Fireline Equipment

Cobra HS (Sequoia NF) Hold a Mcleod (left) and Pulaski (right).

Image: Alexis West

Starving a fire on the line

When firefighters head out in the early morning or evening for their 12 hour shift on the line, they bring with them the tools of the trade. Some of these tried and true tools have been used for decades. Most are used to starve a fire.

A fire needs three things to start and to continue burning: heat, oxygen, and fuel. Firefighters on the ground use tools to starve the fire by depriving it of burnable materials. They create a swath or line of bare dirt by removing grass, brush, trees and fallen leaves and pine needles. When fire on the ground reaches the unbroken line of bare dirt called “mineral soil”, it is deprived of fuel and goes out.

One of the most versatile tools for constructing firebreaks is named for US Forest Service Ranger Ed Pulaski, who developed, improved, popularized, and some say, invented the tool almost one hundred years ago. When forestry started as a profession, foresters used common tools such as the shovel, rake and hoe for firefighting. To make the use and transportation of tools by horseback easier, Pulaski was one of those who began to experiment with ways to combine and improve the tools. The pulaski is a combination ax and mattock mounted on one handle. This versatile tool can both dig soil for trenches and chop wood.

Another popular firefighting tool is also named for a US Forest Service Ranger. Malcolm McLeod of the Sierra National Forest designed a heavy duty hoe or cutting tool and rake combination in 1905. Today firefighters still use the McLeod to cut through compacted vegetation on the ground and clearing loose surface materials.

Commonly known tools are also used by firefighters to starve a fire. They use shovels to clear the ground of burnable materials. Axes and chain saws are used to cut brush, limbs or trees in order to construct a containment line that is free of vegetation.

Using hand tools to manually remove flammable materials is one technique of removing fuel in the path of the oncoming fire. To strengthen this line of bare soil and prevent the fire from jumping the line, firefighters sometimes burn the vegetation that remains between the line and the advancing fire. This consumes the fuel ahead of the approaching fire and helps to secure the constructed line. This intentionally set fire does not burn as hot as a wildfire and so is lighter on the land.

When burning operations are carried out, firefighters often use a driptorch to ignite fires. A driptorch consists of a fuel canister usually filled with a mixture of gasoline and diesel. The canister has a handle and a wick from which flaming fuel is dropped to the ground.

In different weather conditions firefighters sometimes use another method to begin the burning operations. A fusee is a type of pyrotechnic flare that produces intense heat to start the firing process.

After an area has burned, firefighters begin a process called “mop up”. This involves extinguishing or removing burning material near control lines. A tool they use in this process is the backpack pump. This portable sprayer with a hand pump is used to apply water to remaining embers and hot spots. Firefighters mix in the water to be sure the burned area has cooled.

Firefighters on the line have many tools in their arsenal to fit the job at hand. Some are commonly known, and other specialized tools have a long history of evolution and improvement. Armed with a variety of tools, training and experience, firefighters are well equipped to starve a fire on the line.

Backhauling: CCC Crews Prepare Hose for Boise Fire Cache

Hose from plumbing fireline is backhauled and returned for cleaning and winding.

CCC crews at the Station Fire prepped hundreds of miles of hose.

Images: Alexis West

Operation Backhaul

Firefighters out on the line often require additional equipment or supplies to do their work. An army of people works to support the firefighters by ordering, tracking and transporting to them everything from drinking water to generators. And what goes into the fire area must come out! While the fire is active and when it starts to wind down, the materials no longer needed must be transported back out of the fire area. This process is called backhauling.

A common item that is backhauled is 100-foot long fire hose. During the peak of activity on the Station Fire, over 13 miles of hose per day were delivered to firefighters on the line. After firefighters use the hose, it is backhauled, pressure tested for leaks, washed, dried, and rolled up.

Other items often backhauled are communication radios, repeaters, generators, packs, portable tanks, pumps, hose fittings, nozzles, ice chests, empty fuel canisters, lights to illuminate night operations, and garbage. Any broken or damaged equipment that is repairable is sent to the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise, Idaho, where employees repair it for reuse.

Whatever firefighters can’t backhaul in their fire engines is transported from the fire site in stakesided trucks and pickup trucks. Sometimes firefighters and equipment are delivered by helicopter to remote locations, and the backhaul operation must be carried out by helicopter.

Fire Mapping

The foremost objective in fire operations is to provide for firefighter and public safety. A wide array of tools and technology are used by experienced fire management to corral wildfire.

Accurate mapping is an essential fire support tool and takes many formats and scales.

Map products include: tactical and strategic planning, aerial reconnaissance. identification of hazards (overhead wires, mine shafts, illegal dumps, etc.), growth perimeter maps by day, damage inventories, jurisdictional and ownership boundaries, transportation access routes and closures. Maps are derived from a variety of sources depending upon intended use and accuracy required. Generally, base maps are developed from current aerial and satellite photography. Both contour maps and flat base maps are used depending upon specific need.

Topographic Maps

For tactical mapping needs, the topographic base series is used to record known fire perimeters. Topographic maps aid strategy planning based on specific terrain conditions and plan safety zones and anchor points for firefighter safety.

Briefing Maps

A variety of different kinds of maps expanded to an extra large scale are used for pre-shift briefing, media interviews ,and public meetings. These maps will show planned and completed fire line by hand crews and mechanical equipment (such as dozers), perimeter of open line, drop points, and pertinent features for the given period. Accuracy of this data is verified by using global positioning system (GPS) equipment.

Infrared Mapping

Use of infrared imagery (a high-tech science unto itself) applied to accurately plot critical hotspots in the fire progression as well as to determine where to best position critical suppression forces. This data is collected by aerial and fixed surveillance and by use of prob-eye hand held scanners Is use of infrared technology valid and how accurate is it A very small sized hot ember can be detected and plotted. From this data availability, a ground firefighter can calculate accurate GPS coordinates to locate the hot spot in a minimum of time. Infrared mapping can also be used for mapping different fuel types, human activity, vehicle use and more depending upon heat signature on the imagery.

Fire Progression

Fire progression maps are used for plotting fire growth daily or working shift period. This mapping is used by operation planning specialists for the advanced tactical decisions, fire behavior modeling, and administrative analysis to.

Other Mapping Technology

Another kind of mapping that is used predicts general fire readiness on a weekly, monthly or season to season basis using a series that identifies fuel moisture by size class, fire related weather, and fire danger ratings by weather station zones, recording lightning strikes, and display live fuel moisture conditions and other fuel modeling parameters. Examples of this series of maps can be found at the following website - http://wfas.net.

You can also try Google earth. If it is not installed on your computer, you can download it here free of charge:http://earth.google.com/. You can find out what is happening on current fires by accessing inciweb.comand see a variety other map products used in wildland fire protection and management...Enjoy your review of some examples of fire mapping.

Interview: Just out of Chileo Flat Spike Camp

Santa Fe Hotshot construct line in Division V. Image: Burt Skalter

Interview with Hotshot Back from the Chileo Spike Camp.

He shares that his crew has been out for 37 days, so far. On the Station Fire, they’ve been working night shift, which means they sleep in the day. During the days it’s hot and noisy with helicopters flying in and out. “ You maybe get about three hours really good sleep.” They’re sleeping in the black, in the safety zone that’s been burned out with no vegetation left. He makes a point that he is not complaining. “It ‘s what we do.” A hotshot for three seasons, he is adamant that no one can do this work if they don’t love it. “You have to really like it or you’d just be really miserable.”

What makes it work? He says his crew is his second family when he’s away from his wife and new baby.His crew really trusts each other; they become more than a collection of 20 personalities. In this line of work, he insists, “ there is no room to not get along.” The crew have team building activities like scavenger hunts. They work on puzzles together. At their home base they have sporting events and stay connected.

The being away is a stress on some of his family, he says, but mostly they understand why he’s gone most of the summer. His crew is demobilizing for a couple days of R&R, rest and relaxation. Then they’sll be back. For More.

Night Operations Near Mt. Wilson, 9 September, 2009

This video was taken by a member of the Elk Mountain

Hotshots during the burnout to secure Mt. Wilson.

Stopping the Flames

Images by Burt Stalter

One of the most dramatic sights on a wildfire is the vision of an air tanker releasing its red payload of retardant near the fire. Behind this picturesque vision is a long history of science in the development of a valuable tool for firefighters – the use of fire retardant. Today retardant is used when appropriate to help suppress wildland fires.

Aerial drops of retardant have come a long way since the first recorded water drop in 1930, when a Ford Tri-Motor airplane used a wooden beer keg filled with water. Now airtankers can drop 500 to 2000 gallons of retardant at a time to help suppress fires. Helitankers, which are helicopters with built-in tanks, can drop up to 2000 gallons, retrofitted DC-10s have an 11,000 gallon capacity, and Boeing 747s 20,000 gallons.

Fire retardant is just one of many tools in the arsenal of firefighters. Like any other tool, it must be used under the right conditions and for the right job in order to be effective. Firefighters consider many factors in deciding which tools to use at a particular location and time to suppress a fire. Characteristics of the terrain, weather variables such as temperature, humidity, wind direction and force; the types of vegetation in the fire area; proximity to homes and other buildings; and the first priority of safety of the public and firefighters are all factors in choosing the right tools for the particular circumstances.

Retardant drops are most often used in extreme fire conditions. The retardant is usually dropped just ahead of the advancing edge of the fire and the flanks of the fire. This cools and so slows the fire, helping firefighters on the ground. It reduces the rate of spread and the intensity of fires, and slows larger, more damaging, and therefore can reduce the cost of fires. Often, using retardant to fight fires is the most effective and efficient method of assisting firefighters in protecting people, resources, private property and facilities. The remoteness of many wildland fires can delay the arrival of firefighting ground forces. Retardant drops can rapidly reduce the intensity and spread of the fire until firefighters can safely take action. Topography in the fire area, and windy conditions are some of the factors limiting the effectiveness, and therefore the use, of retardant.

Although fire retardant is most often colored red or orange, sometimes a colorless retardant is used. The colored variety allows both the pilot and the firefighters on the ground to see where retardant has been applied. This helps the pilots in aiming their next drop and firefighters to know where to position themselves. The colorless variety is often used on roadside locations where color is not needed or desired or in the wilderness.

In1956, water drop tests showed that conditions had to be near perfect for water to reach the ground and be effective. So specialists began to mix in chemicals to make the drops have the desired effect. Over 50 years of retardant use, research and development have evolved into the current products and practices. Today long term retardant is most commonly used in heavy vegetation and in some critical fire situations needing immediate response. This type of retardant consists of 85 percent water, 10 percent fertilizer salts ammonium phosphate or ammonium sulfate (not sodium chloride), and 5 percent minor ingredients such as colorant (iron oxide –rust-, or a color that fades with exposure to sunlight), thickener (natural gum and clay), corrosion inhibitors, and dispersants. Foams and gels are also used, often in areas of lighter vegetation, on buildings and other structures such as fences or other resources. Foam is 99 percent water with 1 percent wetting agents, foaming agents, corrosion inhibitors and dispersants. Water enhancers, which absorb large amounts of water and dry slowly, are good for protecting structures and for mop-up operations. Water enhancers consist of 95 to 98 percent water, and the balance a mixture of thickeners, stabilizers and other minor ingredients.

The fertilizer in the long term retardant may help in re-sprouting of vegetation if other conditions are favorable. Conversely, excessive fertilizer may cause a temporary “burn” on exposed vegetation. Retardant use can be a more cost-effective and readily available tool than some other methods in remote locations, and lighter on the land than a dozer line.

Retardant products that are used must meet strict specifications and are tested against a prescribed set of health and safety protocols. Those who apply fire retardant undergo extensive training in its safe and proper use. The USDA Forest Service has guidelines for the use of fire retardant near aquatic areas and habitat of Threatened and Endangered species to avoid or minimize any negative effects. Aerial application of retardant is avoided within 300 feet of waterways visible to the pilot. The effects of the aerial application fire retardant on human health and safety have been analyzed and evaluated and it has been determined that it does not pose a risk to the health and safety of the public or firefighters.

The use of fire retardant is a valuable tool in the firefighting arsenal. Fire managers evaluate the many variables of a particular fire and the resources and values that are threatened. Training, experience, and pre-planning allow them to choose the best response to the fire and the appropriate tools to use.

Moving a Fire Camp

Perking the trailers is no simple task.

Moving a Fire Camp

When you think about moving a fire camp, consider the moving part: all kinds of lumbering rigs ( crew buggies, tractor trailers containing shower and food preparation units, the wiring to connect each trailer with telephones, electricity, internet, a water

source, place to camp and park trailers, mobile sleeping units. Thatʼs a lot of synchronicity, and that does not include the partridge in the pear tree.

One of the most important criteria for selecting a fire camp and Incident Command Post is water. If drinking and bathing water are not available in a perked location, hauling water will be an elaborate fundamental expense. Another criteria for a fire camp is power to drive the plethora of computers necessary to operate the many units that compose a fire management team. This equipment needs to be dry and as dust free as possible. Often easier said than done, even with dust abatement trucks spraying dirt and gravel roads periodically to minimize dust. Cell coverage and places for personnel to pitch tents are needed. If a fire camp needs to expand or be reduced relocation may be necessary. Often schools and parks are used as water, electricity, and areas to camp are available. Once a resource is identified as a suitable fire camp location, an agreement is

negotiated by a Procurement Officer of the agency where the fire is located. This is called a Land Use Agreement.

A Logistics Chief invests many years in the Incident Management System to earn the qualifications to put these ducks in a row. A Logistics Chief must earn a Unit Leader in Facilities as a first and mandatory qualifications. This may take several years to accomplish. Secondly, one other Unit Leader qualification must be earned, usually this is a Ground Support Unit Leader or a Supplies Unit Leader.

The reason a fire camp can suddenly appear and disappear smoothly is qualified Logistics Chiefs dedicated to making a good and safe shelter, even if itʼs temporary firecamp for 4,687 people and 300 vehicles.