VOLUSIA COUNTY SITUATION REPORT # 44
(status changes made since last report shown in bold black type)
EVENT: WILDFIRES 1998
DATE / TIME: July 1, 1998 @ 2230 hrs
EOC ACTIVATION LEVEL : 3
LOCAL STATE OF EMERGENCY DECLARATION : ISSUED JUNE 22, 1998 AT 1 P.M. RETROACTIVE TO JUNE 20, 1998
DATE OF EXPIRATION : Was extended for another seven days. Effective now until July 3, 1998
CONTACT NUMBERS FOR COUNTY EOC AND PIO: (904)254-1500
COUNTY ESF-5 FAX : (904) 258-4096
SUMMARY OF FIRE ACTIVITY
NUMBER OF FIRES TO DATE: 69
LOCATION(S) OF FIRES TO DATE : FIRES LOCATED THROUGHOUT THE COUNTY
DUE TO NUMBER OF FIRES AND FREQUENCY OF OCCURRENCE, THIS REPORT FOCUSES UPON NEW FIRE EVENTS ONLY.
Numerous outbreaks are occurring throughout the county but these are the major areas of utmost concern at this time:
I-95, 2 miles south of US 1 between Tymber Creek Road and Durrance Lane in the Ormond Beach area (crews on site). This fire has entered Volusia County from Flagler County and is causing evacuations.
Williamson Boulevard between Hand Avenue and Clyde Morris Boulevard in the Ormond Beach area (crews on site). This fire is causing evacuations.
I-95 and US 1, Volusia/Flagler County Line
I-95 at SR 442 exit - mile marker 233/234 (City of New Smyrna Beach is assisting Edgewater). This fire is causing evacuations. This fire has been temporarily contained in Crane Swamp.
I-95 North of SR 442 - mile marker 239
Adjacent to the Volusia-Brevard County Line...this fire has jumped I-95 and US 1 at the County Line
Tomoka State Park. Portions of the park may be on fire; however, the presence of fire has not been confirmed at this time.
Lake Mamie area (east of Hwy 17, south of SR 15-A, north of DeLand) Fire is currently contained by the City of DeLand.
Lafayette Landings Complex. Portions of this fire on the eastern flank north of US 92 have jumped I-95 and are currently burning into the Daytona Beach/Ormond Beach area.
NUMBER OF MAJOR/SIGNIFICANT FIRES CURRENTLY ACTIVE: 9
ACREAGE OF FIRES CURRENTLY ACTIVE: ESTIMATED TOTAL ACREAGE, APPROXIMATELY 80,000+
SUPPRESSION EFFORTS UNDERWAY : The policy is to protect life first. Protection of structures will be prioritized based on field conditions. A unified command consisting of Volusia and Flagler Counties and the City of Ormond Beach has been coordinated with DOF. It has been determined that some fires may be suspicious in nature. Air reconnaissance flights are being done by the U.S. Forest Service out of New Smyrna Beach and DeLand airports. County firefighting resources are concentrated in the Daytona Beach/Ormond Beach area to combat fires there.
MUTUAL AID:
- Resources from other states are present.
- State ESF 4 and 9 have 107 firefighters through the Fire Chief’s Association. One hundred additional Mutual Aid fire fighters arrived Tuesday (6/30).
- The State Fire Marshal’s Office has sent 8 people.
- A total of 32 National Guard personnel and 15 vehicles are present and in the direct control of the County Emergency Operations. 2,988 MREs have arrived.
- Federal Incident Command (Blue Team) has provided a 38 person overhead team that arrived on Saturday (6/27). They brought 5 "hot shot" teams which consist of 20 personnel per team, and included a Type I helicopter equipped with a 2000 gal water tank, 2 Type II helicopters and 1 tactical aircraft for aerial spotting. The U.S. Forest Service/DOF sent 104 firefighters tonight and an additional 164 firefighters will be arriving Sunday. They have provided 16 tractor plow units and 30 engines.
- Five PIO’s have arrived to assist with media inquiries. Four more are on the way.
- The Salvation Army has undertaken all field food as of Monday, 6/29/98. A new warehouse for storage & distribution has been established at the Daytona Mall (Nova Road).
- A Fire Behavior Analyst has arrived.
- A large tent is going to be set up by the Florida National Guard just west of I-95 on State Road 40. The tent is intended to house firefighters.
- 20 US Army personnel are en route from Camp Lejuene to replace a bridge on Rima Ridge Road. The intent of the bridge is to facilitate heavy equipment traffic between US 92 and State Road 40 in the event I-95 and other north-south arteries are congested with race related traffic. Bridge is en route and expected to be in place by 2 July 1998.
- The Salvation Army has requested State assistance for "ice" provisions.
- An additional 25 National Guardsmen and 10 Humvees are being requested.
- Local resources have been exhausted.
OTHER:
- Two State Division of Emergency Management liaisons are on the scene.
- State Division of Forestry liaison present in Fire Command
- National Guard liaison present as ESF 13 in CEOC.
INJURIES / CASUALTIES
INJURIES (MINOR) TO DATE : 8 (firefighters) +1 fire contractor
FATALITIES TO DATE : 0
MISSING PERSONS TO DATE : 0
STATUS OF MISSING PERSONS : N/A
PROPERTY / INFRASTRUCTURE IMPACTED
HOMES THREATENED : ±29,000 homes threatened in various areas around Volusia County including 20,000 homes in the Daytona Beach/Ormond Beach area.
HOMES DESTROYED/DAMAGED : 1 (destruction may not be a result of forest fire, cause under investigation) Others have been destroyed/damaged in the Ormond Beach area; however the exact number is currently unknown.
BUSINESSES THREATENED : 1
BUSINESSES DAMAGED/DESTROYED : An unknown number of businesses located in the Ormond Beach/Daytona Beach area may be damaged. No further information is known.
OTHER STRUCTURES THREATENED : 15 (miscellaneous hunting camp structures)
OTHER STRUCTURES DAMAGED : 0
OTHER STRUCTURES DESTROYED : 0
VEHICLES DAMAGED : 3 (two automobiles and a boat)
VEHICLES DESTROYED : 0
INFRASTRUCTURE IMPACTED: City of Ormond Beach Airport has been closed. The Daytona Beach Water Plant is currently operating on generator power. A regional FPL switching dispatch facility is in harms way. In addition an FPL substation which serves as a primary facility for Daytona Beach is of concern. Telephone communications are very congested. In addition, traffic on communication radios is very heavy.
The Daytona Beach International Airport is open.
APPROVAL FROM THE STATE OF FLORIDA HAS BEEN GIVEN TO RE-ROUTE I-95 SOUTHBOUND TRAFFIC FROM JACKSONVILLE AS FOLLOWS:
* I-295 SOUTH
* I-10
* I-75
NORTHBOUND I-95 TRAFFIC FROM BREVARD COUNTY IS AS FOLLOWS:
* BEELINE EXPRESSWAY
* FLORIDA TURNPIKE NORTH
* I-75 NORTH
* I-10 EAST
ROADS CLOSED:
Southbound lane of I-95, south of SR 44 to the Volusia/Brevard line.
Southbound I-95 between SR 40 and US 1
SR 40 between US Hwy 17 and SR 11
Tymber Creek Road between Broadway and airport
US Hwy 1 southbound at Kennedy Parkway (Brevard)
City of Ormond Beach Airport
I-95 North to Dunlawton Road (Pt. Orange) to SR 100 (Flagler County)
SR 15A between Grant and Whisperwood, DeLand
SR 15A between Hwy 17 and Hwy 11, North of DeLand
All roads into the Ormond Beach area
US 1 between I-95 and Flagler County line
EVACUATIONS / SHELTERS
AREA(S) EVACUATED: All areas are cleared and residents are permitted to return to their homes previously evacuated (mandatory and voluntary)
Voluntary Evacuation Areas:
Maytown/Geiss Roads
Quail Ranch Road.
Hunting Camp/Rasley/Archie Road
Cow Creek Road from SR 442 South to Volco Road
Westerly streets of Florida Shores Subdivision, City of Edgewater
Sunshine Campground at US 1 and I-95
Ormond Lakes
US 1 North of Ormond Beach
Western end of Fleming Avenue, Daytona Pines
Rodeo Road, West of Ormond Beach
Durrance Lane west of Ormond Beach
Mandatory Evacuations:
Aberdeen Subdivision
City of Ormond Airport Road North to Durrance Lane and Tymber Creek Road to the powerline
All of Ormond Beach west of Nova Road
Breakaway Trails
Bear Creek
Hunters Ridge
Spring Meadow
Indigo Lakes
LPGA residential community
Area of Derbyshire east of Jimmy Ann Drive
NUMBER OF HOUSEHOLDS EVACUATED: Approximately 29,000
NUMBER OF EVACUEES : 0
NUMBER OF SHELTERS OPEN :
New Smyrna Beach Parks and Recreation Shelter.
Atlantic High, New Smyrna Beach
Sweetwater Elementary
Spruce Creek High
Spruce Creek Elementary
Fairgrounds, DeLand
Seabreeze High School
DeLand YMCA
1st Baptist Church of Oak Hill
Temple Israel, Daytona Beach
SHELTER POPULATION : 267
NUMBER OF SHELTERS ON STANDBY : 0
BILLETING FOR SUPPORT CREWS :
FEDERAL BLUE TEAM
1. DELAND MIDDLE SCHOOL - 104 CREW MEMBERS
2. DELAND HIGH SCHOOL - 200 CREW MEMBERS
3. DELTONA HIGH SCHOOL -STANDBY
4. VOLUSIA COUNTY FAIRGROUNDS-FEDERAL OVERHEAD SOUTHERN BLUE TEAM
MUTUAL AID
1. ERAU - 78 CREW MEMBERS
2. STETSON - @ CAPACITY 300+ CREW MEMBERS
MISCELLANEOUS
STATUS OF FIREWORKS BAN AND OTHER BURN CONTROLS: Volusia County passed an ordinance on Thursday, June 25, 1998, banning the sale and use of fireworks in unincorporated and incorporated areas. All vendors including those who sell fireworks in tent sales have voluntarily agreed not to sell any fireworks to individuals in Volusia County. Firework shows have been voluntarily canceled in the cities of DeLand, DeBary, Deltona, Port Orange, Edgewater, Ormond Beach. Holly Hill has issued an emergency order banning fireworks. Pierson has also passed an ordinance to ban fireworks. The Governor has issued a statewide ban on fireworks.
FINANCIAL: Daily costs are estimated at $155,000 per day excluding state-wide mutual aid and additional expenditures from municipalities. Expect operations to continue for a minimum of 2 weeks. The Federal Government has declared Volusia County a disaster area and has pledged to cover 75% of local municipal firefighting cost.
FEDERAL OVERHEAD SOUTHERN BLUE TEAM: Efforts are underway to facilitate the transition from "mutual aid" to the Federal Overhead Team. Resources (food, lodging, etc.) are being secured, in cooperation with federal representatives during this period. Incident Command Post has been established at the Volusia County Fairgrounds on SR 44, east of I-4 and the City of DeLand.
FEEDING: The Salvation Army has assumed responsibility for feeding firefighters.
TRAFFIC PLANNING: A meeting has been scheduled for the purpose of evaluating alternative patterns of traffic flow during the upcoming weekend in anticipation of the possibility for poor visibility/fires and the accompanying impacts (if any) upon the increased traffic volumes associated with the NASCAR race at the Daytona International Speedway. This meeting will be held at 1400, Wednesday, July 1st.
WEATHER REPORT: Volusia County weather observed at 15:53 at the Daytona Beach Airport indicates partly cloudy with winds WSW at 18 mph with gusts to 26 mph. Current temperature 100 degrees. Forecast for this evening a slight chance of evening thunderstorms, otherwise partly cloudy with large areas of smoke. Winds are expected to maintain these speeds for the next 24 hours.
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