 It mimics a disturbance that has already occurred and allows the fire to be a lower severity or lower intensity fire where it's just a surface fire on the needle bed rather than fire that climbs through the vegetation and then into the tree canopy. When the Darlene 3 fire hit the area that had been cleared, it slowed significantly, allowing crews to contain it at 3,900 acres. The investigation into the cause of the fire continues.