[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 85 (Thursday, June 25, 1998)]
[House]
[Page H5301]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




      CONGRESSIONAL FIRE SERVICES CAUCUS WILDLAND FIRE INITIATIVE

  (Mr. WELDON of Pennsylvania asked and was given permission to address 
the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. WELDON of Pennsylvania. Madam Speaker, each night on the evening 
news in our media across this country we see the devastation being 
caused by forest fires and wildlands fires. Florida is being devastated 
as we stand here today; Texas, the West, California.
  Today at 11:30 in the Rayburn, Room 2216, a bipartisan group of our 
colleagues will come together and announce a six-part initiative that 
will deal with the issue of wildlands and forest fires. We will review 
what actions Members of Congress are taking to enhance the capability 
to use, in one case, Cold War technology to detect these fires at their 
inception.
  We will talk about resources that this Congress has in fact provided 
this year and in past years to improve the capability of our local 
emergency responders to deal with these disasters. I encourage our 
colleagues to join with us in announcing these initiatives to assist 
these States during their time of need.

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