.
Hard copies provide a handy reference. The computer
database, which is easy to update, can be used to create
maps and other products to assist planning. This work
was completed in 2004 and subsequently the data collected
has been used in the creation of the park’s Fire
Management Plan which is in development.
Hazard ratings at the boundary are
available to Fire Management staff and will become available
to local fire departments and those communities assessed
by WHAM. Data is also available to Shenandoah NP for
wildfire prevention planning and response efforts. Additional
steps remain, including meetings with local fire departments
to discuss the fire assessment work. These and other
activities are part of building an effective partnership
of homeowners and fire professionals who share the goals
of providing for public and firefighter safety and protecting
homes from wildfire.
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