§ 204.21 Fire management assistance declaration criteria.

(a) Determinations. FEMA will approve declarations for fire management assistance when the Administrator determines that a fire or fire complex on public or private forest land or grassland threatens such destruction as would constitute a major disaster. (b) Evaluation criteria. FEMA will evaluate the threat posed by a fire or fire complex based on consideration of the following specific criteria: (1) Threat to lives and improved property, including threats to critical facilities/infrastructure, and critical watershed areas; (2) Availability of State and local firefighting resources; (3) High fire danger conditions, as indicated by nationally accepted indices such as the National Fire Danger Ratings System; (4) Potential major economic impact.