Which ground fire is wind-driven, high-intensity, moving through tree tops?

Which ground fire is wind-driven, high-intensity, moving through tree tops?

• A. Ground fire
• B. Surface fire
• C. Crown fire
• D. Subsurface fire

Answer: (C)

This topic is about how fire moves through different parts of a forest and how wind changes that spread. When flames are moving through the tree tops and the fire is driven by wind, it’s burning in the canopy—the crowns of the trees. That canopy-level spread with high heat release and rapid advancement is what we call a crown fire. Crown fires erupt when a ground or surface fire climbs into the canopy, often aided by dry conditions and strong winds. The flames reach from one crown to the next, and the wind can push the fire quickly through the treetops, producing intense heat and risky, fast-moving fire behavior. This contrasts with fires that burn at or below ground level (ground or subsurface) or on the forest floor (surface), which don’t move through the tree canopies in the same way.

This topic is about how fire moves through different parts of a forest and how wind changes that spread. When flames are moving through the tree tops and the fire is driven by wind, it’s burning in the canopy—the crowns of the trees. That canopy-level spread with high heat release and rapid advancement is what we call a crown fire.

Crown fires erupt when a ground or surface fire climbs into the canopy, often aided by dry conditions and strong winds. The flames reach from one crown to the next, and the wind can push the fire quickly through the treetops, producing intense heat and risky, fast-moving fire behavior. This contrasts with fires that burn at or below ground level (ground or subsurface) or on the forest floor (surface), which don’t move through the tree canopies in the same way.