NNSS Cherrywood Fire
Update Released May 26, 2021
UPDATE: Wildland fire at the NNSSNORTH LAS VEGAS, Nevada - The NNSS Cherrywood Fire total burn area is still estimated at 26,431 acres. Progress continues to be made and containment is estimated now at 50 percent.
Yesterday, the NNSS and Bureau of Land Management (BLM) firefighters were able to secure the east and southwest perimeters. BLM air support assisted with bucket drops in those areas. Today's focus will remain on the south perimeter. The north perimeter was secured earlier this week.
As the containment percentage increases, BLM will release their firefighters and the full incident command will transition back to NNSS Fire & Rescue. The NNSS would like to extend its utmost appreciation to the BLM team as their partnership has been key to getting this wildland fire under control.
Radiological monitoring continues at the Site today. There remains no risk to health and human safety, and no offsite risk to the public.
Additional information will be provided as it becomes available on the NNSS Twitter page at https://twitter.com/NNSANevada, Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/NNSANevada and the NNSS website at http://www.nnss.gov.
Update Released May 25, 2021
UPDATE: Wildland fire at the NNSSNORTH LAS VEGAS, Nevada - Air and ground operations in support of the Cherrywood Fire continue today at the NNSS. More accurate aerial mapping has revised the total burn area to 26,431 acres, with containment remaining at 15 percent.
Operations resumed today at 7:00 a.m. PT after good progress was made by firefighters yesterday. The northern perimeter of the fire is no longer burning. NNSS and the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) firefighters are working to secure the east, south, and southwest perimeters. BLM air support continues bucket drops in these areas, working alongside ground crews.
Radiological monitoring continues at the Site. There remains no risk to health and human safety, and no offsite risk to the public.
As a reminder, the Desert Research Institute, working with members of the local community, also operates the Community Environmental Monitoring Program, an independent radiological air monitoring system at 24 locations around the Site and throughout Nevada and parts of Utah and California. Results are posted regularly on DRI's website: https://cemp.dri.edu/.
Additional information will be provided as it becomes available on the NNSS Twitter page at https://twitter.com/NNSANevada, Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/NNSANevada and the NNSS website at http://www.nnss.gov.
Update Released May 24, 2021
UPDATE: Wildland fire at the NNSSNORTH LAS VEGAS, Nevada - Air and ground operations in support of the Cherrywood Fire continue today. As stated yesterday, the fire entered a site with remnant radiological material from a Cold War era test Saturday evening. The NNSS completed air sampling, radiological surveys on vehicles, equipment, personnel, and aircraft over the weekend. Analysis has shown only naturally occurring radiation at background levels. There is no risk to health and human safety, and there is no offsite risk to the public.
In addition to the dose monitoring and modeling conducted at the Site, the Desert Research Institute, working with members of the local community, operates the Community Environmental Monitoring Program, an independent radiological air monitoring system at 24 locations around the Site and throughout Nevada and parts of Utah and California. Results are posted regularly on DRI's website, here: https://cemp.dri.edu/.
The NNSS is in unified command with the Bureau of Land Management, which is leading the Cherrywood Fire response efforts. Firefighters have contained 15% of the 24,000-acre wildland fire. Nearly 300 BLM and NNSS firefighters continue to make headway on the Cherrywood fire both on ground and by air to take advantage of favorable weather today.
Additional information will be provided as it becomes available on the NNSS Twitter page at https://twitter.com/NNSANevada, Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/NNSANevada and the NNSS website at http://www.nnss.gov .
Update Released May 23, 2021
UPDATE: Wildland fire at the NNSSNORTH LAS VEGAS, Nevada - Air and ground operations in support of the Cherrywood Fire continued today. Firefighting teams took full advantage of favorable weather today, with five single-engine planes and two large air tanks performing more than 50 air drops.
As stated yesterday, the fire entered a site with remnant radiological material from a Cold War era test yesterday evening. There is no risk to health and human safety, and there is no offsite risk to the public.
Estimates provided by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory's National Atmospheric Release Advisory Center indicate potential radiological exposures for onsite personnel are well below the criteria for initiating protective actions.
A radiological response team has taken multiple samples from throughout the Site today, and results will be available tomorrow.
In addition to the dose monitoring and modeling conducted at the Site, the Desert Research Institute, working with members of the local community, operates the Community Environmental Monitoring Program, an independent radiological air monitoring system at 24 locations around the Site and throughout Nevada and parts of Utah and California.
Results are posted regularly on DRI's website, here: https://cemp.dri.edu/.
The NNSS is in unified command with the Bureau of Land Management, which is leading the Cherrywood Fire response efforts. Nearly 190 additional personnel-including a Type 3 Incident Management Team-have been brought in to support the effort, and there are presently 239 personnel on the fire. Containment is at 15 percent as of today.
Additional information will be provided as it becomes available on the NNSS Twitter page at https://twitter.com/NNSANevada, Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/NNSANevada and the NNSS website at http://www.nnss.gov .
Update Released May 22, 2021
UPDATE: Wildland fire at the NNSSNORTH LAS VEGAS, Nevada - The Cherrywood Fire burning in the northern section of the Nevada National Security Site has entered a site with remnant radiological material from a Cold War era test. There is no risk to health and human safety, and there will be no offsite risk to the public.
Firefighter safety is the top priority, and responders are being diverted to another area of the fire.
Should the fire burn completely through this legacy test area, estimates provided by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory's National Atmospheric Release Advisory Center indicate potential radiological exposures for onsite personnel are well below the criteria for initiating protective actions.
In accordance with site protocols, a radiological response team has been deployed for on-site monitoring and multiple air sampling monitors have been installed around the fire's location.
In addition to continuous dose monitoring and modeling conducted at the site, the Desert Research Institute, working with members of the local community, operates the Community Environmental Monitoring Program, an independent radiological air monitoring system at 24 locations around the NNSS and throughout Nevada and parts of Utah and California.
Results are posted regularly on DRI's website, here: https://cemp.dri.edu/ .
No injuries have been reported.
The estimated burn area for the Cherrywood Fire remains at 35,000 acres in size. This is just an estimate. The burn area is not restricted to NNSS land.
Additional information will be provided as it becomes available on the NNSS Twitter page at https://twitter.com/NNSANevada, Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/NNSANevada and the NNSS website at http://www.nnss.gov .
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The NNSS and its related facilities help ensure the security of the United States and its allies by: supporting the stewardship of the nation's nuclear deterrent; providing nuclear and radiological emergency response capabilities and training; contributing to key nonproliferation and arms control initiatives; executing national-level experiments in support of the National Laboratories; working with national security customers and other federal agencies on important national security activities; and providing long-term environmental stewardship of the NNSS's Cold War legacy.
The NNSS is managed and operated by Mission Support and Test Services LLC (MSTS). MSTS is a limited liability company consisting of Honeywell International Inc., Jacobs Engineering Group Inc., and HII Nuclear. The NNSS falls under the jurisdiction of the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA), an agency within the U.S. Department of Energy. The Site's operations are government-controlled and contractor-operated, and are overseen by NNSA's Nevada Field Office, headquartered in North Las Vegas.
For more information on the NNSS, visit www.nnss.gov .
Released May 21, 2021
The Cherrywood Fire burning in the northern section of the Nevada National Security Site (NNSS) has grown in size to 17,680 acres and is nearing a known contamination area. NNSS and BLM firefighters are working to prevent the fire from reaching this area. If the fire enters this contaminated area, firefighter safety will be the top priority and responders will be diverted to another area.Should the fire burn completely through the contaminated area, conservative estimates of dose rates for onsite personnel are well below the criteria for initiating protective actions; there is no risk to health and human safety, and any offsite exposure would be neglibible. However, out of an abundance of caution, a radiological response team has been deployed for on-site monitoring.
No structures or assets are in danger. No injuries have been reported. Additional information will be provided as it becomes available.
Please note, Nevada National Security Site lands and air space are restricted. Access is not available for on-site media coverage on foot or by helicopter.