Oregon Firefighters Injured and forced to deploy emergency fire shelters

Oregon Live/ AP ^ | 25 July 2002 | Jeff Barnard

[Grampa Dave]

Firefighters forced to deploy emergency shelters

By JEFF BARNARD The Associated Press 7/25/02 11:36 AM

BEND, Ore. (AP) -- Flames overran a 20-person crew battling Oregon's biggest wildfire, forcing them to deploy their emergency shelters. Eleven firefighters were treated for minor burns and smoke inhalation and released from a hospital here.

They returned to fire camp at 3 a.m. Thursday, said David Widmark, spokesman for the Northwest Interagency Fire Coordination Center.

The firefighters were members of a contract crew known as Ferguson 53 from somewhere in the Pacific Northwest, hired by the U.S. Forest Service to fight the Tool Box and Winter fires, which have burned together to cover more than 108,000 acres of sagebrush and timber in south central Oregon since they were ignited by lightning nearly two weeks ago, the Forest Service said.

The crew was fighting spot fires on the northern tip of the Winter Fire in Fremont National Forest timber near Picture Rock Pass, not far from Oregon Highway 31, said Marc Rounsaville, deputy area commander for the U.S. Forest Service.

Ten minutes after the firefighters took shelter, a contract helicopter pilot making water drops began losing power and made an emergency landing in front of the fire line, Rounsaville said. The pilot walked away uninjured, but the helicopter remained on the ground, a fire line and fire retardant protecting it from the advance of the fire.

Rounsaville said there appeared to be no obvious breakdown in procedures or communications that would account for the need of the firefighters to resort to what is generally regarded as a last-ditch survival tactic, but an interagency investigation team has been dispatched to evaluate the case.

"It is serious," he said.

At St. Charles Medical Center, crew members declined to be interviewed.

The firefighters would not work on Thursday, and would undergo special crisis debriefing, Rounsaville said.

Rounsaville said a division supervisor had just checked the crew at about 4 p.m., when the main fire made a run at the line. The firefighters shook out the silvery foil shelters each carries in a pack on his belt and crawled inside, laying face flat on the bare dirt of the fire line.

"The fire spotted across the line, then ran back at them from the opposite side," he said. "They moved their shelters a couple of times, maybe as many as three times. They weren't in the shelters a very long time. A division supervisor let them out and brought them to camp."

The Tool Box Fire remained 40 percent contained late Wednesday.

A total of 15 major fires, all started by lightning, were burning across 211,000 acres of Oregon, according to the Northwest Interagency Coordination Center.

Two air tankers and two heavy helicopters fought Wednesday to stop a lightning-sparked fire burning through scraggly, beetle-infested stands in the Deschutes National Forest about 15 miles west of Sisters. The fire prompted the voluntary evacuation of a church camp.

The 48 campers and 12 adults at the United Methodist Camp at Suttle Lake took shelter at a nearby church, said Geneva Cook, registrar for the United Methodist Conference of Oregon and Idaho.

"It was just a little too close for comfort," she said. "Everyone is fine ... but it is smoky and we are busy keeping the parents up-to-date."

Though just six miles west of the Black Butte Ranch and 2½ miles south of Oregon Highway 20, the fire posed no immediate threat to the golf resort and subdivision, said Jinny Pitman, Sisters Ranger District spokeswoman.

Adjoining the Tool Box Fire, the Winter Fire burned over 34,000 acres outside the town of Paisley, where this weekend's Mosquito Festival had to be postponed because the town has turned into a fire camp. The Winter fire was 45 percent contained

Four miles north of Maupin, a center of whitewater rafting and fishing on the Deschutes River, the White River Fire burned about 100 acres and high winds prompted the evacuation of the White River Campground, according to the Northwest Interagency Coordination Center.

Two more fires were burning Thursday morning, including the Skunk Fire about 17 miles from Chiloquin and the 300-acre Swamp Creek Fire in the Diamond Craters Natural Research Area near the south-central town of Diamond.

[Grampa Dave]

Folks this is really serious.

To imagine the terror. You have a fire rushing towards you. You break out your fire emergency shelter which is really a big aluming hot dog wrapper, you are the hot dog.

Then, you get into the wrapper and seal it up. Then you lay on the ground while you hear the fire approaching. You hope that it works and you don't become a baked potatoe or scorched hot dog.

This is the result of the enviral governor of Oregone, the enviral watermelons of Oregon and senators like Da$$hole, Chi Fi Frankenstein, Boxer, Kennedy, Kerry and other rat senators.

The enviralists who set up these tinder boxes are worse terrorists than the al Qaeda thugs!

[RightWhale]

That's exactly right. Deploy it and hug the ground while hell passes over the top. Maybe you'll live to tell about it.

[Grampa Dave]

Please ping this.

This is a prime example of how dangerous our USA is now thanks to our home grown Enviral Terrorists.

They have made our wild lands and forests dangerous Tinder Boxes that can burn homes, hurt people and possibly kill them.

This is serious business. Keep focusing on those responsible, the enviral elites and their poster boy and girls in governor's offices like Oregone, and as US rat senators and congressits!

[cake_crumb]

"A total of 15 major fires, all started by lightning..."

LIGHTNING??? LIGHTNING???

Then why was a woman suspected of starting the Sequoia fire arrested Wednesday? (Please, no Jewish lightening jokes. I know I walked into that one)

And if there's one on here posting that stupid question again .... NO, FIRE IS NOT REQUIRED TO MAKE SEQUOIAS OPEN THERE CONES.

...Sorry....little peeved about those idiots posters who always say "But doesn't fire help the big trees all make little baby trees?"

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

Eleven firefighters were treated for minor burns and smoke inhalation and released from a hospital here.

No really serious injuries?
Truly amazing and the lord was watching over them!

[Grampa Dave]

Freepers, if this thread/article makes you mad.

Then, damn it do something about it!

Order Ebuck's stickers. Then mail a sticker to this POS governor of Oregon, Tommy Da$$hole and other rats in government. Then please ping this message to every freeper you know. Americans are in real danger from the green eco terrorism. We need your help in this issue.

Do you despise what Tommy Da$$hole and other enviral rat senators have done to America re the fire potential in our forests?

Well do something about it.

Please, order some of these stickers from EBUCK. Then, send stickers to Da$$hole and other enviral senators. This will let them know that we know who is responsible for these out of control fires, them!

Then send stickers to our good guys and gals in congress and as governors who are fighting these enviral scumbags.

Invest $10 and buy 5 stickers. Put them on your SUV/pickup/gas guzzler's bumper and let the world know why we are having fires.

These fires are not just a problem of the west. If you have forests in your state, you have the same problem thanks to Tommy Da$$hole and his enviral buddies!

The incest link between rat senators up for reelection this November and the vile enviralists can cost them their election. Please buy some of these sticker and use them.

Here is the opportunity for all good Freepers to get into the face of the enviral fascists who have put a large part of our nation into the peril of becoming a flaming tinderbox.

Ebuck has created a great bumpersticker to put the blame on these clymers as we drive our SUV's and pickups. (Link to EBuck's Sticker and how to buy them) (link to EBuck's Sticker and how to buy them)

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

ping per Grampa dave's request!

We may well see this happen in California as dry as it is and with the budget problems!

[madfly]

ping

[Grampa Dave]

The lord, a good fire boss who picked the right time to use their aluminum fire tents, when/where to lay down and how to stay calm when the fire came close and over them, all helped them to survive this.

However, this would never have happened if the Watermelon Enviral Eco Terrorists had not made most wild lands and forests into dangerous tinder boxes during the Clintoon Druid Agenda years.

[tubebender]

Thanks for the post. Heard on the radio this morning that there are at least 3 fires burning near Happy Camp Ca on the Klamath river. Caused by lightning.

[E.G.C.]

BTTT!!!!!!

[Grampa Dave]

There is one huge and uncontrolled fire in SE Kali, that has been burning for a few days.

Tube Bender just informed me that there are 3 new fires at Happy Camp on the Middle Klamath River area in N. Kali due to lightening strikes yesterday and last night.

Here is a two day NOAA satimage of the fire in the Sequoia area. Picture taken 7 pmish on 23 July:

[cake_crumb]

I plan on ordering several bumper stickers as soon as Hubby gets paid for this job he's on.

For now, though....ENVIROWACKO BUMPERSTICKER BUMP!!

[Grampa Dave]

This is a really dramatic NOAA shot from the early evening of 23 July, Tuesday.

This picture showed that at that times these fires are still blazing and very hot and very smokey!

Of course as per this thread, we know that these fires were still dangerous last night as several fire fighters in Oregon were injured.

[Grampa Dave]

Here is the latest Oregon fire map from KGW.com:

[EBUCK]

Tell him to hurry up and finish up!! I swear, us hubbys jest keep geting lazier and lazier...sheesh.

EBUCK

[Grampa Dave]

Here is the latest from the federal fire maps. We now have a few new ones in Kali land.

Looks like Robert Redford enviral land, the state of Redford, formerly Utah, is having a lot of Redford druid fires. He is such a treasure to the state of Utah.

[EBUCK]

Great maps G'Pa! Boy, we're just peppered with em huh?

Buy a sticker and send it to the UN addressed to the Agenda 21 Coordinator!!!!!

Click on Picure

EBUCK

[cake_crumb]

"Tell him to hurry up and finish up!! I swear, us hubbys jest keep geting lazier and lazier...sheesh."

LOL...I will! Maybe he'll hurry even faster in defense of Hubbies everywhere!

[EBUCK]

"Duck and Cover, that's right, Duck and Cover". Not to make light of the situation but that South Park quote works pretty well here..

EBUCK