JONES CREDITS FOREST SERVICE FOR REVIEW OF DAD FIRE

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today Congressman Walter B. Jones (NC-3) is crediting the U.S. Forest Service for following his call for a review of the June ‘Dad’ fire that consumed over 21,000 acres of the Croatan National Forest.  The Dad fire was set by Forest Service personnel as a pre-planned prescribed burn, but spread out of control into an adjacent wilderness area.  

Once the fire was fully contained in early July, the Forest Service conducted a Facilitated Learning Analysis to determine what caused it to spread and how to prevent incidents like this in the future.  The results of that analysis have now been released and can be found here.  The analysis cites an unexpected wind event, communication with the National Weather Service, and the metrics for when prescribed fires can be lit safely as factors that caused the fire to spread.  Recommendations for fixing these issues include improved communication with the National Weather Service and a reexamination of the Forest Service’s prescribed burn metrics.

“Federal agencies must be accountable to the taxpayers, and I credit the Forest Service for asking the tough questions to determine what happened and how to prevent it from happening again,” said Congressman Jones.