[It's me]

No, the brush is as high as my head (5'8").

[lainie]

yikes! you have some kind of break, dontcha?

[BurbankKarl]

10/28/2003 - SAN ANTONIO (AFPN) -- Airmen are helping combat the wildfires raging in California, officials said Oct. 28.

Two C-130 Hercules equipped with modular airborne firefighting systems began operations Oct. 27, and more will follow. The system is a self-contained, 3,000-gallon aerial fluid dispersal system that fits in the back of a C-130.

Crews from California Air National Guard’s 146th Airlift Wing began flying MAFFS missions over the Simi Fire in the southern part of the state. They have dropped more than 29,000 gallons of retardant on the fire.

Aircrews from the Air Force Reserve's 302nd Wing at Colorado Springs, Colo., are also flying missions.

Pilots from the Wyoming Air National Guard's 153rd Air Wing and the North Carolina Guard's 145th Air Wing are on their way to the region with four more of the modular systems.

The fires, stretching from the Mexican border to the northern suburbs of Los Angeles, have destroyed more than 830 homes and burned out more than 500,000 acres. California officials said the fires are responsible for at least 15 deaths.

President George W. Bush declared the counties of Los Angeles, San Diego, San Bernardino and Ventura federal disaster areas.