Sometimes, sheer physical exhaustion and weariness overcome even the most creative minds. It happened to one forest official in Idaho responsible for naming a new blaze.
A public information officer for the Idaho Department of Lands said the un-named official was awakened at 3 o'clock in the morning by a phone call requesting a name for one of dozens of wildfires that broke out last Friday.
The befogged official rubbed his face and tried to get his mind working on the problem. But it was impossible. Finally, he said he was just not creative at that moment.
So the fire in question became the "Not Creative" fire.
The public information officer said sometimes you have to find some humor amid all the wildfire havoc.
Wildfires are generally named for a geographical feature near the ignition point - a mountain peak or stream, for example.
In Idaho, the Clearwater complex fire was named for the scenic river and the geographic area in which it broke out.
When a wildfire first breaks out, the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise assigns a code to identify the state, the general area and an incident number. A new fire in the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest, for example, was titled WA-OWF-669.
If it grows in size, ferocity and danger, it'll carry a more memorable name.
