How are wildfires named?
IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI) - Idaho has had several wildfires this summer. You may have noticed they are not named the same way as hurricanes and tropical storms. How do wildfires get their names?
Local News 8 turned to the Bureau of Land Management-Idaho to find out.
"We generally name them based off of the nearest geographical reference to the fire," said BLM Fire Prevention and Trespass Specialist, Matthew Rose. "Around here, the policy is the first unit on scene is the one that names the fire. Other places--dispatch will [name the fires]. It doesn't really matter who, but...[wildfires are] named after the the nearest geographical reference."
These geographic locations can include streets, mountains, or bodies of water. Wildfires are not usually named after what caused them.
Rose said when two large fires join together, they will be given a joint fire name. Like how the Red Fire and Salmon Fire could become the Red Salmon Complex.
The Bureau of Land Management would like to remind you to recreate responsibly and avoid starting fires.
