2000 Jasper Fire

2000 wildfire in South Dakota the 2000 fire in South Dakota the wildfire in Jasper, Alberta 2024 Jasper wildfire May 2025 February 2025 Jasper Fire File:Large fires can sometimes burn right up to the edge of a developed area. Jewel Cave National Monument, South Dakota (03393a08-1dd8-b71b-0b28-6bc40d418bd6).jpg Jasper Fire approaching Jewel Cave August 24 – September 25, 2000 Black Hills, South Dakota, U.S. 43 47 40 N 103 52 56 W inline,title no 83508 acre ha sqkm $42 million Dropped lit match Janice Stevenson Arson South Dakota General area of the fire in South Dakota The Jasper Fire was a wildfire that occurred between August 24 and September 25, 2000, in the Black Hills of South Dakota, United States. Burning a total of 83508 acre ha sqkm across the southern hills, it is the largest wildfire in both state and Black Hills history.History https://wildlandfire.sd.gov/history.aspx South Dakota Wildland Fire South Dakota Department of Public Safety June 18, 2024O'Bryan Miranda 20th anniversary of largest wildfire in South Dakota history https://www.kotatv.com/2020/08/24/20th-anniversary-of-the-largest-wildfire-in-south-dakota-history/ June 18, 2024 KOTA-TV August 24, 2020 It burned over 90% of the total land area of Jewel Cave National Monument. 2024, efforts to replenish the natural vegetation inside the burn scar are still ongoing. The cause of the fire was later determined to be arson. Janice Stevenson of Newcastle, Wyoming, was arrested and accused of setting the fire by way of dropping a lit match and failing to put it out. In 2001, Stevenson pled guilty to second-degree arson and was sentenced to 25 years in prison. Events On August 24, 2000, a motorist, later identified as Janice Stevenson of Newcastle, Wyoming, stopped to use the bathroom on the side of U.S. Highway 16 near Jasper Cave Road, just west of Jewel Cave. She lit a cigarette and threw the lit match on the ground, which ignited the grass. Reportedly, Stevenson noticed the fire and drove away. The fire was reported at 2:18 p.m. the same day. Hot and dry conditions, low humidity, and heavy ground litter allowed the fire to spread rapidly, and shifting winds spread the fire in multiple directions. At its peak, the fire burned 100 acre per minute.USFS 2001 1-4 On August 26, the fire burned 48,000 acre ha sqkm.Analyzing the Jasper Fire in the Black Hills National Forest https://www.esri.com/news/arcnews/spring01articles/analyzingjasper.html June 18, 2024 ArcNews ESRI News 2001 Over 1,100 firefighters were involved in fighting the blaze. The fire was declared contained on September 8 at 6:00 p.m.Fecske Jenks Lindzey 2004 137 and was officially deemed controlled on September 25.USFS 2001 1 Impact Aftermath Overall, the fire burned 83508 acre ha sqkm of forest, making it the largest wildfire in both South Dakota and Black Hills history. It stretched across parts of Custer and Pennington Counties. The Jasper Fire was 25% larger than any other reported fire in the Black Hills. Of land use in the Black Hills National Forest, 52472 acre in Hell Canyon Ranger District, 26294 acre in Mystic Ranger District, and 2836 acre of private land burned.USFS 2001 1 27% of the impacted area was so severely burned that all trees were destroyed and ecological succession was reset.Menick et al. 2022 1 Multiple summer houses and cabins were also destroyed. Overall, the fire incurred around $9 million in firefighting costs and caused an estimated $42 million in overall damages. thumb|left|Jewel Cave Ranger Station survived the fire. The fire burned 1279 acre,USFS 2001 1 about 90% of the entire area, of Jewel Cave National Monument. However, firefighting measures were effective enough that no structures inside the park were lost.Jewel Cave National Monument: Jasper Fire https://www.nps.gov/jeca/learn/nature/jasperfire.htm National Park Service Department of the Interior June 18, 2024 Controlled burns in 1994 and 1999 had cleared away enough underbrush to prevent the fire from moving towards and destroying the visitor center and surrounding buildings.National Park Service National Park Service Wildland Fire Report Fiscal Year 2000 http://npshistory.com/publications/fire/wildland-fire-reports/2000.pdf Department of the Interior 6 June 8, 2024 The Jewel Cave Ranger Station, a historic log cabin, was foamed multiple times to keep it from burning. The park remained closed until September 2, when the forest was satisfied that the fire was safely contained. Impact on wildlife The fire burned much of the natural habitat for various native species, including deer, turkeys, elk, coyotes, porcupines, squirrels, and bobcats. However, it increased the natural habitat for insects and woodpeckers, which thrive in snags.USFS 2001 3-7 One pregnant mountain lion that was being tracked by a United States Geological Survey research group was killed in the fire.Fecske Jenks Lindzey 2004 137 Replanting efforts thumb|Tree damage in the aftermath of the fire Most of the trees lost were ponderosa pines, which are notoriously difficult to regrow in severe burn areas due to their short-distance seed dispersal method.Menick et al. 2022 1–2 Additionally, the fire was so intense that it destroyed the seed sources in the soil, leaving no natural way for trees to regenerate inside the burn scar.Savic Bryan Jasper Burn Scar area being revitalized by U.S Forest Service https://www.blackhillsfox.com/2024/04/13/jasper-burn-scar-area-being-revitalized-by-us-forest-service/ June 18, 2024 KEVN April 13, 2024 The Jasper Fire Area Tree Planting Project began in 2002 with the aim of replacing the thousands of trees lost in the fire and restoring the natural vegetation, using saplings grown in Nebraska's Bessey Nursery.Replanting the Jasper Fire Burn Scar http://www.fs.usda.gov/r02/blackhills United States Forest Service United States Department of Agriculture June 18, 2024 Under this program, the USFS currently plants about 150,000 new saplings across 400 acre annually within the affected area.Kirkpatrick Marion Recovery efforts continue in South Dakota more than 20 years after the Jasper Fire https://www.rfdtv.com/recovery-efforts-continue-in-south-dakota-more-than-20-years-after-the-jasper-fire June 18, 2024 RFD-TV April 18, 2024 A 2022 report analyzing vegetation regrowth found that 46% of the most heavily-burned area showed little to no regeneration.Menick et al. 2022 1 Investigation The cause of the fire was quickly determined to be arson. Two separate witnesses identified Stevenson's car at the fire's point of origin. Stevenson was arrested at a relative's house in Custer.Wyoming woman accused of starting Jasper Fire https://www.bhpioneer.com/wyoming-woman-accused-of-starting-jasper-fire/article_96203203-ecad-5780-86d2-6ed609eee661.html June 18, 2024 Black Hills Pioneer Associated Press According to her family and her lawyer, Stevenson had a history of mental illness and setting fires.Williams Lee Case against alleged Hills arsonist https://www.newspapers.com/article/argus-leader-case-against-alleged-hills/149595457/ June 18, 2024 Argus Leader October 8, 2000 1, 12A Newspapers.com During the investigation, Stevenson admitted she could have put out the fire before it spread; she later stated she meant to start the fire but did not think it would grow so large. She was also questioned about potential involvement in the 1988 Westberry Trails Fire, an unsolved arson which destroyed 15 homes in Rapid City, South Dakota. A polygraph expert said Stevenson admitted to setting three other fires prior to Jasper. In May 2001, Stevenson entered a guilty plea agreement, requiring her to plead guilty to arson as well as to cooperate with the Westberry investigation. However, after Stevenson failed a polygraph test regarding the Westberry Trails Fire, Assistant Attorney General Paul Bachand sought a harsher sentence—asking 25 years instead of just 17 1/2—and argued that Stevenson had violated the terms of the plea. Stevenson's attorney opposed the reversal, stating it was motivated by the opportunity to close the Westberry Trails case. In July, Stevenson was sentenced to 10 years in prison for destruction of U.S. federal property. The following month, she was sentenced to an additional 25 years for second-degree arson, to be served concurrently with the previous 10-year sentence.Holland Jim Jasper arsonist gets 25 years https://rapidcityjournal.com/jasper-arsonist-gets-25-years/article_cc2c6056-5b57-5bae-bfcf-e17952c90aaf.html June 18, 2024 Rapid City Journal August 21, 2001 Stevenson appealed her sentence, but it was upheld by the South Dakota Supreme Court in 2002.Kafka Joe Black Hills arsonist's sentence upheld https://rapidcityjournal.com/black-hills-arsonists-sentence-upheld/article_d54b0467-1e7e-5ac4-a707-463c8913612e.html June 18, 2024 Rapid City Journal October 2, 2002 See also List of South Dakota wildfires White Draw Fire References Citations Bibliography Fecske Dorothy M. Jenks Jonathan A. Lindzey Frederick D. Mortality of an Adult Cougar Due to a Forest Fire 2004 The Prairie Naturalist 36 2 137–140 USGS Staff, University of Nebraska–Lincoln https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1124&context=usgsstaffpub June 18, 2024 Menick Casey Seldon Yeshey Stuckmeyer Haley Rogers Heidi Summer 2022 Black Hills Wildfires: Mapping Post-Fire Conifer Regeneration using Snow-On Imagery https://ntrs.nasa.gov/api/citations/20220014676/downloads/2022Sum_CO_BlackHillsWildfires_TechPaper_FD-final.docx.pdf NASA DEVELOP National Program June 18, 2024 Menick et al. 2022 United States Forest Service, Black Hills National Forest United States Forest Service 2001 Jasper Fire Value Recovery: Draft Environmental Impact Statement https://books.google.com/books?id=ep82AQAAMAAJ United States Department of Agriculture June 18, 2024 Google Books USFS 2001 Further reading Scheffler Daniel Frantz David Improved burn severity estimation by using Land Surface Phenology metrics and red edge information estimated from Landsat International Journal of Applied Earth Observation and Geoinformation December 2022 115 103126 10.1016/j.jag.2022.103126 free Category:2000 wildfires in the United States Category:Natural disasters in South Dakota Category:Fires in South Dakota Category:Black Hills Category:Arson in 2000 Category:Wildfires caused by arson Category:2000 in South Dakota Category:August 2000 crimes in the United States Category:September 2000 in the United States