A simple index for assessing fire danger rating

Classify & Cross-ref
BushfireTopic: 
Fire Behaviour
ResearchAdoption: 
Prescribed burning
Project Reference: 
The HighFire project
TitleA simple index for assessing fire danger rating
Publication TypeJournal Article
Year of Publication2009
AuthorsSharples, JJ, McRae, RHD, Weber, R, A. Gill, M
JournalEnvironmental Modelling & Software
Volume24
Issue6
Pagination764 - 774
Date Published06/2009
AbstractFire danger rating systems are used to assess the potential for bushfire occurrence, fire spread and difficulty of fire suppression. Typically, fire danger rating systems combine meteorological information with estimates of the moisture content of the fuel to produce a fire danger index. Fire danger indices are used to declare fire bans and to schedule prescribed burns, among other applications. In this paper a simple fire danger index F that is intuitive and easy to calculate is introduced and compared to a number of fire danger indices pertaining to different fuel types that are used in an operational setting in Australia and the United States. The comparisons suggest that F provides a plausible measure of fire danger rating and that it may be a useful pedagogical tool in the context of fire danger and fire weather.
DOI10.1016/j.envsoft.2008.11.004
Short TitleEnvironmental Modelling & Software
Refereed DesignationRefereed