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Author(s):
Arnold I. Finklin
Year Published:

Cataloging Information

Topic(s):
Fire Behavior
Extreme Fire Behavior
Case Studies
Ecosystem(s):
Subalpine dry spruce-fir forest

NRFSN number: 11905
FRAMES RCS number: 13849
Record updated:

Strong, sustained, southwesterly winds were a major factor in the Sundance Fire run in northern Idaho during which the fire front raced 16 miles northeastward within a 9-hr. period on September 1, 1967. These winds were found to be dependent upon an unusually strong summertime pressure gradient ahead of an approaching trough, bringing windspeeds of 4 to 50 mph in the free atmosphere a few thousand feet above ground. Surface winds, though generally reduced by friction and varying according to local topography, were indicated at around 35 mph at exposed mountaintop or ridgetop locations in the fire area.

Citation

Finklin, Arnold I. 1973. Meteorological factors in the Sundance Fire run. Gen. Tech. Rep. INT-GTR-6. Ogden, UT: USDA Forest Service, Intermountain Forest and Range Experiment Station. 46 p.

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