Wildfire Review Delivers Lessons Learned
A review of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park’s handling of the devastating Chimney Tops 2 Fire in November 2016 found no evidence of negligence by park staff but revealed several shortcomings in the park’s organizational structure and disaster preparedness.
“I will assure you this will not be a document that sits on the shelf and collects dust,” Park Superintendent Cassius Cash said in a press conference following the report’s release. “It will be used to strengthen our program, improve our response to other disasters and storms that we know we’re going to have. This document will now become part of our blueprint.”
The report revealed problems with how fire management responsibilities were delegated within the park. At the time of the fire, the same person was acting as fire management officer, incident commander and duty officer—a violation of Park Service policy. Having been the fire management officer for only eight months, his leadership experience was limited despite his many years as a wildland firefighter. Had the Park Service had some type of mentorship or leadership development program for such positions, the review found, the outcome could have been different.
Communication was also an issue. The Smokies and the Gatlinburg Fire Department operate on two different radio systems with no ability for one to operate on the other’s system. Currently, Friends of the Smokies is working to raise $2.5 million to upgrade the park’s emergency radio systems to eliminate this obstacle. The park also hopes to receive funding from the Department of the Interior Rural Fire Readiness Program to issue personal radios and protective equipment to seven neighboring fire departments.
Preparation is essential, said review team lead Joe Stutler, because fires of this magnitude are likely to become “a new normal.”
“We’re going to have to learn to live with wildfire,” Stutler said.
The entire review is online at wildfirelessons.net/viewdocument/chimney-tops-2-fire-review-2017.