7.1 Risk and Hazard Assessment

Golconda is located in southeast Humboldt County between US Interstate 80 and the Humboldt River, at the south end of Eden Valley between the Osgood Mountains and the Sonoma Range. The Union Pacific Railroad passes through the northeastern portion of the community on two separate tracks. The results of observing 119 residences placed Golconda in the Moderate Hazard category (41 points). A summary of the hazard scores used to rank the community is included in Table 7-3. The community characteristics that influenced this rating were the lack of clear and visible address signs in a high-density residential area. Architectural features on homes that increase the potential for ignition were also noted, however there is a low potential for severe wildfire behavior in the interface area.

7.1.1 Community Design

The Golconda community has a classic wildland-urban interface condition. The majority of homes were on lots of less than one acre with a clear line of demarcation between wildland fuels and the community development.

• Roads: The primary access route through Golconda is US Interstate 80, which creates no problems for emergency vehicle access or community evacuation.
• Signage: Less than half, only 41 percent, of the homes in Golconda had easily visible addresses. Road signs were clearly visible on about 85 percent of the secondary roads in the community.
• Utilities: Electric utilities are all above ground, and the vegetation was properly maintained in the power line right-of-ways.

7.1.2 Construction Materials

Nearly all of the structures in the community were built with non-combustible or ignition resistant siding materials. All the structures were built with fire resistant roofing materials. Thirty-one percent of the homes observed had an architectural feature such as an unenclosed balcony, porch, or deck that could create drafts and provide a space where firebrands and embers can accumulate, smolder and ignite, rapidly spread fire to the home.

7.1.3 Defensible Space

Seventy-six percent of the structures had adequate defensible space to minimize the potential for damage to the home in the event of a wildfire.

7.1.4 Suppression Capabilities

Wildfire Protection Resources

The Golconda Volunteer Fire Department, Golconda Fire Protection District, provides fire protection to the community. At the time the interviews were conducted for this report, the Golconda Volunteer Fire Department consisted of 10 volunteers. Table 7-1 lists the wildfire suppression resources available for initial response to a wildland fire call in Golconda.

Table 7-1. Golconda Wildfire Suppression Resources

Type of Equipment	Amount of Equipment	Cooperating Partner (Resource Location)
Type 6 Engine Type 3 Engine Type 1 Engine Water Tender	2 2 1 1	Golconda VFD
Source: Personal communication with Chief Roger Johnson, Golconda VFD

Bureau of Land Management wildfire suppression resources are available to all Humboldt County communities through cooperative agreements with local fire departments. The equipment listed in Table 4-2 represents resources assigned to the BLM Winnemucca Field Office that are available for dispatch within ten to fifteen minutes of notification of a wildfire. The closest available resources at the time of the dispatch would respond.

Water Sources and Infrastructure

The water system in Golconda consists of:

• 500 gpm hydrants within 1000 feet of structures,
• Community wells, and
• Water storage tanks.

The hydrant system is powered by gravity and electric pumps. There is no backup system for powering the pumps in the event of a power outage.

Detection and Communication

The Humboldt County Sheriff’s Office notifies the Golconda Volunteer Fire Department and the Central Nevada Interagency Dispatch Center of wildfires reported by 911 calls. The Central Nevada Interagency Dispatch Center dispatches both Bureau of Land Management and US Forest Service resources in Humboldt County.

Fire Protection Personnel Qualifications

Volunteers with the Golconda VFD receive training to meet the State Fire Marshal’s Firefighter I and II and Entry Level Firefighter standards. Firefighters also receive BLM Wildland Firefighter training. The Golconda VFD utilizes the Red Card System. A Red Card certification is part of a fire qualifications management system used by state and all federal wildland fire management agencies that indicates an individual’s qualifications to fight wildfires.

Work Load

In 2003 the Golconda VFD responded to:

• 12 wildland/brush fires,
• 12 vehicle fires, and
• 1 structure fire.

Financial Support

Funding for the Golconda VFD is provided through the Golconda Fire Protection District, authorized under NRS 474. Fire protection districts receive funding through ad valorem and other tax revenues.

Community Preparedness

Humboldt County has a Local Emergency Planning Committee. Their emergency plan is updated annually, and Golconda is included in the plan. The County all-risk disaster response plan is updated annually.

7.1.5 Factors Affecting Fire Behavior

Golconda is situated on flat terrain, with slopes less than eight percent. The fuel hazard in the interface area varied from low to moderate. On the west side of the community, near the railroad tracks, the fuel density is estimated at three tons per acre, composed primarily of big sagebrush and fourwing saltbush with cheatgrass and Russian thistle in the understory. Along the Humboldt River riparian corridor, the fuel load decreases to approximately one to two tons per acre. East of Golconda the fuels consist of sparse sagebrush, rabbitbrush, and fourwing saltbush, two to four feet in height. The fuel load in this area was estimated at less than one ton per acre.

7.1.6 Worst-Case Wildfire Scenario

The worst-case wildfire scenario for Golconda would be a dry lightning strike on a late summer afternoon near the railroad tracks in an area with heavy, brushy, fuels in a wet year with high volumes of dry cheatgrass. Winds from the north over twenty miles per hour would drive the fire directly into the community. The scenario would be worse if mutual aid resources were dispatched to a previous incident or because of limited volunteer response.

7.1.7 Ignition Risk Assessment

Golconda was determined to have a moderate ignition risk. There is an extensive wildfire history in the area. The primary ignition sources around Golconda are the railroad and lightning, although other human caused ignitions are unpredictable and can occur at any time.

7.2 Hazard Reduction Recommendations, Roles, and Responsibilities

The responsibility to keep a community fire safe falls not only on the local fire department, but also on the residents of the community, businesses, and local governments. The Golconda risk and hazard reduction recommendations focus on defensible space and fuel reduction and maintenance in the railroad corridor. Other recommendations pertain to community coordination and public education efforts that would enhance fire safety in Golconda.

7.2.1 Defensible Space Treatments

Vegetation density, type of fuel, and slope gradient around a home affect the potential fire exposure levels to the home. The first goal of defensible space is to reduce the risk of property loss from wildfire by eliminating flammable vegetation near the home, thereby lowering the potential to burn. The second goal of defensible space is to provide firefighters a safer working area from which to defend the home or outbuildings during a wildland fire. Guidelines for improving defensible space around residences and structures are described in detail in Appendix E.

Property Owner Responsibilities

• Remove, reduce, and replace vegetation around homes according to the guidelines in Appendix E. The defensible space zone
  • Lean: There are only small amounts of flammable vegetation.
  • Clean: There is no accumulation of dead vegetation or other flammable debris.
  • Green: Existing plants are healthy and green during the fire season.
• Mow or remove brush growing against wood fences in the community.
• Maintain the area beneath unenclosed wood decks and porches free of weeds and flammable debris. Screen these areas wherever possible.
• Clear all vegetation and combustible materials around propane tanks for a minimum distance of ten feet.
• Immediately remove cleared vegetation to an approved disposal site when implementing defensible space treatments. This material dries quickly and presents a fire hazard if left on site.
• Maintain defensible space as needed to keep the space lean, clean, and green.

Humboldt County

• Revise county codes and ordinances regarding fuel reduction and defensible space for wildland-urban interface areas to:
  • Require defensible space or fuel reduction treatments on all developed and undeveloped lots within interface areas. If landowners do not complete defensible space treatments or fuel reduction within an allotted time frame, the landowner should be charged for defensible space services through property tax levies.
  • Require fuel reduction treatments and provisions for continued maintenance of the fuel reduction treatments as a condition of approval for new wildland-urban interface subdivisions.

7.2.2 Fuels Reduction Treatments

Union Pacific Railroad Responsibilities

• Mow or remove vegetation within a minimum distance of fifteen feet on both sides of the railroad tracks as shown in Figure 7-1. Maintain low density fuel volumes within the railroad corridors to reduce the wildfire ignition risk and hazard to Golconda.

Bureau of Land Management

• Permit livestock grazing prior to seed maturity to reduce cheatgrass. Balance annual stocking rates with annual cheatgrass grass productivity.

7.2.3 Community Coordination and Education

Abandoned structures present a fire hazard because they are often characterized by weathered wood with open or missing doors and windows. Typically vegetation has not been cleared around these structures. Sparks can fly into openings and ignite the structure and adjacent vegetation.

Property Owner Responsibilities

• Windows and doors in abandoned buildings should be boarded up. Abandoned trailers should be removed, or the windows and doors boarded up and the underneath skirted to reduce the potential for ignition from sparks or firebrands.
• Assure that address signs are visible from the road. Address characters should be at least four inches high, reflective, and composed of non-flammable material. Improving visibility of addresses will make it easier for those unfamiliar with the area to navigate under smoky conditions during a wildland fire.

Humboldt County Responsibilities

• Improve street signage to facilitate firefighters in locating specific areas under low visibility conditions that exist during a wildfire.

Golconda VFD Responsibilities

• Distribute copies of the publication Living with Fire to all property owners. This publication is free of charge. Copies can be requested from the University of Nevada Cooperative Extension.
• Contact the University of Nevada Cooperative Extension and the BLM Winnemucca Field Office for assistance with public education.

7.3 Summary of Recommendations

Table 7-2. Golconda Priority Recommendations to Reduce Wildfire Risks and Hazards

Responsible Party	Recommended Treatment	Recommendation Description
Property Owners	Defensible Space	Remove, reduce, and replace vegetation around homes according to the defensible space guidelines in Appendix E.
	Community Coordination and Education	Assure that address signs are clearly visible from the road. Board-up windows and doors of abandoned structures and skirt all trailers.
Union Pacific Railroad	Fuels Reduction	Mow or remove vegetation with 15 feet of both sides of tracks (see Figure 7-1).
Bureau of Land Management	Fuels Reduction	Permit livestock grazing prior to seed maturity to reduce cheatgrass. Balance annual stocking rates with annual cheatgrass grass productivity.
Humboldt County	Defensible Space	Revise codes and ordinances to require and enforce defensible space treatments on all lots in the interface area. Require provisions for fuel reduction treatment implementation and maintenance as a condition of new subdivision approval in the interface areas.
	Community Coordination and Education	Improve street signage visibility.
Golconda Volunteer Fire Department	Community Coordination and Education	Distribute copies of “Living With Fire” to property owners. Contact the BLM Winnemucca Field Office and University of Nevada Cooperative Extension for assistance with public education.

Figure 7-1 Golconda Fire History, Suppression Resources, and Proposed Mitigation Projects small | large | x-large

Table 7-3 Golconda Wildfire Hazard Rating Summary