California wild horse country ~ Rush Fire map (Twin Peaks HMA) updated August 25, 2012
How many wild horses and burros were trapped by fencing in the fire?
Fire approaching Deep Cut area by Robin Blair 8.15.12
Rush Fire update in the Twin Peaks HMA
Susanville, Calif., Aug. 26, 7 a.m.–On Saturday, firefighters successfully held fire lines in the northeast part of the Rush fire in spite of gusting winds. Large dust devils were common and firefighters remained very busy fighting fire.
The threat from dust devils has led firefighters to go to the unusual length of mopping up for 500 to 1000 feet from fire lines into the burned area. This tough work involves finding each and every hot spot and cooling them off.
In spite of the winds on Saturday, firefighters were able to hold the existing fire perimeter for the fourth day in a row.
The northeast flank is where the fire is most active. This part of the Rush fire is in Nevada, about 25 miles northeast and east of Ravendale, Calif., near SOB, Garden and Burnt lakes, the Buffalo Hills, Antelope Basin, and Cottonwood Creek.
Helicopters with buckets dropped water on hot spots in the Cottonwood Creek area on Saturday. In the southern and southwestern flanks of the fire on Saturday, firefighters continued repairing damage from fire-fighting activities.
The National Weather Service issued a red-flag warning for Sunday from noon to 10 p.m. because of low humidity and gusting winds. The winds have the potential of fanning any remaining embers and hot spots. Winds can also form dust devils that could carry hot material over containment lines into extremely dry unburned vegetation.
On Sunday, firefighters will continue their efforts to hold the fire to its current perimeter, to mop up and to make repairs on the western side of the fire.
Area and Road Closures in Effect: Public lands bounded by Highway 395 on the west, the Sand Pass road and Nevada 447 on the east, the Wendel Road on the south, and Juniper Ridge road to Buckhorn road on the north are closed. The Buffalo Meadows road in Washoe Co., Nev., is also closed. The Ramhorn Springs and Dodge Reservoir campgrounds remain closed.
Remarks: NOTE: Use of chainsaws on public lands managed by BLM in northeast California and far northwestern Nevada is suspended because of extreme fire danger. Fire officials remind residents and visitors that fire restrictions are in effect for public lands and national forests in northeast California and far northwest Nevada. Campfires are permitted only in posted recreation sites.
“The proposed ‘final’ management plan is outrageous,” says Anne Novak, executive director of Protect Mustangs. “They want to wipe out all the wild horses and burros at the Sheldon Refuge. They have no respect for the stakeholders or biodiversity.”
Location: The fire is located on Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Northern California District (BLM-CA-NOD,) Eagle Lake Field Office, approximately 15 miles southeast of Ravendale, California. The fire is burning near a major natural gas line and transfer station, and power transmission lines that supply the Reno area and adjacent to Highway 395.
Summary: Today firefighters made excellent progress in continuing line building and mop-up around the perimeter of the Rush Fire. Fortunately the predicted critical fire weather conditions occurred for only a short time and fire spread was minimal. Most of the growth occurred in the northeast part of the fire where firefighters made progress, but have not completely encircled the fire in the SOB/Burnt Lake areas. Crews will continue line building in that area tonight and tomorrow. Tomorrow, aircraft (small air tankers and helicopters) will be used to help firefighters in this effort. The remainder of the fireline will be patrolled and any heat found next to the fireline will be put out. Suppression repair (mainly smoothing and water barring dozer lines) will begin on some cool portions of the fireline.
Area and Road Closures in Effect: On August 17, the BLM issued a closure order for public lands in the fire area to protect public health and safety. The closed area is bounded by Highway 395 on the west, the Sand Pass Road on the east, and the Wendel Road on the south. The new northern boundary for the public land closure is the Juniper Ridge, Tuledad, Stage Road, Marr Road, and Buckhorn Road extending to Nevada Highway 447 in Washoe County. Routes closed within this closure area include the Ramhorn Springs, Rye Patch Road, Buckhorn, Shinn Ranch, Stoney, Deep Cut, Smoke Creek, Skedaddle Ranch, Dry Valley, and Brubeck roads. The Ramhorn Springs Campground and the Dodge Reservoir Campground also is closed. Today, August 21st Washoe County closed the Buffalo Meadows Road to public use. This will allow firefighters better access and help protect firefighter and public safety.
Travelers along the Highway 395 corridor, please use caution where fire crews and equipment are working in the fire area.
Remarks: NOTE: Use of chainsaws on public lands managed by BLM in NE California and far northwest Nevada is suspended effective Monday, Aug. 20, due to extreme fire danger. Fire officials remind residents and visitors that fire restrictions are in effect for public lands and national forests in northeast California and far northwest Nevada. Campfires are permitted only in posted recreation sites.
Close to 300,000 acres of the Twin Peak wild horse range have burned as of midnight August 20th.
We are very grateful to the Rush fire crews working to contain the fire, protect the land, livestock, wild horses and burros and especially the community.
We ask the BLM to find a way to help the wild horses on the range by bringing them food and water as needed–until the forage grows back.
Rounding up California’s last herd of wild horses and removing them from their herd management area is wrong. We don’t want them to lose their legally designated range to livestock, energy and mining use. These other forms of public land use can move elsewhere for a while, if needed, but California’s wild horses need their home on the range.
Location: The fire is located on Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Northern California District (BLM-CA-NOD,) Eagle Lake Field Office, approximately 15 miles southeast of Ravendale, California. The fire is burning near a major natural gas line and transfer station, and power transmission lines that supply the Reno area and adjacent to Highway 395.
Summary: Line construction and suppression efforts will continue along the north eastern edge of the fire along the Buckhorn Road. The fire remains active along this edge. Burning operations on the southern edge of the fire near Wendel Road were successfully completed yesterday, and crews worked late into the night. Today, crews will concentrate suppression efforts along the north eastern flank, south of Buckhorn Road; the eastern edge east of the Rush Creek Ranch, and in the Wendel Road area. Additionally, crews will continue mop up and fire line construction along other areas of the fire’s perimeter. Air support will available and used as needed.
Tomorrow there is a Fire Weather Watch forecasted for afternoon winds from the SW approaching 30 to 35 mph.
Today at 0600 the Northern Rockies Incident Management Team assumed command from NorCal Team 2. Transitions of this sort are common, and operations should remain seamless.
Area and Road Closures in Effect: On August 17, the BLM issued a closure order for public lands in the fire area to protect public health and safety. The closed area is bounded by Highway 395 on the west, the Sand Pass Road on the east, and the Wendel Road on the south. The new northern boundary for the public land closure is the Juniper Ridge, Tuledad, Stage Road, Marr Road, and Buckhorn Road extending to Nevada Highway 447 in Washoe County. Routes closed within this closure area include the Ramhorn Springs, Rye Patch Road, Buckhorn, Shinn Ranch, Stoney, Deep Cut, Smoke Creek, Skedaddle Ranch, Dry Valley, and Brubeck roads. The Ramhorn Springs Campground and the Dodge Reservoir Campground also is closed.
Travelers along the Highway 395 corridor, please use caution where fire crews and equipment are working in the fire area.
Remarks: Fire officials remind residents and visitors that fire restrictions are in effect for public lands and national forests in northeast California. Campfires are permitted only in posted recreation sites. Chainsaws may not be used after 1:00pm daily.
Location: The fire is located on Bureau of Land Management (BLM), Northern California District (BLM-CA-NOD,) Eagle Lake Field Office, approximately 15 miles southeast of Ravendale, California. The fire is burning near a major natural gas line and transfer station, and power transmission lines that supply the Reno area.
Summary: The fire pushed south and east over the top of Skedaddle Mountain as well as spreading east of Observation Peak. Firefighters made good progress to secure the northwestern fire edge. Fire crews will continue to construct handline, dozer lines, and complete burnouts operations as conditions permit in an effort to further contain the fire.
Possible thunderstorm activity is in the forecast for the next two-three days. This fire has showed significant growth from thunder cell downdrafts on several occasions.
Voluntary evacuations of structures along eastern side of Highway 395. Structure protection is being implemented by fire crews. Residents along Mail Route/County Road 502 and Garate Road were notified that voluntary evacuations for that area are in effect. The fire is currently within ½ mile of US Route (Highway) 395. The public needs to be aware for the need of possible intermittent closures of Highway 395 due to fire activity and public safety.
Area and Road Closures in Effect: On August 16, the BLM issued a closure order for public lands in the fire area to protect public health and safety. The closed area is bounded by Highway 395 on the west, the Sand Pass Road on the east, and the Wendel Road on the south. The new northern boundary for the public land closure is the Juniper Ridge, Tuledad, Stage Road, Marr Road, and Buckhorn Road extending to Nevada Highway 447 in Washoe County. Routes closed within this closure area include the Ramhorn Springs, Rye Patch Road, Shinn Ranch, Stoney, Deep Cut, Smoke Creek, Skedaddle Ranch, Dry Valley, and Brubeck roads. The Ramhorn Springs Campground also is closed.
Travelers along the Highway 395 corridor, please use caution near the fire crews and equipment working in the fire area. Highway 395 may be closed due to fire activity. Please check for current road conditions with CalTrans at http://www.dot.ca.gov/cgi-bin/roads.cgi or 800-427-7623.
Remarks: Fire officials remind residents and visitors that fire restrictions are in effect for public lands and national forests in northeast California. Campfires are permitted only in posted recreation sites. Chainsaws may not be used after 1:00pm daily.
Robin Warren leads youth campaign for Protect Mustangs
For immediate release:
SAN FRANCISCO, Ca. (July 16, 2012)–Since joining Protect Mustangs in June as their new youth campaign director, Robin Warren, age 11, has met with a Nevada State Senator, documented wild horses on the range, was a featured speaker at the Stop the Roundups rally in California’s capital and gave oral comments at the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) helicopter hearing also in the golden state. At the hearing, Warren presented the BLM representative with her Petition to Save Wild Mustangs asking the BLM to stop helicopter roundups.
“It’s not fair that the Bureau of Land Management has an exemption to the law that protects wild horses and burros,” states Robin Warren, youth campaign director for Protect Mustangs. “We want cruel helicopter roundups to stop and we want to make sure they always have access to clean water.”
The petition reads:
“We, the undersigned, do respectfully request that the Bureau of Land Management adhere to the same rules and regulations as the general public in regards to the humane treatment of wild horses and burros. We find it unreasonable that the Secretary of the Interior, the Bureau of Land Management, or any person or organization, is found to be exempt from our collective responsibility as humans to treat animals humanely. We further find it unreasonable that the Secretaries of the Interior and Agriculture are permitted to define “humane” as it pertains to their own areas of command. We respectfully request that the Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act of 1971 be restored to its original intent, that no person or organization would be permitted to capture wild horses and burros by means of motorized vehicles, or by polluting or closing off watering holes, as these methods have been proven inhumane.”
Warren started the petition 3 years ago under her pen name Wild Mustang Robin–to stop the wild horse roundups. She was inspired to co-author the petition after reading “Mustang, Wild Spirit of the West” by Marguerite Henry.
She has been active in her hometown, Las Vegas, and over the internet to get signatures. After posting the petition online at Change.org she received signatures from 50 States, DC, Puerto Rico & and more than 30 countries.
At last week’s helicopter use hearing in Sacramento, Warren presented 2770 signatures from her petition to Amy Dumas, the BLM representative.”Kids don’t want to see wild horses in zoos,” states Warren. “We want to observe them roaming on the open range with their families.”
Warren’s speech at the BLM helicopter use hearing received a standing ovation from the audience.
“Robin speaks for the youth of America and touches people’s hearts across the nation,” says Anne Novak, executive director for Protect Mustangs. “She wants the wild horses to be protected–not harassed and torn from their families forever.”
Copy of Robin’s speech to BLM delivered as a letter at the hearing:
Robin Warren Director of the Youth Program Protect Mustangs P.O. Box 5661 Berkley, CA 94705
Mike Pool
Acting Director of the Bureau of Land Management
1849 C Street NW, Rm. 5665
Washington DC 20240
James G. Kenna & Amy Dumas
BLM Wild Horse and Burro State Director, and Program
California State Office
2800 Cottage Way, Suite W1834
Sacramento, CA 95825
July 10th, 2012
Re: Helicopter Roundups
Dear Messrs. Mike Pool and James Kenna and Ms. Amy Dumas;
Hi I am Wild Mustang Robin, Director of the Youth Campaign at Protect Mustangs; I came here today to talk about the mustangs. I am happy see there are many people here who could come today to say no to the roundups. First of all I would like to say the roundups are inhumane. There is a law made by Wild Horse Annie saying you cannot use motorized vehicles to round up the wild horses. If I – or even the President – was to round them up I would get arrested. Now there is one interesting thing: the BLM gets an exemption even though it is a law not to use motorized vehicles.
Helicopters are like monsters to the mustangs; children do not want America’s animals to be scared or hurt in anyway. This makes kids feel unsafe because they don’t want to have monsters in their life and children are like animals (they don’t have a voice really). The helicopters are so scary that the mustangs remember the noise for the rest of their lives. I went to the BLM holding facility in Sparks, NV and when we were walking a slow pace the horses got scared and ran away. They were scared of people walking – how do you think they feel about helicopters?
Another reason the roundups are inhumane is because they separate the families apart – the foals from the mothers and the mothers from the fathers. They might spend the rest of their lives behind gates and never see each other again. Their ability to have families is a gift because many creatures have to let their babies live on their own after a few weeks of them taking care of them. I know how it feels because I lost my whole family. I have found a new home and happiness but the mustangs may never get to be in a herd again – and they long for family. It is not humane to separate families from each other. How would you feel if you lost your family?
A much more humane idea is to keep the family bands whole and send them all together to sanctuaries. It is an idea that would save money and make money as a tourist attraction – a business like a hotel near where the mustangs and burros live. This is a great idea and it can cost less than feeding, watering, and taking care of them when they can take care of themselves. It could make money for all the states where mustangs still live – both yours and mine.
The mustangs and burros deserve to be treated right. I know that and a numerous amount of others do too. Many people care about the wild horses and burros and do not want any of them rounded up or eaten. There are the big names you know, that spoke before me, and then there are the “little names” you don’t know yet, like mine. I represent the voices of many children.
Please do not use helicopters or motorized vehicles for roundups or management. Please reconsider your roundup plans and let them live in freedom.
