4.1 County-wide Risk and Hazard Assessment Overview

During March and April of 2004, the RCI Project Team evaluated the thirty communities described in this report. The hazard rating for each community, fuel conditions in the interface areas, and ignition risk are summarized in Table 4-1.

Table 4-1. Assessment Results Summary

Community	Interface Condition	Interface Fuel Hazard Condition	Ignition Risk	Community Hazard Rating
High and Extreme Hazard Communities
Cold Creek	Intermix	High to Extreme	Moderate	High
Kyle Canyon	Rural	Extreme	High	Extreme
Lee Canyon	Intermix	Extreme	High	Extreme
Mountain Springs	Intermix	High to Extreme	High	Extreme
Nelson	Intermix	Low to Moderate	Moderate	High
Torino Ranch	Classic	Low to Extreme	High	High
Trout Canyon	Intermix	Extreme	High	Extreme
Moderate Hazard Communities
Cactus Springs	Classic	Low	Low	Moderate
Goodsprings	Classic	Moderate	Moderate	Moderate
Moapa	Classic	Low to High	Low	Moderate
Sandy Valley	Intermix	Low	Low	Moderate
Searchlight	Intermix	Low	Low	Moderate
Low Hazard Communities
Arden	Occluded	Low	Low	Low
Blue Diamond	Intermix	Low	Low	Low
Boulder City	Classic	Low	Low	Low
Bunkerville	Classic	Low to High	Low	Low
CalNevAri	Classic	Low to Moderate	Low	Low
Cottonwood Cove	Classic	Low	Low	Low
Glendale	Classic	Low to High	Low	Low
Henderson	Classic	Low	Low	Low
Indian Springs	Classic	Low	Low	Low
Las Vegas	Classic	Low	Low	Low
Laughlin	Classic	Low	Low	Low
Logandale	Classic	Low to High	Low	Low
Mesquite	Classic	Low to High	Low	Low
North Las Vegas	Classic	Low	Low	Low
Overton	Classic	Low to High	Low	Low
Palm Gardens Estates	Classic	Low	Low	Low
Primm	Classic	Low	Low	Low
Sloan	Classic	Low	Low	Low

4.1.1 Wildfire Protection Resources

Wildland fire suppression resources in Clark County include the following agencies:

• Clark County Fire Department (CCFD)
• Boulder City Fire Department (BCFD)
• City of Las Vegas Fire Department (LVFD)
• City of Henderson Fire Department (HFD)
• City of North Las Vegas Fire Department (NLVFD)
• City of Mesquite Fire Department (MFD)
• The Nevada Division of Forestry (NDF)
• The US Forest Service (USFS)
• The Bureau of Land Management (BLM)
• The Southern Nevada Interagency Fire Management Partnership (SNIFMP) is composed of the Bureau of Land Management Las Vegas Field Office, the US Fish and Wildlife Service Desert National Wildlife Range Complex, the National Park Service Lake Mead National Recreation Area, and the US Forest Service Spring Mountains National Recreation Area.

Nevada Division of Forestry Suppression Resources

The Nevada Division of Forestry administers a 1,800-acre NRS 473 fire protection district on Mount Charleston. The Mount Charleston Fire Protection District includes 400-500 homes in Kyle and Lee Canyons, a school, and commercial and community buildings. The Nevada Division of Forestry Fire Station in Kyle Canyon provides 24-hour, continuous coverage with a three-person engine company. Staffing is increased seasonally with the addition of a Type III wildland engine crew from April to September. The Nevada Division of Forestry conservation crew stationed in Cactus Springs is dispatched through the Sierra Front Interagency Dispatch Center in Minden, Nevada.

Federal Suppression Resources

The Bureau of Land Management assigns resources to three fire stations in the region on a seasonal basis (from May to September). A Type 4 Brush Engine is assigned to the Fire Station in Pahrump (Nye County). A Type 3 Brush Engine is assigned to the Logandale Bureau of Land Management Station. Two Type 3 Brush Engines are housed in Red Rock Canyon. The Red Rock Canyon station also hosts a 500-person mobile fire cache and the warehouse at the Las Vegas office is equipped with a 100-person fire cache.

The US Forest Service has a Type 3 Brush Engine and patrol vehicles assigned to the Kyle Station, Indian Springs, Pahrump, and Mt. Springs. A ten-member Interagency Helitak team flies out of the North Las Vegas airport carrying crews from the Bureau of Land Management, the US Forest Service, and the National Park Service.

Clark County Fire Department

The Clark County Fire Department is the agency with the most comprehensive geographic coverage in Clark County. As such, this agency responds to wildfires for the majority of the rural communities described in this report. The Clark County Fire Department has 577 firefighters, 57 fire prevention and investigation employees, and 48 administrative, training and other support employees. The department has 24 stations staffed by paid firefighters and thirteen stations staffed by volunteers. There are over 350 volunteer firefighters (Clark County Fire Department 2003 Annual Report).

Wildfire resources may be dispatched at any given time from the nearest Clark County Fire Department station to respond to wildfires in rural communities. Equipment and resources stationed at each rural fire station are described in the community sections of this report.

In 2003, the Clark County Fire Department purchased thirteen portable tanks (pumpkins) with capacities of 5,000 gallons each. These were located in communities with limited water resources.

Interagency Communications

The US Forest Service, the Bureau of Land Management, and the National Park Service are all dispatched through the Las Vegas Interagency Communications Center (LVICC). The federal agencies provide mutual aid to Clark County fire departments and NDF through mutual aid agreements. LVICC coordinates with Clark County’s Central Fire Alarm Office (FAO) during incidents that require local, state, and national resources. In 2004 the Nevada Division of Forestry was dispatched through the Sierra Front Interagency Dispatch Center in Minden, Nevada. These systems locate the nearest available fire suppression resource according to incident command and computer aided dispatch protocols.

Clark County Fire Department Detection and Communication

Clark County’s Central Fire Alarm Office (FAO) is supported by the Clark County Fire Department, the Las Vegas Fire Department, and the North Las Vegas Fire Department. The FAO uses a computer aided dispatch (CAD) system to provide 911 service and to dispatch fire and EMS services.

Fires are reported in Clark County through:

• 911 calls and
• Calls to Clark County Emergency Dispatch.

Fires are communicated to fire response personnel through the use of

• Emergency Dispatch through the Clark County Consolidated Fire Alarm Office and
• Radios, pagers, and telephones where volunteer fire stations exist.

The Clark County Sheriff’s Office has access to the state mutual aid frequencies, and the radio system is compatible with neighboring agencies. Gaps in radio coverage do exist in some areas.

Fire Protection Personnel Qualifications

The Clark County Fire Department offers monthly fire training on a continuous basis to all volunteer stations with Fire Fighter I training as the primary criteria. In 2003, 47 volunteers and one deputy chief attended Bureau of Land Management Wildland Firefighter Training. These firefighters now hold certifications that are recognized by the National Wildfire Coordinating Group (NWCG).

The Clark County Fire Department and career firefighters from the City of North Las Vegas, Las Vegas, Henderson, Boulder, and Mesquite generally do not receive wildland firefighter training, nor are they normally issued personal protective equipment or tools for wildland fire suppression.

Work Load

In 2003, the Clark County Fire Department responded to 93,206 incidents, 3,880 of which were fire calls. During the interview process, rural stations reported responding to nearly 200 brush fire calls in 2003. Workloads for individual fire stations are provided in the community chapters of this report.

Financial Support

Funding for the Clark County Fire Departments annual operating expenses comes from the County General Fund, which is generated primarily through property taxes in Clark County. In 2003, the Clark County Fire Department also received approximately $650,000 in funding through the FEMA Assistance to Firefighters Grant.

Community Preparedness

The Clark County Fire Code is contained in County Ordinance No. 2289, which became effective March 30, 1999. The State Fire Marshall’s Office at the Nevada Department of Public Safety adopted the ICC fire codes for public and commercial buildings in July of 2004 (effective January 2005). As such, the 2003 International Urban-Wildland Interface Code can be used for guidance on fire safe communities (R. Nicholson, pers. comm. 22 Feb 2005).

Public Education

Clark County Fire Department provides numerous programs during Fire Prevention Month and Fire Protection Week. These programs involve presentations at senior citizen centers and at schools for students and teachers.

4.2 Equipment and Training Concerns

Thousands of acres of wildland-urban interface in Clark County are exposed to the threat of wildland fire. These areas include steep, heavily vegetated, mountainous terrain with dynamic wildland fire histories. Many of the urban fire stations responsible for fire protection in the Las Vegas Valley are within a one-hour response time to many high-hazard wildland areas.

• With the overall increase in the occurrence and intensity of wildfires in the wildland-urban interface, it is extremely important that the responsible officials in the Clark County Fire Department and the local fire department unions recognize the importance of wildland fire training and equipment to assure firefighter safety and effectiveness in the interface environment during a wildland fire.

The National Wildfire Coordinating Group (NWCG) establishes minimum standards for wildland firefighters in the Wildland and Prescribed Fire Qualification System Guide PMS 310-1. Training to satisfying these standards would enhance the safety and effectiveness of urban firefighting crews when they are called to respond to an incident in the wildland-urban interface. The NWCG 310-1 document “recognizes the ability of cooperating agencies at the local level to jointly define certification and qualification standards.” (NWCG, p2). The 310-1 could be used as a framework for establishing certification and qualification for firefighters, captains, and battalion chiefs to better prepare them for the unique conditions that can occur during structure protection in the interface environment.

Requests for mobilization outside of a fire department’s geographic area increase as the frequency and intensity of fires in the wildland-urban interface increase in the western United States. In order to improve firefighter safety and the response effectiveness in a wildland-urban incident, Clark County Fire Department management and the local fire department unions need to give high priority to the following recommendations:

4.2.1 Training

As detailed in the NWCG Wildland and Prescribed Fire Qualification System Guide PMS 310-1:

• Provide wildland firefighter training to all fire department members (40-hr. course).
• Provide wildland fire training to all Captains to the level of Engine Boss.
• Provide wildland fire training to all Chief Officers to the level of Strike Team Leader.
• Provide annual wildland firefighting refresher training (8-hour course).
• Provide annual fire shelter training to all qualified department members.

4.2.2 Equipment

Comply with National Wildfire Coordinating Group 310-1 guidelines:

• Provide wildland personal protective equipment for all members.
• Provide wildland firefighting equipment on all engine companies.
• Provide all firefighters with a wildland fire field pocket guide.

4.2.3 Apparatus

• Clark County Fire Department purchase five (5) Type 3 engines.
• North Las Vegas Fire Department purchase two (2) Type 3 engines.
• Henderson Fire Department purchase two (2) Type 3 engines.
• Boulder City Fire Department purchase one (1) Type 3 engine.