What Wildland Fires Require in NERIS
Wildland and brush fire incidents use NERIS property use codes for undeveloped land and outdoor areas, and wildland-specific area of origin codes. They also introduce fields not present in structure fire reporting: estimated acreage burned, terrain description, and weather conditions at the time of the incident.
Wildland-urban interface incidents add further complexity — they may involve both wildland and structure elements, requiring documentation of whether structures were threatened, damaged, or destroyed, in addition to wildland fire data.
Wildland-Specific NERIS Fields
Acreage Burned
Estimated area affected — required for wildland incidents
Terrain
Flat, slope, canyon — affects fire behavior documentation
Weather Conditions
Wind speed, relative humidity, temperature at incident time
Structures Threatened
Number of structures in the fire perimeter or threatened zone
Structures Damaged or Destroyed
Required if any structures were involved
Area of Origin (wildland)
Wildland-specific origin codes differ from structure fire codes
Current Station Draft Coverage
Station Draft v0.1 has limited wildland fire coverage. The primary focus is structure fires, where field mapping is most developed. Wildland fire coverage is expanding through the pilot program, with input from departments that run significant wildland and WUI call volume.
Departments in states with high wildland fire activity — California, Texas, and others — are specifically invited to apply for the pilot and contribute to wildland fire coverage development.