The Oklahoma Fire Danger Model: An operational tool for mesoscale fire danger rating in Oklahoma

Abstract

This paper describes the Oklahoma Fire Danger Model, an operational fire danger rating system for the state of Oklahoma (USA) developed through joint efforts of Oklahoma State University, the University of Oklahoma, and the Fire Sciences Laboratory of the USDA Forest Service in Missoula, Montana. The model is an adaptation of the National Fire Danger Rating System (NFDRS) to Oklahoma, but more importantly, represents the first time anywhere that NFDRS has been implemented operationally using hourly weather data from a spatially dense automated weather station network (the Oklahoma Mesonet). Weekly AVHRR satellite imagery is also utilized for live fuel moisture and fuel load calculations. The result is a near-real-time mesoscale fire danger rating system to 1-km resolution whose output is readily available on the World Wide Web (http://agweather.mesonet.ou.edu/models/fire). Examples of output from 25 February 1998 are presented.

The Oklahoma Fire Danger Model, in conjunction with other fire-related operational tools, has proven useful to the wildland fire management community in Oklahoma, for both wildfire anticipation and suppression and for prescribed fire activities. Instead of once-per-day NFDRS information at two to three sites, the fire manager now has statewide fire danger information available at 1-km resolution at up to hourly intervals, enabling a quicker response to changing fire weather conditions across the entire state.