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Fires - Forest I (1889-1993)
Statesman Sept 9, 1989 100 years ago: Sept. 9, 1889 ■ Destructive for- IDAHO Long Valley, the est fires continue to startling news devastate Boise CENTENNIAL comes that the up- County. The tele- COUNTDOWN per end of the val- phone on Sunday 297'days to Centennial ley is being burned, brought the intelli- and that fierce heat gence that excessive fires were that has been prevailing among raging in the neighborhood of and around the Payette Lakes Centerville and also on the old has at length dried up all the wa- Loon Creek trail between Banner ter of the lakes and left their and the Sheep Mountain coun- shores and bottom strewn with try. The process known as "back millions of red fish. firing" was resorted to, which re- ■ Ed Ryan had the misfortune sulted in saving the threatened on Sunday to have a buggy buildings of Centerville. From smashed in a runaway. Excerpts from The Statesman 100 years ago % n '),(/ F !fix 4 'a � fi � z # k s� ' { RN N s ,•! ,.,ash *aa ! r ?6`N :f, .3'� " mow"'� - ":.;. s �£�F . i4'"� / �. )S �S � k � .. .." a "C 7 �.� Y+i4b j k 9 al .2 f jBY .s "9: ,i..., "°` n ,„, ., . . „.. . ..:,.......,.... ". ....,........: ....:„..::..........:......... ...H:: S { R S , ' . . ...,.: -:„ „ . . . y .... .. .. .. .:� #r _ ,. ao� F ::-.•:-.",":::,..:,•:::::::•.:::::-..::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::1:1.::::::::::F:...::::::::::::::k412M:Y.03%7.Mi.5ii:::ifW:::::::?,......::::::::::::::::::-...:•' ::::::',::::,.::::::::::i::::::::::.'.:•: :..:::.:VA ::,:••:"En,:::::::::::,;::::::::::,:::-•;:::::.:0.:::::::a::::::::::!:. :Mg .M.Ivii:.ti: ''.> • a a QN�' y r w s*} ... + . 4 ? .S a Npy sue:;.* . L ii��'' a0F op"" 9yf .r c' y ! s " ' ' r s 0 C cV _" p pp��{n by b y s N O 'b 7 ;E b O'T`w sC yy�s, O ¢ � y., ca 3 vG y s, N v � a O .Om O r.. w 80 �.�y •7, O L" s.. s. O.. ' O O',f,'5 N g cr c'74 a)..0,'LS 4••� os 4"' S O O"O O 17.,' 3g o . ca as E '' .� G•�E , cc o.YaD m s. . A �� ® u= ,' ��3 � 8 > .. ao- a � �� a �ao� ago �� c3 tw o «sooT, ...— cv E 0 °w' E Va� o Y � y �'�1 _® a.+ O +�.+ O 6J V ..�., w :n 0, N N �'.y.+',+, CAA �_© z, ;4, 1'1' 3 3 � vCdW .t,' ;; ZF "'° ` y v �4 004- is .00c -. ...)-s.,„17, ,,.3 . . ...° Y3 � �' % v) � "❑ s°1. °' '1) °,:1 ;.‘1.4'oc4 CD s'i :; .o 0 o ca ca & s. 1•� 3 , Z a�.,b v a?v a � °.� ti c � cur:' Ga r � z"®"P •5 sa§ O OO N�a��o�.0 . sc.a re s wo m 'bm ~.5. 5s, o a 4 3 to GsO u2 tog- c..)T .r —S C) E 01.1 - ',.-..,., = wccs1-. r- occso... „, , '� C� C o ,,,,Tf '� O 'O O' ; y sue.'0p =cl r�i O O Qp 7.L N O s.. O `n bA N = O LL 7 A R O C O Sti 7 °��� E s. 0 n v .c•~ >• o .mca0" ==n ..,c.','-..,c.','- ,,o 0 ao caw, �n c# a �, v_ b -0 W rw 4, y s. �vu °;E" c 'CS O a)a �xz3m , o;«—; 30Q: at) ■ r.,ong newre JmOxey ine '- '- 't-'- •• »_..,..,».-._ _ ' Bear, there were crusaders in est patrol. ry Idaho who warned against the Just a few ears later, E carelessness which devastated Y `� Idaho was to experience what 10- t>pt Y �g . is still remembered as per <'x Y, $ � ::..,:'.110:, . d hops the greatest forest fire ;r;' : t r<ti, ; • j �?.. in modern times, and by then > �' '�i•cfi!if:. ' t .y$4 .f 4 g ,,r;> . there were indeed forest pa- j$2 s �� ' ,t `, trots trained to fight it. ";a e �� �; ��� t x H `► 1' Next week we shall retell ; : ^r � s 7; <' < i the story of the Great Fire of ; ':` ` " ry , ' , t # ' y' r k Y 1910, and of the equally leg- f .;;' .e ry`� &3 fi S .<�,3 �tr >L ,: ` A fir endary ranger whose name j rt �fi �� y �,®• large sections of the land. became forever linked with Editors of newspapers were firefighting. x ' most often the spokesmen Fires have long devastated grass and timberla ;who tried to arouse public * * * ''o opinion against man caused •fires. g W ?> 3 w :' ¢ r yx �• •In Au ust, 1869, The States R> g x sre r w i t/ x 1 9 r mar' & : rr man reported that "the tim i � n t, r ,.. `s:;%' �:Y.'= rA • ".-,.. `..% tier • ' the hills north of town :<::.: E f�� has been set on fire by some x t xw r•.s '' ' miscreant. ..� �,Y.;fiw;� �,,,�+ ��ry� Timber is too scarce in this °' ", `xf,; N; , ,x country to be wasted in that h 'r''.r. ¢> manner, and a severe penalty `'', �` �' ` should be visited upon those c fi�� guilty of the offense." Two :?: days later that fire still raged. It had apps y , :ht s r » {� :M1,6 .1`21 z .; ::;:v: started near Idaho City and >r r ;, •Ai i:._.,,.. burned over such a large area h:a h" <" w that it "came into view on !s ; t t?�f 3f a R .;o-w3.:�> 3 ;;.....::,;.:r:,r.City this side._la. ,! , h..i• Y xr. Er.... .:rr. rtiy y,:?:r..:.:y:::g:G,.,fi ::;r is .r•yrx F,F^rtYS: 1tx::<::.'.'::'i+:`:ky%:a)i�..:':;yhi(. :.; „ _t�. y r.. :.rr`C. ''F2,,. n vi :.t :R:a ,,,<. t J• l.,.•:�16...:......R• t :n.. .,i:.i:::.h. J'�.J.r:i 0,::'...:.: ..., f :y�.r....g.-:,.:, x:,4 The earhesi settlers in ., `::;'•• #?a •„y.:..: 6} �fi . yt;k^s;,.�..in•zcr:e�.`z t Li g. ,t v .�y•':oi..^... :.,.:: r;,.:r:r $;f:�#;:£? ,v 'xt :wi.Yak.>,. #' s: yvti' . .::ikp:`� .>:;�:4� < Boise Valley experienced the ' ;' "o 5 xry:.: <.:. result of enormous West Coast ..��vytasa 4a�r'i� forest fires as early as 1868. :. > ' ''5 �xfi e The Statesman wondered, .,, < , tir F h�fi;ag ,-• `Y'r 'k.; " .1r,t{ c smoke and fog? :*.::>:::<::: .: riy ..'_ sf t a T>'''•''':.4 "why this m g ;a ^: �r:.. • :. �'< > Some think it results from ;;� •/ the burning woods in Oregon %"`ry and California, of which we ° :': have had many accounts. i' 4:%X i( .;,.,...:.:::.:? `�z Perhaps so, but it does not r ry) , i`' �. s e e m possible that any iy ” ti i amount of burning timber <:?.°>'.:t.;? ;; : : a. could so fill the atmosphereT� ; Ts R with smoke from Pug et Sound {''• .-. ryt Y .� R `t::00.4: fr t4• t• .. rye .... '';4t r2', S i 'fii0 zY Sryxi^'crf,+A� 'r` 3'}°v y ` ��' Yt• � )1'1_ .tr'k`: ia?bFt y. .. ' k /eM' 3 r'r fin` ' \ .%!Y, }•;4;ynC,>.,•tcx.s ;Tt'fir 3 } :. 4 to the Gulf of California; ands ? � i from the ocean to the Rocky Mountains. • In Oregon the smoke has ; been so dense that steamers ” �` i �' tF kv ba'" x � R ,a #• `•v , . ry , •could not run On the Willam- :, t''". t 'Saq, ..#�`•>g ,. , s e'��ti i r .. !.. :•#x ..:: ette River in daylight, and in , - ry* '` , > , ; r�'k t t ry ' some, of the settlements, the ' <; 1 k 1t i r ; .1. , r3 k:'•e,' peope were nearly stifled 3 . ��' ' ; , x 2 s >;; California and Nevada have ,;f t' % ry "' *�'s "F t 1 Y likewise experienced a smoky gam 's` : �f` ,� t }'`Tt, 't �i.� l °k atmosphere more dense than 'ter k z R[LrC t1 v r c q' ' �,��.. ever before known." ,�y �' �<yj}Ii 1 t t : c 4; c . a a + , a : A month after the above re- �;E �� port, The Statesman noted .• that "we desire to give notice to our contemporaries that Forest fire smoke o f ten made headlines the atmosphere of Idaho has cleared up. "The smoke which for two months hovered over the hills thicker than.ever before seen since Idaho ad a name, has lifted and gone. The.Owyhee Mountains were planly vis- ible yesterday for the first time in many weeks." At the end of August, 1871, the smoke again made the news: "The air is full of smoke these days, caused probably by the fires in the mountains. The sun shines through it redly and warmly." Two weeks later, the The ation was still so bad that The Statesman asked, "If it is true, as stated in natural ----' FIRE CONTROL HISTORY THE CIRCLE END FIRE by Yale A. Mitchell, Krassel District Ranger 26 October 1949 Reprinted By Heritage Program U.S. Department of Agriculture Forest Service Intermountain Region Payette National Forest August 2000 CONTROL - Payette Circle End Fire NARRATIVE REPORT McCall, ID October 26, 1949 This fire was started by lightning on the evening of August 16, 1949, by a storm which set five other fires on the Krassel Ranger District. This fire and one at Reservoir Creek were both visible from Williams Peak Lookout in -a few minutes after the lightning strikes. The lookout at Williams Peak, James H. Terry, Lafe Johnson, and myself, (District Ranger) all saw the strikes and Johnson and myself started to go to this fire as soon as it and the one at Reservoir Creek were reported and orders were placed for men to go to the one at Reservoir Creek. We were all under the impression that this fire was on the East side of the Salmon River. Clarence Rebillet and a friend who had been visiting him at the Willey Ranch started for the Reservoir Creek fire immediately. Harry Grandy's brush crew of seven men was started from Camp Creek for the Reservoir Creek fire. Johnson and I arrived at where we thought the Circle End fire was, but discovered that it was on the other side of the river from us. We decided against traveling on through the extremely rough country at night and taking a chance on finding a place where we could ford the river. We arrived back at the lookout at about 10 :30 p.m. and ordered two other men to go the Circle End Fire. However, these men failed to see this fire at night and instead, went on the Reservoir Creek Fire. Unknown to us, this left the Circle End Fire unmanned during the night. While it is an extremely dangerous place for men to be working at night, it is possible that if the two men had gone to the right fire they might have had it sufficiently under control to prevent the blow -up the following day. Two smokejumpers were jumped on this fire at 7:30 August 19 and these men succeeded in getting a line around the fire. Harry Grandy, the Camp Creek brush foreman and four of his men returned to the Circle End Fire as soon as the Reservoir Creek Fire was corralled. About one hour before the arrival of these men the wind began to blow up the extremely steep slopes and bluffs and the fire got away from the two smokejumpers just before Grandy and his crew arrived. It was approximately 2 acres in size, then this occurred. Grandy and his men were extremely tired and in spite of their best efforts, the fire was soon completely out of control and spread to about 100 acres by evening. In the meantime, Johnson and myself had left Williams Peak and arrived at Krassel Ranger Station at noon. It was problematical at that time as to whether the Cliff Creek fire would be held. As soon as men could be found in McCall they were sent out to Krassel to go to the fire, which appeared to be the worst when these men arrived. I met these seven men at the mouth of the Secesh River and took them to the Circle End Fire, arriving there at about 8 p.m. Contact was made with the other men on the fire at about 8:30 p.m. Seventy -five (75) more men were ordered out of McCall on the radio which Grandy had carried to the fire. On the morning of August 20, a fire line was started around the top of the fire. I contacted Brown's Tie and Lumber Company loggers at about 7:00 a.m. and had them build a line up from the river on the west side of the fire. Easterbrook and 26 men arrived about the same time and were started down from the top on the east side. The objective was to anchor the line to the river at both sides and burn out to the fire. At this time, the fire had backed down nearly to the river, near the place it had started. The extreme steepness of the slope, being precipitous in many places, made it extremely doubtful if we could hold the fire by direct attack, due to rolling logs, rocks and embers. By about 11 a.m. all the line was completed and burning out started. However, the wind began to blow about 11 a.m. and soon was blowing an estimated 20 to 40 MPH. The rest of that day was the worst fire day from the standpoint of low humidity, dry fuels, and extreme high winds that I had ever experienced on a going fire. The fire soon jumped our lines and even though men were often on the breakovers immediately, practically all efforts at stopping the fire were in vain. By 2 p.m. it was completely out of control. It jumped the South Fork of the Salmon River at about 8 p.m. and burned toward Moss Creek and Williams Peak. It was evident that a fire of serious proportions was impending -and that the organization would have to be greatly expanded. Therefore on August 21 I left Easterbrook in charge at Circle End Camp, on top of the hill, and went to Oompaul on the road to set up a base camp and direct operations from there. I met Lee Thomas from California and his helpers with 100 men at the mouth of the Secesh River. Jack Morgan and his 75 loggers soon arrived. McCrandy, also from R -5 was sent as Division Boss with 50 men to the Willey Ranch to establish a camp and take over the forth division of the fire. It was believed that the two most critical places on the fire were to get it securely anchored to the river and prevent it from burning out the Williams Peak side into the old Sheep Creek burn, and to anchor it back on the river just above the Willey Ranch. Lee Thomas was sent to Williams Peak with 125 men including Morgans loggers. On the morning of August 22, Wally Dresskell took charge of this fire. The plans for fighting it were essentially unchanged. AS was expected, great difficulty was experienced in getting the fire line effectively anchored on the river. However, this was finally accomplished on August 25 and lines were held after that on both sides of the river. The Circle End Camp, being so far inside the fire line after rather extensive spreading of the fire around it, was abandoned. a camp was put at Indian Springs under Tailholt Lookout. There were about 230 men at Indian Springs by August 24. It was on this day that the fire burned its biggest run. It burned out over 6,000 acres this day, but most of the lines which had been put in, were held. The one which McReady had put in up to Grave Cr. Ridge was lost. This line was ahead of the burned area and McReady was getting ready to burn out when the big blow up occurred. There were about 150 men at the Willey Ranch camp at this time. After this big blow -up Dresskell took 240 men to Rock Creek and set up a base camp there. Other camps were established at upper Rock Creek, Bear Creek, and Fritser Creek. At this time, the peak manpower of 560 on the fire was reached. This was essentially the organization on the fire when control was achieved on the 7 of September. Most of the earlier constructed line, from Savage Point to Willey Ranch, thence to Williams Peak and thence across the South Fork to Tailholt and Fritser Creek, had already been put on a light mop -up and patrol basis. The last blow -up occurred on September 4 between Bear and Jeannot Creeks. This blow -up was again anchored to the river and burned back to the main burn. Dresskell had left the fire on September 2, it appearing to be nearly under control at that time. Except for this blow -up of about 500 acres, all lines were held on this fire after that day. A patrol was kept on the fire and it was declared out on October 7. REVIEW OF THE POTENTIALITIES First, it was apparent to me that this fire would achieve serious proportions after fighting it and not being able to hold it in the low humidity and high winds of August 20. This was especially true after it jumped the river the evening of August 20 and burned toward Williams Peak Lookout. Potentially, it could have reburned much or all of the old Sheep Creek burn, but excellent fire fighting by Morgan's logging crew under the leadership of Lee Thomas and Bill Hanses of R -5 held it about on the edge of this old burn. After-the fire had been anchored to the South Fork it was held on the ridges to Tailholt Lookout largely by fine work of the loggers of Brown's Tie and Lumber Company and thence north to Bear Creek as was expected. A critical potentiality existed Bear Creek, however, and it is difficult to explain why it failed to burn out this drainage. Perhaps it was the firefighting that was done there, or it may have been unfavorable weather for burning, or perhaps it was a combination of these factors which prevented a bad blow -up there. Nevertheless, the potentialities for a large fire in Bear Creek remain very high. The rest of the fire was held about as was expected, after it was anchored to the river on the north end. The chances for building line with tractors were practically none, due to the extreme steepness and rockiness of the slopes adjacent to the river, which made it impossible to get them out on the ridges where they could work and build line. However, cats were put to work building a road down river to the fire line and up toward Tailholt lookout in order to get up on top of the ridges where fire lines could be built with the cats. This was done in recognition of the potentialities of the fire spreading south and west. Likewise, a cat road was built to Bear Creek Camp in recognition of the same type of potentialities there. The old road up the South Fork was repaired for servicing Rock Creek Camp and to transport men and supplies to the fire line. EXPLANATION OF DAMAGE APPRAISAL Volume of timber: (estimated) PP DF LP SP WF 20,000M 3,000M 1,OOOM 500M 500M $5 /M $1 /M $2 /M $2 /M $1 /M This makes a total of $106,500 loss in stumpage. This is all estimated as this area has never been cruised. Much of the area is rather inaccessible, but past experience has proved that inaccessibility is measured mostly by economic conditions, availability of timber nearer to market, and other like considerations. It is believed that this figure is not only just, but that it is a conservative estimate. It is estimated that the young growth is totally destroyed on about 6,000 acres. It is, of course, damaged over all of the rest of the area, or about 8,000 acres. The loss per acre of this resource is difficult to establish. Many of the species are presently of low value and many trees of all species are found in sites where good growth and form are very much inhibited. Making use of the memorandum designated F, Supervision, Handbook Revisions, of July 15, 1949, as a guide, it is believed that the following figures will suffice for the 6,000 acres totally destroyed. Good Stocking PP 500 Acres @ $30 - $15,000 ,000 DF,SP 1000 Acres @ $18 - $18,000 ,000 LP None ,000 Woodland None 500 Totally Destroy, Medium Stocking 500 Acres @ $20 250 Acres @ $ 8 500 Acres @ $ 8 500 Acres @ $ 2 �d $10,000 $ 2,000 $ 4,000 $ 1,000 Total 1500 Acres $33,000 1750 Acres $17,000 00 Grand Total 6,000 Acres $62,500 Poor Stocking 1,000 Acres @ $7 - $7 750 Acres @ $4 - $3 500 Acres @ $4 - $2 500 Acres @ $1 - $ 2,750 Acres $12,5 Using this figure of $62,500 damage on total destruction of young growth on 6,000 acres as a guide, it is estimated that on a proportional basis there is about $40,000 additional damage on the other 8,000 acres of the fire, making a total of $102,500 damage to the young growth. i� /rlMl�9;1�1�] The watershed values are important Here, even though no great irrigation system is served by this value. The proposed dams on the Snake River and tributaries and the navigation of the streams of the Columbia River Basin are all extremely important and dependent on the proper control of watershed values in the headwaters of this system. They are some of the factors which must be considered when arriving at a figure for the loss of values to this watershed. When one considers the extremely steep slopes, the inherently loose texture of the soil, and the relative lack of vegetation with prolific root systems, we must realize that we are faced with a very great danger of the loss of much of the already too small accumulations of good soil on this area. The fall rains have already caused serious losses in this respect. At Three -mile Creek a sufficient mud -rock flow occurred to partially and temporarily dam up the South Fork of the Salmon River. Taking into consideration these factors, I believe that a figure of $25 per acre for this area is not only conservative, but is realistic and defensible. 14,037 X $25 = $350,925 RECREATION It is believed that $2.50 per acre is justified as a loss to this resource especially inasmuch as this fire was in one of the better game areas on the Forest. 14,037 X $2.50 = $35,095 WILDLIFE It is believed that a token loss of $1 per acre is at least justifiable on this area. Undoubtedly, many fur - bearers were killed in the fire as well as numerous grouse, some deer, bear, etc. 14,037 X $1 = $14,037 IMPROVEMENTS The damage to improvements consist mostly of loss or great damage to the telephone line from Williams Peak to South Fork Guard Station for a distance of about 10 miles, and damage to the trails by debris rolling into them along the generally precipitous slopes. Estimated damage - - -- $ 5,000 FORAGE It is estimated that about 10,000 acres of this area could be classed as game range and the loss of forage on this is at least $1 per acre. $10,000 The grand total of losses and estimated damage is: $624,055 Written by: Yale A. Mitchell District Ranger Krassel R.D. in 1949 8/24/67 Over 800 Men Battle Blazes Ravaging Payette Sunday was the day everyone on the Payette National Forest had .;us- ected was bound to come — the day the hot summer, one of the driest on record, was interrupted by a lightning storm which skittercd from one end of the forest to the other, sparking tinder -dry timber land and setting more than 80 fires which cast a pallid haze around Mc- Call. By Tuesday evening a total. of 34o men including 250 Payette Nation al Forest employees, crews from all of Region Six's forests, job corps workers and Indian fire - fighters had managed to contain the major blaz es, and if fire lines held Wednesgav, all were expected to be under con- trol. However, high winds and the possibility of more lightning are forecast for Thursday and more trouble may lie ahead for forest personnel. The west side of the forest was hardest hit, though the dispatcher- s map, ;o full of pins that is resemb- les a porcupine, shows spot fir cs scattered throughout the Payet'e The largest fire was at Buck Park on the Weiser District, where 90 acres were blackened, and there were stiil hot spots near Cu Idy N. F. Lands (x..45/-,�r) Mountain last Tuesday. A complex of 15 -17 fires in Ant Basin 12 mi!4, northwest of New Meadows burned over a total of 25 acres. Near Bear, 17 individual fires composed the Bear Creek blaze. Farther up the Council- Cuprum road, four fires at Wickiup covered 35 acres. One of the most potentially serious of the fires was on Elk Creek in the hot, dry river bottom of the South. Fork of the Salmon River east of Warren, where steep slopes made fire - fighting difficult. It was be- lieved contained at 4 p.m. Tuesday after burning some 40 acres. At Cold Meadows in the primitive area, the Cold Mountain 20 -acre fire was controlled by a 47 -man job corps crew from the Weber Basin job corps camp at Ogden headed ,by forest service personnel. On- the -spot weather forecasts are being made available by a mobile fire - weather forecasting unit which has been set up at smokejumper headquarters. The mobile units are equipped to anticipate weather problems and to alert fire bosses of danger periods. Les Mollory, Salt Lake City, is operating the unit. Monday set one Payete National Forest record. At the retardant plant at the McCall airport, 54,00n gallons of retardant were loaded into planes, including two converted B -17's which were brought here Sunday, and were dropped on fi-Ps throughout the day. Despite the number of men un the fireline in hazardo,is fire - control work, only two injuries had been reported late Tuesday. One fire- fighter suffered minor cuts on An- chor Creek in the Seven Devils and a smokejumper suffered a broken leg Tuesday evening in a jump on Trout Creek in the primitive area. oise, Sunday, August 13, 1972 Fire Fighters Battle 250 Blazes, Control Most A concentration of Forest Service "smoke chasers" and smoke jumpers aided by a large fleet of tanker air- craft and favorable weather are making good headway against the hundreds of fires reported during the past three days. Jack Wilson, Bureau of Land Management director at the Boise Interagency Fire Center, said some 250 fires had been reported in Idaho alone, but most had been contained or ex- tinguished. More than half the fires in the state totaled less than one acre each, with the larg- est in Idaho being 15,000 acres near the Burley BLM district. Several had eclipsed the 100 -acre mark and anoth- er two dozen ranged in size from 30 to 60 acres. World War II planes dumped more tha 70,000 gal- lons of pinkish fire - retarding chemicals Saturday in an ef- fort to quell lightning - sparked range and forest fires within a 125 mile radius of Boise. A spokesman at the fire center, the logistical support center for the 11 Western states, said B26A and B17 aircraft were making contin- ual flights in and out of the area — averaging one every 10 minutes. Fire Control Officer Gor- don Stevens said all but one of the Boise National Forest fires were controlled Satur- day. That forest had some 50 fires in two days. Fire fighting forces contin- ued to work on two fires in that general area, however. The Bulldog fire, 12 miles north of Garden Valley, spread to about 100 acres in deep- timbered country. The 65 -man force on the blaze had been plagued by burning logs rolling acorss fire lines. Eighty more men were added to the lines Saturday. tain fire burning 25 miles east of Boise also was resist- ing final efforts to extinguish it. Air tankers from the BIFC base were dispatched early Saturday in efforts to quell that blaze. The Payette National For- est manned 71 fires and lost only 12 acres. Some fires continued to burn, but were either contained or being contained. The Boise district of the BLM reported it contained the Jacks Creek fire which burned some 10,000 acres. The district has a 3,000 -acre blaze at McCord Butte in the Snake River Canyon out of control, however. The Vale BLM district contained a 13,000 -acre fire in the Jordan Valley, but continued working on two other 4,000 -acre fires near the Idaho - Oregon border. Gusty winds blew the Goat Creek fire out of control Sat. urday in the Salmon Nation- al Forest. The fire, termed "potentially most dangerous in Idaho" by Fire Informa- tion Officer Vern Fridley, spread an additional 75 Idaho Fires Pinpointed HAVE WE GOT FIRES? As many as there are pins on the map ... is the answer from Jim Butler, Payette National Forest fire dispatcher. Each pin indicates the location of a fire, and the colors designate size. The map is used by the dispatcher's office in sending acres, bringing the total to 350 acres. Fridley said fire- fighters were losing ground. The lightning- caused fire started on Goat Creek near the Middle Fork of the Salm- on River and burned over the ridge to Long Tom Ra- pids on the Main Salmon. Fire camps for the fast -mov- ing blaze were set up at the Long Tom Campground, and crew, equipment and fire control specialists were being flown in by helicopter. Some 90 men already on the line at Goat Creek were strengthened by 125 more men Saturday. Fire fighting efforts throughout the area were beefed up with the arrival of three planes from Alaska to drop fire - retarding chemi- cals on flames. Fire conditions ranged from high to extreme throughout the area but only a handful of new fires were reported Saturday. All were under control. To combat a manpower and equipment shortage, an additional 250 fire fighters were being rushed to the area from several Western states, Georgia and Wiscon- sin. Wilson said there was no major shortage of supplies, but supply reserves were be- coming depleted. "We're just now locking into our normal summer fire season," he said. "We've been unusually lucky up to now with the cool, dry weather — it's too bad the heat and the storms have to hit all at once." Fire danger is extreme along the Middle Fork of the Salmon drainage, according to Challis National Forest of- ficials. The Stanley area also is rated extreme. Fire dis- patchers said campers in the area are leaving camp fires smouldering but major blazes which might result In Humboldt National For- est just west of Jackpot, Nev., the 110 -acre Chalk Ba- sin fire was controlled, but the Cougar Creek fire broke out of control and by 5 p.m. Saturday had burned 100 more acres. That fire has scorched a total of 2,200 acres. In California, the U.S. For- est Service asked for out -of- state help on a particularly threatening blaze involving only 275 acres, but in heavy timber, in the Shasta - Trinity National Forest. One blaze ate its way into the historic town of Shasta, Calif., forcing a brief evac- uation. The fire destroyed 11 buildings, including six homes, on the town's edge before "walking away" westward, where it burned timber and brush in an area one -half mile wide and three miles long. deep- timbered country. The 65 -man force on the blaze Idaho Fires Pinpointed is rated extreme. Fire dis- had been plagued by burning patchers said campers in the logs rolling acorss fire lines. HAVE WE GOT FIRES? As many as there are pins on the map ... is the answer from area are leaving camp fires Eighty more men were Jim Butler, Payette National Forest fire dispatcher. Each pin indicates the location of a smouldering but major added to the lines Saturday. fire, and the colors designate size. The map is used by the dispatcher's office in sending blazes which might result The 40 -acre Grape Moun- crews and materials to fires. (Statesman Photos by Mary Jane Williams) have been averted by patrol- men in the campgrounds. Packs Readied for Smokej campers ALL ABOARD! Del Catlin, smokejumper foreman for the during a fire bust on the forest. The "Twin Otter" is used Payette National Forest, loads the firepacks for jumpers for the jumpers. No serious injuries have been reported since the fires were touched off by light- ning beginning Wednesday. A B26 aircraft side - swiped a small hill Thursday near DuBois, but the pilot landed it safely at Idaho Falls air- port. He was flying fire- fighting missions under con- tract with the BLM. A North Idaho fire near Kamiah continued to burn Saturday after blackening some 2,000 acres — including a number of grain fields — and was threatening heavily forested lands a half mile away. The fire is located about five miles up the Middle Fork of the Clearwater Riv- er. The U.S. Forest Service said about 50 fires have been reported in the Umatilla, Wallowa and Whitman na- tional forests in North- eastern Oregon. However, all the fires were confined to half an acre or less. The Lake Creek fire 12 miles east of Malta was con- trolled at about 80 acres, ac- cording to Sawtooth National Forest officials. Star-News 3/29/79 -- THURSDAY, MARCH 29, 1979 He helped save forest The picture of Jughandle on the front page of last week's Star -News brought back some pleasant memories for J. B. (Jack) Musser, Boise resident who has been visiting Valley, Adams and Idaho Counties for the past 50 years. Musser stopped by the newspaper Monday between visiting the Robert Remakluses of Cascade and driving to see the Ben Willsies, col. ret., at their home on the Little Salmon River. Musser, a long -time campaigner against smoking, has filed a per- sonal suit against Robert Bergland, secretary of agriculture, charging him with sending tobacco products to foreign countries under the Food for Peace program at taxpayers' expense. The suit was filed last Monday, and now Musser is awaiting Bergland's reply. In the meantime, he is traveling to visit friends, and stopped at the newspaper office to share his ex- periences here in 1926. "I was a college boy, vacationing here from the university at Moscow," Musser recalled. "We were out camping in the woods when the Bar Bell fire broke out. A ranger came up to us and decided to volunteer us to fight it. We fought the fire for about three days." Part of Musser's job on the fire crew was as cook, he said, explaining that one of his specialties was dutch oven, sourdough bread. "You put the dough in a dutch oven and put coals around it," he said. "It cooks all day while you're off fighting fires." Musser recalled that one day he got separated from the fire crew and became lost. Out in the woods, along the South Fork of the Salmon River, he came across a family living in isolation in a log cabin. The woman offered him some corn bread and beans for supper. Their floor, he said, was half sod, half wood. They were friendly, he said, but suspicious of strangers. "I offered to pay for the meal, but she wouldn't take it," Musser said. "I had some bright, shiny pennies in my pocket. i offered to the kids, but she said: `Don't you take 'em. "' Later, after he rejoined the fire crew, Musser said he found that he had been J.B. (Jack) Musser staying with the family of a man named Dead -Shot. "They said he was called that because he rifled a couple of fellas," Musser said. "One day a crazy guy came to his house and told his wife he was going to kill him. Dead -Shot was out in the fields. The wife slipped their son out the back with a rifle for his father. He shot the man and let him lay through the winter." Musser says he thinks of each of his trips to this area as "a kind of homecoming in a way." "I've been through this area for 50 years," he said. If he doesn't make it up this way again soon, he says he will definitely be here the end of May. That's when the surviving veterans of World War I will get together for a convention at the Shore Lodge. The BiNg Blowup Devastating fire of 1910 retains worst -ever status ��' �� �� " , " f , . ; ������M ; ; �� , Y ��' ��J r y p x �� G ��4 ��, A . y , ��9 1 a ' h , . �� �� ' " �� - - ��. . . _ . : i �� . v . , ����- > , e �� v : - _ V i m " : , �� �� ' l P t y : : , i k Devastating fire of 1910 retains worst -ever status By TOM GROTE The Idaho Statesman There's never been anything like The Big Blowup. As Idaho's current forest fires run their course, debates likely will begin on how the 1979 fire season rates with past years. Unless disaster strikes, the title of "the worst -ever fire season" is held fast and likely will always remain with the summer of 1910. There have been years other than 1910 where more acres of land have been burned and more lives have been lost, but nothing before or since has matched the fury of the conflagration that swept the Idaho Pan- handle and surrounding states on Aug. 20 and Aug. 21, 1910. In a brief 48 -hour span, fires carried by hurricane -force winds burned more than 3 million acres, killed 85 persons, devastated the eastern part of Wallace and destroyed between 7 billion and 8 billion board -feet of timber. The catastrophe caught the attention of the nation and spurred laws which beefed up the fledgling U.S. Forest Service and which created national forests with organized fire protection in the East. The scars on the land and in the psyche of men who fought the fire remained deep enough 45 years later that Betty Goodwin Spencer, a northern 'Idaho native, was in- spired to research a book. Spencer's defini- tive account of the 1910 fire, titled The Big Blowup, was published in 19.56. Spencer wrote of how the huge wind gath- ered strength as it raced to the northeast, picked up small fires and combined them into large fires. The gale then blew the large fires together, turning the region into "a tre- mendous uproar of heat and sound." At the height of the fire storm "the forests staggered, rocked, exploded and then shriv- eled under the holocaust," Spencer wrote. "Great, red balls of fire rolled up the mountainsides. Crown fires, from 1 to 10 miles wide, streaked with yellow and purple and scarlet, raced through tree tops 150 feet from the ground. "The wind uprooted even the monster trees and flung them through the air like matchsticks. The heat of the fire and masses of flaming gas created whirlwinds that mowed down mile -wide swaths of pine and fir and cedar in advance of the flames." Firebrands the size of a man's arm report- edly fell in the streets of towns 50 miles from the nearest fire lines. The sun was blotted out by smoke in Billings, Mont., 500 miles away from the main path of fire. In Denver, 800 miles away, the tempera- ture dropped 19 degrees in 10 minutes. The city was shrouded by smoke and hit by a 42- mph gale from the distant blaze. The prelude to The Big Blowup was an un- usually dry spring and summer which spawned more than 3,000 fires in northern Idaho, western Montana and eastern Wash- ington before Aug. 20. The firefighting resources of the U.S.For- est Service, formally organized just 5 years earlier in 1905, were limited. A severe shortage of manpower to throw against the blazes forced the Forest Service to hire thousands of unemployed laborers, including convicts and escaped prisoners, from Butte, Spokane, and smaller towns and mining camps. In early August, President William How- ard Taft authorized the use of federal troops to assist in the effort. The scores of early fires were fearful, but the smoke from the smaller blazes equally concerned the 15,000 residents of one area which would soon see devastation. The smoke, Spencer wrote, "became a maddening creature. No window or door was tight enough to exclude its entrance. Smoke — choking all sounds. Voices ordinar- ily quiet and modulated were strident. Opinions, usually commonplace, were wild and branched off into senseless tirades. Nerves were taut. One thought held them all — fire!" The winds which gave the The Big Blowup its horror came up from the southwest in the Nez Perce National Forest near Elk City. A quickly organized effort saved Elk City, but other areas were not as fortunate. The winds headed toward the Clearwater National Forest, where it fanned existing fires there to full intensity, and roared on to the Coeur d'Alene National Forest. It was in the Couer d'Alene forest, which in 1910 totaled 1.5 million acres, that 72 per- sons died among the overall toll of 85 dead. Drifting back from the fire lines came a constant stream of stories. Stories of her- oism, stories of cowardice, stories of super- human feats and stories of horrible death. Twenty -eight men of a 70-man crew died near Avery when they mysteriously ignored warnings to leave the woods that were di- rectly in the path of The Big Blowup. Ten men of a 50-man crew were killed near the middle fork of Big Creek. Spencer recreated the desperate scene: "Gasping and choking, the men reached the clearing with the flames scorching their heels. Frantically, they sought the safest spot, a small stream running through the clearing. "Most of the men flung themselves face down into the water, but seven of the crew, terrified by the falling pines, firs and cedars, sought shelter in a cave. "One huge tree was uprooted and tossed upon two men lying in the creek, killing two of them instantly. Its trunk caught a third man's foot and held him prisoner. With agonized shrieks and prayers for help he writhed and wrenched, trying to free his foot as the flames consumed him. "In the wake of the wind came sheet after sheet of blood -red flames to billow and swell and shoot into the air and lap along the ground. For a moment or two the cries and groans of the cave- trapped men could be heard even above the crackling rush of color. When the flames had raced on, the seven men in the cave were found burned beyond recognition." The swirl of confusion in the path of the fire was overwhelming for some. The offi- cial report on The Big Blowup told of an inci- dent where a cre%y was overtaken by flames in what was then the Pend Oreille National Forest near the Canadian border. The men had been ordered to wet their clothes in a nearby spring and lie down until the fire had passed. "At this juncture," the report said, "two of the men apparently lost their reason completely, jumped up, threw off their bedding, rushed into the fire and burned to death only a few yards from where the rest of the men lay." Among the more fantastic stories was that of two pack train leaders who, sharing one Wallace, 3 days after the fire, showing a decimated eastern section horse and frantically fleeing the swift blaze, covered 40 miles of rugged mountain range in 6 hours. other accounts told of bear and deer who lost their fear of man and knocked aside fire- fighters as the animals ran away from the fire. In the evening of Aug. 20, a pink glare tinted the pall of smoke that had been hang- ing for weeks over the city of Wallace, popu- lation 3,200. At 9 p.m. the first tongues of fire appeared over a ridge of the mountains that sur- rounded the town, causing panic among resi- dents who had hoped their homes would be spared. The residents crushed against one other for a space on one of five rescue trains sent to the town and crowded into boxcars and baggage cars for the ride to safety. Flames quickly swept off the mountain and into Wallace, eventually burning 100 buildings and wrecking the city's east end. Before the fire moved on, two persons were dead. Catholic nuns at Providence 119spital credited an answer to their prayers for leav- ing the hospital untouched while every tree surrounding it was burned. Ironically, Wallace suffered the greatest damage of any town in The Big Blowup, yet it was the headquarters for the firefighting effort of the entire Coeur d'Alene forest. The Big Blowup continued its march east. A change in the wind was the only thing that saved the town of Mullan, 7 miles east of Wallace. The fickle winds also caused the fires to miss the town of Murray and the mining camps of Burke and Nine Mile Can- yon. Among the heroes of The Big Blowup were Ranger Edward Pulaski, who was con- sidered the savior of a crew of 45. The stan- dard Forest Service firefighting ax since has been named after him. The chaos of communications from the fire often led to inaccurate or exaggerated information. The Seattle Times proclaimed at one point that 300 persons had died when in fact the toll was less than one -third that amount. The flames continued over the Montana border, burning out 16 bridges and 25 miles of newly - opened track of the Chicago, Mil- waukee and Puget Sound Railway. The fire storm finally slowed on Aug. 22 when winds died down and humidity went up. The 1910 fire season ended on Aug. 31 when heavy rains began falling throughout the region. The amount of human suffering from The Big Blowup can never be measured, but some dollar amounts were affixed to the tragedy. Damage to Wallace, in 1910 dollars, was listed at $1 million; losses to railroads was set at $3 million; damage suffered by mining companies and settlers added another $1 million; and lost timber was valued at $15 million. The government paid $5.4 million in claims on fire - related injuries alone. It was figured the timber burned on only the Coeur d'Alene National Forest could have kept the mills in the city of Coeur d'Alene running for 25 years. But almost as soon as The t-1rg wowup ended, work began to salvage remaining timber from the ravaged forests, plant new trees and figure ways to prevent it all from happening again. Idaho on fire! "There's no human force that can stop it" -forester " ��G ��C c ����b S , - - p a n B y R I C H A R D M A U E R T h e I d a h o S t a t e s m a n a y a f t e r d a y , f r o m t h e e n d o f J u l y t h r o u g h m i d : Z A u g u s t , w o r d s l i k e " r a g i n g f i r e " a n d " r a m p a g 8 i n g b l a z e " r o l l e d o f f t h e n e w s p a p e r p a g e s w i t h . m o n o t o n o u s r e g u l a r i t y . I t w a s a s i f t h e a w e s o m e M o r t a r C r e e k f i r e , w h i c h = c o n s u m e d m o r e t h a n 6 5 , 0 0 0 a c r e s o f p r i m e w i l d e r - n e s s l a n d , h a d a l s o b u r n e d a s w a t h t h r o u g h t h e E n g - ; f i s h l a n g u a g e ' s a b i l i t y t o c o n c i s e l y d e a l w i t h t h e - p o w e r , w r a t h a n d b e a u t y o f a m a j o r f o r e s t f i r e . E v e n w h e n r e d u c e d t o r o u g h c a l c u l a t i o n s b a s e d o n , F o r e s t S e r v i c e e s t i m a t e s o f i t s e n e r g y o u t p u t , i t s p r o - = p o r t i o n s b u l g e o u t . D u r i n g t h e 6 d a y s i n e a r l y A u g u s t ' w h e n t h e M o r t a r C r e e k f i r e m a d e i t s b i g g e s t r u n s , V x h e n b i l l o w i n g m u s h r o o m c l o u d s t o w e r e d 4 m i l e s n t o t h e s k y o v e r h e a d , i t p r o d u c e d e n e r g y t o m a t c h 5 0 a t o m i c b o m b s o f t h e s i z e d r o p p e d o n H i r o s h i m a , d u r i n g W o r l d W a r I I . I t g e n e r a t e d n e a r l y 1 0 t i m e s t h e r a m o u n t o f h e a t u s e d b y t h e B o i s e a r e a ' s 3 1 , 0 0 0 n a t u - ' m l g a s c u s t o m e r s d u r i n g a n a v e r a g e D e c e m b e r , J a n - V a r y a n d F e b r u a r y . " T h e d r y , s h i f t i n g , d e v i l w i n d s t h a t p u m p e d l i f e i n t o ' , t h e M o r t a r C r e e k f i r e , t h e l a r g e s t i n t h e s t a t e s i n c e ! 4 h e 1 9 3 0 s , a n d i n t o t h e o t h e r b l a z e s t h a t s c a r r e d I d a h o ' J a n d w e s t e r n M o n t a n a t h i s s u m m e r , w i l l b e f e e d i n g N e g e n d s f o r y e a r s t o c o m e . T o t h e h u n d r e d s o f m e n a n d w o m e n f i g h t i n g t h e * o r t a r C r e e k f i r e 3 0 m i l e s n o r t h o f S t a n l e y , t h o s e 6 ; d d a y s , A u g . 2 - 7 , w e r e m i x t u r e s o f f r u s t r a t i o n a n d t e r - ' r o r . M a n y o f t h e m b r o u g h t b a c k s t o r i e s o f h a s t y ; r e t r e a t s t o r o c k s l i d e s , w h e r e t h e y : + w a t c h e d a s t h e f i r e p a s s e d t h e m . u T h e f i r e h a d a l i f e o f i t s o w n . I t ; b u r n e d u p t h e s t e e p c a n y o n s o f t h e 9 M o r t a r C r e e k I d a h o P r i m i t i v e A r e a a n d t h e p r o - i n s o m e c a n y o n s , t h e t i r e r a c e d t h o r o u g n t h e c r o w n s o f t r e e s , t h e n w e n t b a c k a n d b u r n e d a g a i n . F i r e b r a n d s , m a d e o f c h u n k s o f b u r n i n g e m b e r s , s o a r e d o v e r r i d g e s t h a t n o r m a l l y m a k e n a t u r a l f i r e l i n e s , " T h e r e ' s n o h u m a n f o r c e t h a t c a n s t o p i t , " a f o r - e s t e r s a i d a s 1 8 , 0 0 0 a c r e s t h r e e - f o u r t h s t h e a r e a o f B o i s e b u r n e d o n o n e d a y a l o n e . i k e t h e r a i n , o r a n i m p e n d i n g d i s a s t e r , t h e r e a r e s o m e t h i n g s y o u c a n f e e l i n y o u r b o n e s . T h i s o n e , t h o u g h , h a d t o d o w i t h t h e l a c k o f r a i n . B e s i d e a c a m p f i r e o n a c o o l e v e n i n g l a s t J u n e , M i k e H i l l , a s e a s o n a l F o r e s t S e r v i c e s m o k e j u m p e r s t a t i o n e d i n G r a n g e v i l l e , h a d t h a t f e e l i n g . S o d i d t h r e e o t h e r f i r e f i g h t e r s w i t h h i m a s t h e y r e l a x e d a f t e r a w e e k - l o n g s e a r c h a n d r e s c u e m i s s i o n o n t h e S e l w a y R i v e r . " I t h a p p e n s e v e r y 6 y e a r s , " s a i d H i l l , a w i r y h i g h - s c h o o l t e a c h e r f r o m L e w i s t o n w h o s o m e t i m e s s i g n s h i s n a m e " H a l f H a n d " a f t e r a l u m b e r m i l l a c c i d e n t i n h i s y o u t h c o s t h i m a f e w f i n g e r s . W i t h h i s g o o d h a n d , H i l l s c r a p e d t h r o u g h a p i e c e o f f o r e s t s o i l a t h i s f e e t . E v e n t h o u g h t h e d r y , s u m m e r s e a s o n s h o u l d h a v e b e e n a m o n t h a w a y , t h e s o i l w a s a l r e a d y p a r c h e d . " T h i s i s g o i n g t o b e a h e l l o f a y e a r . " T h e o t h e r f i r e f i g h t e r s n o d d e d . " I t ' s a b o u t t i m e , " o n e s a i d . T h e 5 y e a r s o f r e l a t i v e i n a c t i o n s i n c e t h e l a s t b a d s e a s o n h a d c o s t t h e m h o u r s o f h a z a r d o u s - d u t y a n d o v e r t i m e p a y a n d h a d l e d t o r u m o r s o f c u t b a c k s i n t h e F o r e s t S e r v i c e ' s s e a - s o n a l w o r k f o r c e . N o o n e k n e w w h y f o r e s t f i r e s i n t h e r e g i o n s e e m t o h a v e a 6 - y e a r c y c l e . B u t t h e p a t t e r n h a s h e l d a t l e a s t s i n c e 1 9 6 1 , w h e n 2 , 3 7 2 f i r e s s t r u c k . 6 5 , 3 0 0 a c r e s , $ 4 . 5 m i l l i o n N o s e d R i v e r o f N o R e t u r n W i l d e r - ; a E a s t F o r k o f K e n n a l l : y C r e e k . . . 1 , 2 3 9 a c r e s , $ 3 0 0 , 0 0 0 ; m e s s w t h t h e c h u g g i n g r o a r o f a f r e i g h t t r a i n . O t h e r c a n y o n s S h i p I S l a n d . . . a b o u t 4 0 p e r c e n t o f t h e l a n d w i t h i n z t h e p e r i m e t e r r e m a i n e d . G a l l a g h e r P e a k I i n s c a t h e d . i M o s t o f t h e f i r e w a s c o n f i n e d t o � ' L i t t l e E I g i t t M i l e i 1 h e s o u t h e r n p a r t o f I d a h o ' s c e n A M O O S e C r e e k . j r a l m o u n t a i n s , w h e r e t h e t e r r a i n c s s o f o r b i d d i n g t h a t i t h a s r e - r t a i n e d u n d e v e l o p e d e x c e p t f o r , , s c a t t e r e d l e a d a n d s i l v e r m i n e s t ' , k n d a h a n d f u l o f b a c k - c o u n t r y r e - r o r t s . E v e n i f t h e a r e a h a d n o t b e e n p r o t e c t e d b y t h e F o r e s t S e r v i c e w h i c h h a s p r e s e r v e d m o s t o f t h e 3 , 5 0 0 - s q u a r e - m i l e d o m a i n a s w i l d l a n d s e v e n t h o u g h a n o f f i c i a l w i l d e r n e s s d e s i g n a t i o n h a s n o t y e t b e e n m a d e b y C o n g r e s s t h e t i m - b e r w o u l d b e u n e c o n o m i c a l t o c u t a t t o d a y ' s m a r k e t p r i c e s , a c c o r d - i n g t o f e d e r a l o f f i c i a l s . T h e i n t e n s e h e a t o f t h e M o r t a r C r e e k f i r e p r o d u c e d i t s o w n w e a t h e r , h e i g h t e n i n g t h e e f f e c t o f g u s t y w i n d s b l o w i n g g e n e r a l l y f r o m t h e s o u t h e a s t b u t s o e r r a t i c i n t h e c a n y o n s n o o n e c o u l d r e a l l y b e s u r e w h i c h w a y t h e f i r e w o u l d m o v e n e x t . P i l o t s r e p o r t e d s e e i n g " f i r e d e v - i l s " s w i r l i n g , t o r n a d o - l i k e s t o r m s o f f i r e t h a t w h i r l e d u p h i l l s a n d c o n s u m e d p i n e , s p r u c e a n d f i r i n t h e i r p a t h s . 1 . 0 , 0 0 0 a c r e s , $ 7 5 0 , 0 0 0 . . 3 6 , 6 0 0 a c r e s , $ 3 0 0 , 0 0 0 1 , 0 0 0 a c r e s , $ 1 8 0 , 0 0 0 2 , 9 0 0 a c r e s , $ 3 6 0 , 0 0 0 S i x y e a r s l a t e r c a m e t h e S u n d a n c e M o u n t a i n f i r e , t h e m o s t t e r r i f y i n g i n I d a h o s i n c e T h e B i g B l o w u p o f 1 9 1 0 t h a t k i l l e d 8 5 p e r s o n s a n d d e v a s t a t e d t h e e a s t e r n p a r t o f W a l l a c e . H u r r i c a n e - f o r c e w i n d s c r e a t e d b y t h e S u n d a n c e f i r e t o r e t r e e s w i t h 3 - f o o t t r u n k s f r o m t h e g r o u n d , a n d i t b o w e d t h e s t e e l p l a n k s o f a b r i d g e o v e r t h e P a c k R i v e r . T h a t s a m e y e a r , t h e T r a p p e r P e a k f i r e b u r n e d 1 6 , 6 0 0 a c r e s . A n o t h e r b a d f i r e y e a r s t r u c k i n 1 9 7 3 , w h e n t h e T r i - C r e e k f i r e c o n s u m e d 7 2 , 0 9 0 a c r e s i n n o r t h w e s t e r n M o n t a n a n e a r t h e I d a h o b o r d e r . W h i l e t h e f o u r c a m p e r s s e a l e d t h e i r p r e d i c t i o n s w i t h b r a n d y a n d p i n c h e s o f s n u f f , D o n a l d L a t h a m , a c l i m a t e s c i e n t i s t a t t h e F o r e s t S e r v i c e ' s N o r t h e r n F o r e s t F i r e L a b o r a t o r y i n M i s s o u l a , M o n t . , w a s t i n k e r i n g w i t h a c o m p u t e r f o r m u l a h e h o p e d w o u l d b e a t l e a s t a s a c c u r a t e a s w o o d s - w i s e f i r e f i g h t e r s . " W e n e e d t o h a v e t h e a d v a n t a g e o f s n i f f i n g o u t t h e s e s e a s o n s i n a d v a n c e w i t h s o m e t h i n g m o r e t h a n a f e e l i n g , " L a t h a m s a i d . " N o o n e i n t h e F o r e s t S e r - v i c e w i l l l e t y o u d o s o m e t h i n g l i k e p l a n o n a m a j o r s e a s o n o n j u s t a h u n c h . W h a t w e ' r e t r y i n g t o d o i s p u t s o m e p h y s i c s i n t o i t . " T h e c o m p u t e r m o d e l i s b a s e d o n s p r i n g r u n o f f s a n d i s s t i l l i n t h e e x p e r i m e n t a l s t a g e . B u t i t f l a s h e d t h e , S a m e w a r n i n g . " T h i s w a s g o i n g t o b e a v e r y b a d s e a - , , $ o n , " L a t h a m s a i d . " I t s t a r t e d o u t d r y a n � i t j u s t k e p t r i g h t o n b e i n g d r y . " T he brush -fire battles in what would later turn into a major war began in late June. By mid- July, there had been 100 in the Boise National IForest alone, three times the number from the year before. A lightning bolt struck in the Gallagher Peak area of the Targhee National Forest in eastern Idaho July 6, starting a small fire that official's allowed to con- tinue burning. It would erupt more than a month later into a heated political battle over "manage- ment fires" after it went out of control and burned 34,000 acres. On the Salmon National Forest, a lookout perched at Long Tom tower above the Salmon River spotted a plume of smoke rising near Ship Island Lake. A light- ning storm had just rolled over the area. Attempts to fight the fire with helicopters and smoke jumpers were foiled by winds and rough terrain. It would be days before an effective assault could be launched. Challis National Forest officials in central Idaho began getting nervous when the rains failed to fall and a fire broke out on the Middle Fork of the Salmon River near Mahoney Creek around the second week of July. The fire, which spread from a camp being, used by Boy Scouts on a float trip, was doused after about 150 acres burned. A second fire on Little Loon Creek, also caused by .campers, was extinguished about the same time. "We did everything we could to hold them because we knew the potential for a big one was there. For- tunately, we bought a lot of time," said Jim Lancas- ter, the fire boss on both. The extra time they bought moved them 2 weeks closer to the rains they hoped would break the 4 -month drought. On July 26, Tom Harbour took off as the passenger in a light plane on a routine fire scouting trip over the Challis forest. While on the eastern edge of the na- tional forest, he noticed a thin shaft of smoke rising from what appeared to be a deserted campsite on the edge of the Middle Fork. Officials believe a party on horseback from south- western Idaho had left the campsite with hot coals still in the fire, but the investigation isn't complete yet. The campers were seen by boaters who rafted down the river. As the plane circled, Harbour guessed the spot was about 10 feet across. The nearest geographic place he could pick out was Mortar Creek. It would turn out that the creek which gave its name to the state's big - gest fire in 30 years would itself be untouched by the blaze. In half an hour, Harbour watched the blaze grow from 10 square feet to 150 acres. It doubled to 300 acres during the next half hour. Forest Supervisor Jack Bills ordered in a helitack crew. Then smoke jumpers. Then airplanes equipped with fire retardant. But the wind and terrain made all the airborne methods useless, and ground crews were ordered in. "Our fire danger readings and fuel moistures were paralleling 1966 or exceeding, and those were the dri- est we had on record," Bills said. "We knew that without a break in the weather, any fire in that area had the potential to become large. In our wildest imagination, we thought maybe we'd have something approaching 10,000 acres. Of course, we were off by six times." 0 f the three major fires, Ship Island at first looked as if it would be the worst. It was in the most forbidding terrain and posed unusual hazards for firefighters. The same day the Mortar Creek. fire was discov- erd, Kyle Pattee, 29, and Jim Camp, 43, were in Tum- ble Creek Canyon, 60 miles to the northeast. The two supervisors were directing a crew of 10 firefighters engaged in 'a holding action as the Ship Island fire crept down a north- facing slope. From their vantage point on a nenspoL, tney saw a spot fire develop beneath them. They radioed the crews to retreat to the safety of rockslides while they made plans of their, own. Believing in the safety of the helispot, Pattee, Ash- ton, and Camp, Council, gathered up the crews' packs, sleeping bags and a gas - powered chain saw and pump and placed them in a 17 -foot -wide pile in the center of the landing pad so it would be safe from fire. Then, as the blaze roared up the 300 -yard slope during the next 15 minutes, the two climbed into the portable aluminum and fiberglass fire shelters that all firefighters are required to wear around their waists. "We had to make a stand right there. There was nowhere else to go," Camp said. As the fire roared by, it set the camping gear on fire. The searing heat that vaporized aluminum pack frames became unbearable to the two men, who shouted encouragement back and forth. They talked by radio to their crew and to fire supervisors at a lookout several miles away until the radios melted. "It was really a fight to keep things under control. It was so hot under there, you just wanted to quit breathing, but you wouldn't dare," said Camp, who took his breath in controlled gulps. "It was really a hard thing to keep from running. We train people on how to use a shelter, but there's no way you can train a person on how to keep his cool durh-g a crisis." Both men kept their cool, avoiding what would have been a fatal urge to flee. But when the fire storm passed after nearly 2 hours of torture, only Camp was alive. Investigators blamed Pattee's death on the good - willed gesture of gathering up the gear in the hope it wouldn't burn, and on the fact that unlike Camp, Pattee wasn't wearing gloves. "They were in a place that would have been satis- factory if they hadn't have made the gear pile," said Jim Lancaster, Cobalt District Ranger for the Salmon National Forest. "They never thought of the gear as fuel. It was a mistake that I'm afraid is some- times repeated on fires, that there is more concern about material and not so much people," Lancaster said. Camp, with his gloves, was able to grab hold of the scorching hot shelter edge and crawl away from the burning gear. Pattee struggled to move too, but only with limited success. "The shelter is designed to reflect heat only," a preliminary investigative report said. "These shelters undoubtedly withstood temperatures above what they were designed for and were in contact with actual flame." The death struck hard on the Ship Island fire man- agement team. "It involves a lot of soul searching," Lancaster said. The same team was at the Mortar Creek fire 2 weeks later and still found Pattee's death hard to talk about. n the last days of July, the air grew more moist, the wind died, and the Ship Island, Mortar Creek and Gallagher Peak fires began to "lay down." After consuming 2,200 acres on both sides of the Mid- dle Fork, Mortar Creek was declared controlled July 30. The next day, Ship Island was contained at 6,000 acres. Three - fourths of an inch of rain had doused the Gallagher Peak fire at 300 acres. On Aug. 2, about 100 firefighters were left from the 500 that had been at Mortar Creek. They were work- ing in from the hand - carved fire lines, trying to douse smoldering stumps and roots when the humidity dropped to about 7 percent, the winds kicked up to about 40 mph, and temperatures reached into the 90s. "Some of the unburned areas generated the power that finally took it over the line," said Jack Bills, the Challis forest supervisor. "It wouldn't have mattered if we had 500 people up there then," said Dale Dufour, a Forest Service spokesman. "They had to retreat." Added fire boss Gordon Stevens: "Had we known the wind would pick up, we would have been unable to save it even then. Nature was taking care of it. All we could do was secure the lines on the upwind side." As the week unfolded, the same thing happened at Gallagher Peak, and to a lesser extent at Ship Island. Calls for fire crews and equipment from around the nation poured from the mountains to the Boise Inter- agency Fire Center, which coordinates wildfire fights on a national basis. ruce Meadows is normally a placid mountain setting on the edge of a dense forest. The only marks of human existence are a grassy air- strip, a post fence, and a rutted, dirt road. The near- est telephones are in Stanley, a 45- minute drive away. The pay phones there are notoriously unrelia- ble. But the meadows was turned overnight into a wheeled -in city supporting more than 1,000 hard- working men'and women, probably the largest con- centration of humanity the area had ever seen. The government brought in a red - and -white check - ered airport control tower on a flatbed trailer. The National Weather Service contributed a pickup - mounted weather station, linked to Boise via a 2t1- foot -high aerial and capable of receiving radio- trans- mitted weather maps and predicting conditions for individual canyons. Contractors set up portable kitchens. Separate trailers housed showers for men and women. There were tents for supplies, tents for transportation, tents for air operations, tents for radio operators, tents for first aid, tents for time keepers and records, even a tent for the most indis- pensible tool of bureaucracy, a copy machine. The 24 -hour roar of generators and the take -offs and landings of 21 jet - powered helicopters, including two twin -rotor Army Chinooks, made the Bruce Meadows base camp noisier than many big cities. The whole operation took on a military tinge, from the 28- member command team plucked from forests throughout the five -state Intermountain Region with their 5:30 a.m. briefings and battle plans, to the supply operation, to the war stories told by helicopter pilots who learned about flying in Vietnam, to the "grunts" armed with ax -like Pulaskis and shovels and chain saws who manned the battlefront on the fire's perimeter. s the Mortar Creek fire wore through its sec- ond week, the biggest fear was that it would jump north across the Middle Fork pf the Sal- mon. The river marked the only natural barrier be- tween the fire and the vast Idaho Primitive Area, the largest wilderness in the United States south of Alaska. A cloudy day on Aug. 8 slowed the fire's progress, and gave crews a few days to build more fire line. But the next 3 days were hot and sunny again. "You can build line, but you just can't hold it," said fire boss Ken Dittmer. "We don't know if we have enough people to contain it." Dittmer and his team began making plans to check the fire before it's vast nortnwest perimeter advanced to the Middle Fork through an as yet unburned, peninsula- shaped area covering about 26 square miles. None of the alternatives looked good. The leading edge of the fire was too hot and too dangerous to get next to, ruling out the possibility of trying to build a fire line along the perimeter. Firefighters could con- struct a line along a ridge bisecting the peninsula, but by the time the line was built it might be too late. The third possibility was to sac- rifice the entire 26 square miles by setting it ablaze at the Middle Fork and allowing it to burn back into the fire to check its advance. Any unexpected jump across the river would be assaulted "with everything we have," Dittmer said. That had been done to suc- cessfully contain a 2,000 -acre cross -river jump early in the fire near Mahoney Creek. The weather predictions were not encouraging. A decision would have to be made by Sunday, Aug. 12. But instead of a difficult deci- sion, Sunday brought clouds and the slow, steady rain that could do what no army of men could. More fell Monday. The summer drought had finally lost its grip. The prediction of an Aug. 19 con- tainment suddenly switched from a camp joke to a real possibility. Many of the 2,100 firefighters were called back from their camps, some of them marching as many as 27 miles in a single day to get back to warm showers and a hot meal. As crews were bused to Boise for rest, the Bruce Meadows camp, draped with makeshift plastic tents and splashed with mud, felt strangely deserted. "This place looks like some old mining town that everyone gave up on," said Jerry Hansen, the first - aid chief. he Gallagher Peak fire was controlled Aug. 12 after $300,000 was spent in battling it. Containment of the Mortar Creek fire came at 6 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 16. It was officially declared controlled at 10 a.m. Aug. 19 after burning 65,300 acres for a suppression cost of $4.5 million. The Ship Island fire has slowed to a crawl in rocky terrain after burning 11,000 acres. The fire fight has cost $750,000. Though small teams of firefighters will continue patrolling the fires until the first snowfalls expected sometime next month, the main job is over. But even before the firefighters left camp, new teams arrived. They are the rehabilitation experts who will decide what can be done to minimize envi- ronmental damage from the fire. Idaho Statesman 8/26/79 Page #5 of 5 pages At the Mortar Creek fire, the eignt- meniber learn has already seen encouraging signs. "Some vegeta- tion is starting to grow in the burn area," said team leader Bill Paddock of the Challis National Forest. "Roots are still alive and yarrow and dandelion are starting to grow." The first step is to obliterate the scars gouged into the ground by bulldozers, which constructed about 15 miles of the 70 -mile fire line built around the fire. Most of that work has already been done, Paddock said. Because most of the fire burned in areas proposed for wilderness classification — where the works of man must, by law, be kept to a minimum — there will probably be little in the way of mass rehabilitation, such as tree planting or aerial grass seeding, Pad- dock said. "If you feel nature can take care of it, you can't do restoration," Paddock said. The main fear is that the crystal -clear Middle Fork will be clogged by silt eroded from the now- barren mountain sides. The river is the spawning ground for a large population of salmon that need clear water to spawn. "So far, there's no coloration in the river," Pad- dock said. But if it occurs, that would be one reason for interfering with the natural process, he said. If grass is sown, it must contain naturally occur- ring varieties and be done with approval from Wash- ington, Paddock said. Except for loss of recreation — some trails will be shut down until next year — all three fires did very little damage to commercial resources since the tim- ber is unmarketable and cattle and sheep grazing is minimal, officials said. Though the fire most likely destroyed small ani- mals in its path — with a result in a loss of food for predators — the effect on big game will be mixed, ac- cording to Jerry Thiessen, a biologist with the Idaho Fish and Game Department. Most large animals have the sense to stay way ahead of fires, though a few probably perished, Thiessen said. "For wildlife, there's a greater chance that fires will be beneficial rather than bad," he said. The short-term effect for elk and deer could be disastrous if grassland — especially winter range — was de- stroyed. "If there's not a good rainfall this fall and there's no regrowth, animals will be picking through cinders to find something to eat." But in the years to come, the fire will strengthen the herds, Thiessen said. "In northern Idaho, the fires of the early 1900s through the 1930s created large blocks of very fine elk habitat. The diversified forest that follows a fire creates the habitat for a wide variety of species," Thiessen said. "In the long haul," he said, "the environment will be better because of the fire than it was before." Star-News Page 1 of 2 6/26/1985 Smoke swirls around firefighters during practice burn near Bear Basin. Fire crews test muscle, mettle Star News Page 2 of 2 6/26/1985 By Tom Grote The Star -News Jim Fitzgerald's assigned job on the Payette National Forest is as a hydrology technician. But on a moment's notice, Fitzgerald could find himself on his way to fight a forest fire. Fitzgerald and all .other employees of the forest have the option of signing up on forest fire crews, which means possible assignment anywhere in the West if there is an outbreak of fires. Most employees of the forest sign up for the extra pay and adventure that fighting forest fires can provide, but first they must go through training. Last Friday, smoke rising frorn a timber slash area near Bear Basin west of McCall marked the classroom for Fitzgerald and about 25 other seasonal or first - year employees of the Payette (Continued from Page A -1) still the best and cheapest method of containing a forest fire -- hand labor. Using specialized tools made for cutting and digging, the workers scratched the ground to build fire lines, which are two or three foot -1, strips of bare earth de01 b `�to'�3"`a fli`e by taking away its fuel. The lines are the best method to use in steep or remote country where bulldozers cannot get in or water is not close by, said Rick Belnap, fire management officer on the Krassel Ranger District and the fire school leader. Before they entered the woods, the trainees underwent 40 hours of classroom work on safety, fire behavior, weather and other fire - related subjects, Belnap said. Before the first flames were lit last week, the employees were given hands -on instruction on proper use of chainsaws as well as portable and truck - mounted water pumps that aid the firefighting effort. During an actual fire, crews of 20 people, separated into squads of five, would attack a blaze in a fashion similar to a military operation, Belnap said. Leading the chargeQ would be crew *members with chainsaws to clear a path, followed by other members wielding hand tools to loosen the dirt, and still others with sharp -edged shovels to finish the job. The goal is to keep the crew moving and have each member use only a few strokes in each spot to conserve their energy, Belnap said. The dangers to the fire crew are many on the fire line, but the training is intended to head off any injuries on an actual blaze, Belnap said. Beside the obvious cautions against burns and smoke inhala- forest. The smoke was from a small fire deliberately set to give the trainees first -hand experience at the techniques they might be call- ed on to use in an actual fire. The trainees, both male and female, waded through the heat and pungent smoke of the Bear Basin burn under the watchful eye of instructors. They were practicing what is (Continued on Page A -2) tion, crew members also must be wary of falling branches from burning trees, rolling rocks, heat stress and even hypothermia, he said. Fitzgerald, who is from Mc- Call, said he didn't mind the hard work involved in firefighting. "It could be exciting, and I'm willing to do my share," he said. Audrey Fields, a forestry aide from New Meadows, said she did not worry about the dangers on the fire line. "It's no worse than at home," Fields said. "You could get hit by a logging truck walking across the highwav in New Meadows." The new trained firefighters may be called on sooner than they think. This summer could be an active fire year with conditions worsen- ing on the forest, said Neal Davis, acting fire management officer for the Payette. The amount of rain that has fallen in the forest is well below normal this year, Davis said. As of Monday, precipitation in June • was .76 inches, compared to 3.71 inches that fell in June last year, according to figures from the Payette dispatch office. Visitors to the forest may become lax in their caution, vyhen using fire because the last three years have been low fire years, Davis said. Although few fires have been reported on the Payette forest so far, fires elsewhere have busied smokejumpers based in McCall and other personnel trained in fire control, he said. On Monday, 38 Payette smokejumpers had been sent to Nevada, California and the Nezperce National Forest in nor- thern Idaho, leaving 16 jumpers on reserve at the McCall base, Davis said. Star News 7/14/85 Winds flare up two wilds fires By Bradley Blum The Star -News Windy conditions last Thurs- day caused two fires in the Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness to flare up and burn about 1,250 acres, officials in the Boise and Payette national forests said. The largest of the two blazes burned about 900 acres in the Sulphur Creek drainage south of ,Landmark in the Boise National Forest, forest public affairs of- ficer Dale Dufour said Tuesday. Dufour said that the fire received .2 of an inch of rain on Monday, and firefighters were predicting that the fire would be contained by 1 p.m. Tuesday. The decision to fight the fire, which started on Aug. 19 follow- ing a lightning storm, was made after high winds, warm temperatures and an ample sup- ply of dry fuels caused the smoldering eight acre fire to flare up on Thursday evening and race over nearly 700 acres; incident commander Roy Carson said. Carson is in charge of the fire management team called in from national forests in Arizona and New Mexico to direct firefighting efforts in the wilderness. Normally, fires in wilderness areas are allowed to burn, but when the Sulphur Creek fire flared up, it far surpassed its prescribed boundaries, caused spot fires as far as a mile away and was threatening the nearby Sulphur Creek Ranch, fire infor- mation officer Cathy Stephenson said. On Saturday, retardant bombers flying out of the McCall Airport dropped five loads of the phosphorus -based slurry on the fire to slow its progress, and five helicopters were used to dip water from the creek and drop it on the hot spots, Stephenson said. On Sunday, 21 firefighting crews of 20 persons each from the Bureau of Land Management, the Bureau of Indian Affairs, the National Park Service and the Forest Service arrived at the fire camp at the end of the Whiskey Creek Road and were taken by helicopter to the fire, Stephenson said. She said that because the only way into the fire from the fire camp was a rather long trail, the firefighters were being camped at the fire scene and all their gear and meals were taken in by helicopter. In addition to the special transportation needs, fighting fire in the wilderness, where all motorized equipment is banned, is also required some other special measures, Carson said. "There are no (bull)dozers in use, and we're using the helicopters as approved by the forest supervisor. And we are also using chain saws and por- table water pumps with the super- visor's permission," Carson said. Because the fire is in the wilderness, fire lines likely will not be built around the entire fire, he said. No firefighting efforts at all were made on the other wilderness fire, which was first spotted on Thursday burning in the Hand Meadow area about 10 miles south of the Chamberlain. Guard Station in the Payette Na- tional Forest. Payette information officer David Olson said on Tuesday that the fire had burned about 350 acres and was being monitored by a crew of three or four persons in addition to daily surveillance flights. Olson speculated that the fire may have smoldered for several days before conditions on Thurs- day caused it to flare up. No suppression measures against the fire are being con- sidered at present because it is in the wilderness and does not threaten any lives or property, Olson said. He said that the rain on Mon- day and the cooler night temperatures were keeping down the 'fire activity at Hand Meadow. "Nothing much is really hap- pening out there," Olson said. The fire danger on the Payette Forest has dropped to "moderate, "a report issued by the forest service dispatch office in McCall said. But Olson warn- ed that the fire season in central Idaho is not necessarily over. "Traditionally, there can be larger -sized fires during September on this forest," Olson said. The Idaho Statesman 7/29/85 Crews line up strategies to smother Payette blaze The Associated Press Exhausted by weeks of hot, backbreaking labor, fire crews continued their battles Sunday against several central Idaho for- est fires. A fire in the French Creek drainage of the Payette National Forest, just south of the main Salmon River, has scorched more than 14,500 acres of steep can- yons, up from 14,000 acres on Saturday, Payette spokeswoman Pam Gardner said. Gardner said the fire was 55 percent contained, but a finger of flames in French Creek still was raging in the rugged canyon. Crews planned to construct pa- rellel fires on both sides of French Creek. Line construction was planned to circle about 3,500 acres in front the fire perimeter in hopes of heading off the blaze be- fore it can cross critical ridges and rampage through more valu- able timber, she said. About 25 miles to the east, on the north shore of the Salmon River in the Nezperce National Forest, crews continued to bring a stubborn 5,500-acre blaze under control. Mary Zabinski, spokeswoman for the Nezperce forest, said crews still hoped to control the fire late Sunday. The number of people battling the fire dropped to 583 on Satur- day, or about half the figure when firefighting was at its peak. The conditions of both the fire and the people fighting it justified the re- duction, Zabinski said. In the Salmon National Forest, about 80 miles to the southeast, firefighters struggled against heat and smoke to choke off four fires that together had consumed about 32,000 acres, said spokes- man Gordon Reid. Two major blazes burned around Long Tom Mountain, raz- ing dense stands of fir and pine. Reid said high temperatures, low humidity and the possibility of thunderstorms carrying dry light- ning had combined to create diffi- cult conditions for crews there. Reid said the fire, which was burning hottest to the north and east, had made "a spectacular run" Saturday on a mile -wide front. "It ran across Cold Creek and jumped the fire lines in just a very few moments, 'and a big mushroom - shaped cloud went thousands of feet into the air," he said. Fire bosses anticipated the jump and moved all crews out of its way, Reid said. In the meantime, officials are keeping tabs on a 5,000 -acre blaze in the Goat Creek and Roaring Creek drainages of the Frank Church -River of No Return Wilderness, Reid said. Two more fires, one called the Fountain fire and the other the Ebenezer fire, had together con- sumed about 9,000 acres near Long Tom Mountain, Reid said. Forest Service officials contin- ued to urge people to stay clear of a gravel road popular with rafters and others on their way to the Salmon River because of the dan- ger of fire activity. In the Nezperce's Selway -Bit- terroot Wilderness, several re- mote hiking traits were closed, and hikers were advised to check with the Moose Creek Ranger District 'before embarking on trips. Eight fires ranging from 1t /2 to 1,600 acres were burning in the Selway- Bitterroot on Saturday, but only one was being fought, Zabinski said. The Idaho Statesman 7/29/85 Fire float A group of Utah rafters the river bank. Fires in heavily forested areas of floating the Salmon River central Idaho have burned more than 50,000 acres watch a forest fire consuming timber all the way to in the past few weeks. The Star-News 7/31/85 Fires pulnpmsh into McCall economy By Bradley Blum The Star-News Two forest fires that have burned more than 25,000 acres of the Payette National Forest also have provided a welcomed boost in the economy of McCall. Several merchants, in McCall, which is home to the Payette forest's headquarters, are estimating that the influx of more than 1,600 firefighters and sup- port personnel has increased their July receipts by up to 30 or 40 percent. "It works right in with the regular business," said sawshop owner Ray Heady, who sold $210 in parts to the forest service. Heady said that the forest ser- vice handles its own maintenance on the chain saws used by firefighters. The forest service does not however, have laundry facilities of its own, which has been a real boon for the McCall Cleaning Center. The center's manager, Frances Wysong, estimated that between 30 and 40 percent of her business this month came from firefighters washing their per- sonal clothing, or from forest ser- vice personnel laundering uniforms. "We're really busy," she said enthusiastically. Judy Van Komen, owner of the Aspen Market and Laundromat, was more conservative in her estimate of the increase in laun- dry revenues, but she said that the 15 -20 percent in the laun- dramat was accompanied by a 10 percent gain in business for her convenience store. She said that Idaho souvenir items like hats and T- shirts were some of her best selline-merchan- dise. Van Komen said that another big increase in store sales was in beer. "When they're doing laun- dry, they're drinking beer," she said. But beer and other alcoholic beverages have not been among sales leaders around town because of forest service policies against drinking. Chuck Saxton, the manager of The Pitcher tavern, reported no significant boost to his business because of the fires. "I had 10 of those guys come in here one afternoon, sit down and have one beer before a guy came in here and hustled them all out," Saxton said. Operators of the town's restaurants that were interviewed all reported significant increases in their July business, and praised the forest service's attempts to spread the business around. David Olson, an information officer for the Payette Forest,, said it is forest service policy to send firefighters to as many dif- ferent eating places in a town as possible. The policy is designed to limit a crush of people on individual establishments and to distribute the business evenly. "They always seem to hit us in our busy time,, so it might seem like more," said Pancake House owner Bonnie Allen, who estimated her increased business at about 15 percent. "It would be nice if they'd do this in the winter time," she jok- ed. Ernie Woods, owner of The Woodsman Motel and Restaurant, also said that the firefighters had made for a hectic pace at his business, but he wasn't complaining. "I'm full of forest service peo- ple. It's the best July I've ever had," Wood vaid. According to Jane Volk of Mc- Call Vacations, not all the -forest service money spent on lodging is going into the motels. She said that she has rented three or four condominiums to forest service personnel. "It's cheaper to rent a condo than it is to rent a motel room if you're staying a month or more," Volk said. She said that the condos were rented not only to people brought in to work in the supervisor's of- fice, but also to firefighters on the line who "wanted a place to come back to." In terms of volume, the largest gains in business may have been in the town's two supermarkets. Both Ken Patterson and Larry Bouck, managers of the McCall Merc and Shaver's, respectively, estimated that about 10 percent of July's business was in pro- viding for the firefighting effort. Both reported greatly increased sales of fruit, candy bars, soda pop and juices, particularly Gatoraid, which is purported to replace fluids the body loses dur- ing strenuous activities. "We've sold cases and cases and cases of Gatoraid. They've come in and wiped us out of it a couple of times," Patterson said. Bouck also reported that Copenhagen chewing tobacco, shampoo, toothpaste, shaving cream and throwaway razors were moving quickly at his store. Both managers said that their stores' clothing business had been doing well. Gloves, denim pants and jackets, socks and boots were all in demand at the stores that are set up at the fire camps. "We've had to special order down to our Salt Lake City warehouse for 100 pair of boots," Bouck said. "Overall, I'd say we've sold them pretty close to a couple hundred extra pairs." The Star-News 7/31/85 Satellite link helps supply firefighters By Bradley Blum The Star -News The fire in the Payette Na- tional Forest on French Creek has the distinction of being the first where firefighting efforts have been aided by the use of a satellite communication system, according to U.S. Forest Service officials. A group of Green Berets from the U.S. Army Tenth Special Forces Group landed in McCall about 8 p.m. Thursday. They immediately began work- ing with Kim Peterson, a Bureau of Land Management computer specialist from the Boise In- teragency Fire Center, to set up a satellite link between computers at the forest's logistics center in McCall and at Corduroy Junc- tion, the base camp for the French Creek fire. Peterson designed the system that linked the Data General computer in McCall with a military satellite orbiting the earth. "What we've done here is in- troduced a computer into the fire camp where the necessary orders and /or reports can be generated in the computer and sent over, in this case, a satellite link into a computer here at the logistics center in McCall," Peterson said. This is the first . time that a satellite link has ever been used to fight"a forest fire in the United States, Peterson said. The French Creek fire also has the distinction of being the first civilian task on which the Green Beret communications unit from Ft. Devens, Mass., 'have been deployed, said Staff Sgt. Dan Swistak, commander of the Special Forces unit in McCall. He said that Idaho's terrain probably had something to do with the Army's decision to order them onto the fire. "We're a mountain unit, set to deploy to the European theatre," Swistak said. "These definitely qualify as mountains. I've never seen anything like this in my life." The biggest advantage of the satellite link is that requests for additional supplies or manpower can quickly be relayed to the Mc Call logistics center. From there, they are sent over a nationwide computer system called the Forest Level Informa- tion Processing System (FLIPS). "The information that's typed in at fire camp gets transmitted to the computer here, and through electronic mail is transmitted on the FLIPS system to any logistics center in the country that might have the equipment needed on the fire," Peterson said. He said that the method is con- siderably less time - consuming than transmitting requests over the radio, and it makes transcrip- tion errors less likely. "It's really helping us break the back on the paperwork crunch," .said Norm Hesseldahl, the fire information officer at the Corduroy Junction fire camp. ' Peterson said that the military was called in because the decision. to use a satellite link to fight forest fires was made so recenti5 that the forest service did not yet have all the necessary equipment when fires flared up in the West. The Star-News 7/31/85 Storms bring mixed blessings to firefighters By Bradley Blum The Star-News Rain showers that passed through the area on Monday and Tuesday could prove to be both a blessing and a curse for firefighting efforts on the Payette National Forest. On the one hand, the added moisture aided the fight against the 14,580 acre French Creek fire in the Salmon River drainage and the 12,285 acre Savage Creek fire in the South Fork of the Salmon River drainage, said David Olson, a Payette forest informa- tion officer. "In the past 24 hours, the fire. has burned very little acreage because, as you might imagine, of that unusual gray stuff that fell on it," Olson said. According to records kept at the forest service dispatch office at the McCall Airport, the .15 of an inch received on Monday was the first measurable precipitation since .09 of an inch fell on June 8. There was, however, a less desirable side to the storm because of the limited amount of rain. Sightings of small fires caused by the lightning that accom- panied the rain started coming in- to the dispatch office at the Mc- Call Airport almost immediately after the storm passed through Monday afternoon. By 2:30 p.m. Tuesday, 11 fires had been reported to the dispatch office, with the possibility of more blazes cropping up for as long as two weeks after the storm, dispatcher Jill Kemp said. The lightning fires can smolder and burn slowly through the debris on the ground for a long time before they find a substan- tial fuel supply. Only then will a flare -up large enough for spotters to see actually occur, Kemp said. The benefit of the rain that fell was that it moistened grasses and other small fuel sources, Olson said. However, he stressed that ex- treme caution should be exercised by everyone in the forest because larger fuels such as logs are still very dry and will remain so unless the area receives about a week of steady rainfall. Nonetheless, the dampened small fuels have given firefighters an added advantage in getting the forest's two major fires contain- ed and under control. Olson said Tuesday afternoon that the 'French Creek fire, located about 15 miles east of Riggins, was considered about 65 percent contained, and the Savage Creek fire, located about 30 miles northwest of McCall, was about 60 percent contained. The Savage Creek fire, however, is being permitted to burn up into a steep rocky ridge area and was being battled by a reduced force of 235 firefighters. The firefighters mainly are iv au va.S monitoring the fire and insuring that it remains contained along Pilot Peak Ridge on the north, the ridge above Savage Creek on the south, and the South Fork of the Salmon River on the west. "This fire is still continuing to burn in the confined area that has been established for this fire," Olson said. "It has begun to burn at a low intensity into the West Fork of Elk Creek on the west side of the drainage." On Tuesday afternoon, Olson estimated that about 1,000 firefighters would remain on the French Creek fire, by this morn- ing. He said that conditions Y ./cre favorable enough to allow for seven 20- person crews to be sent home on Tuesday evening, with only one new crew coming in Olson said the decision to let the crews go was made because the crews had been working long hours for several days and deserved a rest. Also, weather forecasts for the next couple of days are "favorable to contain the fire, he said. With fire activity on the French Creek fire concentrated mainly in the French Creek canyon and moving south, Olson said that the French Creek Road remains clos- ed, but the road along the Salmon River has been opened all the way to End of the Road. The road along the South Fork of the Salmon River is open to Elk Creek, Olson said. The Idaho Statesman 8/1/85 Crews near containment of west-central Idaho fire The Associated Press Weary fire crews in Idaho's west - central mountains set their sights on a break from the line as they moved toward finally containing the stub- born French Creek fire, which has de- stroyed 14,600 acres on the south side of the main Salmon River. "For this fire, we've right now had a very significant break," Payette National Forest spokesman David Olson said. "We'll be out of this fire pretty soon." After two weeks of uncertainty over when they would be able to rein in the lightning - caused blaze, heavy rains on Tuesday and continued low temperatures and high humidity on Wednesday enabled fire bosses to fi ' nally set an official containment esti- mate of tonight. Olson said crews expected to have the flames completely encircled by late Wednesday, but wanted time to strengthen their grip on the fire be- fore declaring it contained. The rapid turn- around in the battle at French Creek also enabled super- visors to plan a massive reduction in manpower in the Payette Forest from over 1,100 to less than 300 by week's end. Some 80 miles to the east, crews numbering over 1,600 used the turn in the weather to make a major gain against the 19,000 -acre Butte fire near Long Tom Mountain in the Salmon National Forest. Improved weather conditions and some rain enabled firefighters to contain 40 percent of the 30- square -mile blaze that has been burning since a July 20 lightning strike, and progress was being made against the eight -mile front of ad- vancing flames on the east. "The secondary line was completed and they're now constructing lines at the very front of the fire," said spokesman Gordon Reid. "We've had good conditions for the firefighters, and we're taking advantage of that." But with no target for complete containment, crews still battled blowups in some areas and cabins on two creek drainages of the main Salmon River had to be en- circled with bulldozed fire lines when flames moved to within a few hundred yards. The change in the weather that brought up to three - quarters of an inch of rain to the central high- Idaho fire lands also dampened dozens of new lightning strikes as well as four other major fires that had al- ready been either effectively con- tained or confined to areas where fire bosses are letting them burn out under natural conditions. "It's been a long July," Olson said. "We're looking forward to the break. But we are anticipating it will be a short break. We al- ways have a good fire season in August and into September." Since fires began raging across Idaho after a late June lightning storm, more than 300,000 acres of timber and range have been blackened, over 60,000 by the six latest blazes. More than $4 million in commercial timber has been destroyed, but no structures have been lost and injuries to firefight- ers have been limited. The Idaho Statesman 8/2/85 Firefighters rush to contain blazes. in Idaho forests as rains offer break The Associated Press More than 1,800 firefighters launched an all -out attack Thurs- day to contain the 13- day -old Butte fire in east - central Idaho's Salmon National Forest before moist, humid weather gave way to hot, dry conditions. "The fire isn't doing much right now," said spokesman Gordon kiReid. "This is the time we have to make all the efforts to get con- tainment on this fire. If we can't, we're going to be right back where we were, and it's going to be a big job to get it done." About 80 miles to the west, fire crews already were being demobilized in the Payette Na- tional Forest as persistent wet weather enabled fire bosses to ex- pect total containment of the 14,600•acre French Creek fire by late Thursday. That lightning - caused blaze had been burning for 16 days, destroying nearly $1 mil- lion in prime commercial timber. The break in the weather that began earlier this week across the central highlands also supressed several other fires that have burned more than 30,000 acres in the past two weeks. The lightning- caused Butte blaze, already covering 19,700 acres in a 30- square -mile triangle near Long Tom Mountain, north of Salmon, was listed as 40 per- cent contained, but it was burning slowly through miles of prime mountain -goat habitat, and offi- cials said further destruction of that land on the north side of the main Salmon River could affect the herd. The fire already has claimed nearly $4 million in com- mercial timber. "We still have some pretty in- tense burning conditions down there, although it looks good com- pared to what it has the last few days," Reid said. With a critical auxiliary fire line completed about two miles ahead of the fire's eight -mile flaming front, scores of crews constructed a new fire line near the head of the blaze and began burning out unused fuel in an at- tempt to choke it off. While progress was slow, it had been steady since early in the week as lower temperatures and higher humidity sometimes ac- companied by light rains and favorable winds have kept the fire from any rapid advancement to the east. But the Thursday afternoon storm front was the last expected for some time in the fire areas, and Reid said fire bosses were trying to make as much of a gain against the blaze as possible. "We have our fingers crossed waiting to see what happens," Reid said. On the Payette Forest, where up to an inch of rain in the last two days enabled crews to pinch off the last finger of advancing flame, hundreds of firefighters al- ready had been relieved and hun- dreds more were being sent home from the fire camp as the situa- tion stabilized in the French Creek area. "There were a lot of buses going down the road with a lot of smiling faces in the windows," spokesman David Olson said as firefighting manpower in the for- est dropped from over 1,100 to under 300. He expected less than 200 firefighters and support peo- ple to be on duty by the weekend. But Olson predicted the break would be short, since the worst part of Idaho's fire season still lies ahead. Statesman August 3, 1985 Rains slow pace- of Idaho fires The Associated Press SALMON — Rain pelted more than 1,800 firefighters Friday as they gained more ground against the 2- week -old Butte fire in east - central Idaho's Salmon National Forest. Fire bosses were hopeful that the blaze would be contained by Monday. "The fire has increased only slightly, and it's been raining in camp since early this morning," spokeswoman Dixie Dies said. "Crews have been working on both sides of the fire front in the canyon." The decision to set a contain- ment target came after days of uncertainty over whether fire crews would ever get the upper hand on the blaze. The fire began July 20 with a lightning strike and has spread across more than 20,100 acres in a 31- square mile triangle. Nearly $4 million in commer- cial timber have been destroyed. Fire suppression costs have run to more than $2 million. The tide began to turn early this week when a series of storms in- creased humidity, and brought some rain and lower tempera- tures to the mountainous region about 35 miles northwest of Salmon near Long Tom Mountain. Fire crews, reinforced by 300 other people, quickly completed a critical auxiliary fire line about two miles ahead of the eight -mile front of the fire. Firefighters then took advantage of the humidity's smothering effect on the fire to move in on its front to construct a main control line that could halt the fire's advance immediately. Firefighters burned out flam- mable substances between the main line and the head of the fire as they brought 50 percent of the blaze to containment. The damp, cooler weather that has prevailed across most of the southern half of the state also ef- fectively ended the long battle in Idaho's Payette National Forest, where as many as 2,300 firefight- ers had been fighting blazes in the French Creek and Savage Creek drainages of the Salmon River. Manpower stood at just 150 Friday as crews were demobi- lized after the French Creek fire, ignited by lightning on July 17, was contained at 14,600 acres and the Savage Creek fire, which began on July 8, was confined to 12,300 acres on the east side of the South Fork of the Salmon. "It's really wet up here right now," spokesman David Olson said. But he predicted that the Sav- age Creek fire, now moving slowly up into barren high coun- try terrain, probably will burn for several more weeks. Losses in both fires totaled less than $1 million, mostly in com- mercial timber. More than $1.1 million in structures were saved, but the cost of fighting the two fires has run in excess of $6.3 mil- lion. As much as 1,000 acres of the burned -out forest will have to be rehabilitated, Olson said, but in many areas, "Already, it's start- ing to heel." New shoots have been found on some smaller shrubs, he said, and purple - flowered fireweed has started springing up. kt :V:573 117 C5 The Idaho Statesman 8/12/85 When disaster hit the forests Idaho's historic fire of 1910 prompted forest protection The recently published Idaho: Gem of the Moun- tains chronicles the history of Idaho from its geologic beginnings to the present. This is the last of five ex- cerpts from the book written by longtime Idaho histo- rian Merle Wells and Arthur Hart, director of the Idaho Historical Society. Although several major forest conflagrations have devastated more than 2 million acres, northern Idaho's 1910 holocaust — which roared on into Mon- tana — remains unmatched in significance in U.S. history. A number of other large fires burned up more peo- ple, and one or two were of about equal size. But a combination of unfavorable weather and adverse ter- rain created a fire storm unprecedented in forest his- tory. An enormous smoke cloud darkened skies in To- ronto and Montreal and interfered with North Atlan- tic navigation for several days. (Bombing raids after 1940 created similar fire conditions in small areas, leading to a more clear understanding of what hap- pened around Wallace in 1910.) Coming at a time when fire protection was only beginning, Idaho's (as well as Washington's and Mon- tana's) disastrous 1910 experience brought national attention to forest protection problems. Up until then, anything like adequate fire management fund- ing had been denied: a congressional bloc opposed to Theodore Roosevelt's expansion of forest reserves had control over appropriations, and a bitter fight had been going on for several years. Sen. Weldon B. Heyburn of Wallace had managed, as a condition to Forest Service funding in 1906, to impose a requirement that any expansion of forest lands be subject to congressional approval. Roose= velt had countered Heyburn's threat by hastening to create sufficiently large reserves so that any future additions would be unnecessary. So until after 1910, when a third of Heybum's home- town was consumed in a vast forest fire, Idaho's anti - conservationist senator and his allies retaliated by restricting Forest Service funding. In any event, though, no fire protection system available then could have been effective against conditions that de- veloped in 1910. But an immediate congressional re- sponse to provide for cooperative fire control, sup- ported by increased Forest Service funding, followed that disaster. Northwestern foresters, in particular, regarded 1910 as a turning point in their agency's history. With more than 3 million acres destroyed in four states (including 2.5 million under Forest Service )urisdic- ion), they had lost a massive amount of prime white ine lumber. Decades of systematic reforestation fol- owed. In another century or two, most timberland urned in 1910 will show only secondary evidence of hat calamity, but modified growth patterns associ- ted with altered timber cycles will persist for a long An exceptionally dry summer — with almost no in from April until September — accounted for irthern Idaho's 1910 fire hazard. More than 1,400 -es, including many large ones burning out of con - )l, were scattered over several adjacent national forests by mid - August, when For- est Service statisticians lost count and had no more opportunity to identify or keep track of new fires anyway. That overwhelming emergency led President William Howard Taft to arrange for military assistance to greatly expanded I fire crews over a wide area. Fi, .,f nally on Aug. 20, a number o1 •�. �\ major fires exploded, creatinf their own hurricane gales that im - Id periled crews and forest resident: The alike. Aside from setting protective backfires and seeking shelter in deep mine or rail tunnels or in large streams, nothing could be done to protect anyone caught out in a vast timbered area. Small communities were evacuated by special trains, and fires were fought in larger centers. Shifting winds saved some mm- ing communities, but for two days nothing could be done to combat a fire storm moving 70 miles an hour and cutting off escape routes for crews in many drainages. Through remarkable ingenuity, most firefighters survived that or- deal. A confirmed loss of 85 crew- men and forest residents was sur- prisingly light, considering what could have happened without resolute leadership and, in some cases, good fortune. Of those who escaped, none had a more frightful time than Ed- ward Pulaski's group trying to cross a high ridge to reach Wal- lace; A miner and plumber before he became a Forest Service ranger in 1908, Pulaski was a courageous field commander reminiscent of his great- grandfa- ther, General Casimar Pulaski of George Washington's revolution- ary army. One of Pulaski's firefighters — an old Texas ranger and Indian fighter — described their ordeal: "One can not imagine what a roar of wind there was in those small canyons. The mountain- sides . everywhere were aflame and trees were falling in all direc- tions all about us faster than one cvnld count. The noise of the fall- ing trees only added to the other.. din. It was terrible. "In this frightful confusion tore along in single file with Pula- ski at the head. At times it would seem that the canyon in front of , us was blocked with flame. Then Pulaski would order us to halt. "He would take a gunnysack, soak it with water, place it over his head, dash through the smoke down the trail to see if the coast was clear. After assuring himself that everything was safe, he . would return to us and order us ahead. "At last we reached the small tunnel and conditions were so bad then that he ordered us in. There was not sufficient room so Pula- ski went ahead to a point where he knew there was a larger tun- nel, telling us to remain behind, gem of the mountains while he looked over the ground. "He was absent but a few minutes when he returned and commanded us to follow him again. It was then that we got into the ill -fated tunnel, where six of the boys lost their lives. "During all this terrible trip down the canyon Pulaski was just as cool as he could be. He kept telling them that they would get out safely, but that it was neces- sary to hold together. He stayed outside the tunnel till all got in and then took his station at the mouth to keep the timbers from getting on fire and prevent the, flames from entering. Several hours later, Pulaski's crew began to revive and to stum- ble and crawl down a rocky two- mile trail through burning timber to Wallace. Pulaski was temporarily blind and in terrible shape, but he re- covered. He continued as a forest ranger for 20 more years. Among other achievements, he helped de- velop a special firefighting tool that combined an axe and a pick on a single handle — a useful piece of equipment named a Pula- ski in his honor. Idaho Historical Society' Edward Pulaski, near the tunnel where his firefighters were trapped. -THE STAR - NEWS -- WEDNESDAY, SEPTIMBER 4, 1985 Air war against fires taxes workers, machinery By Bradley Blum The Star -News Fighting forest fires can quick- ly wear down ground crews, but the battle can be equally ex- hausting for those coordinating the air war against the blazes. The people at the Payette Na- tional Forest's service's dispatch office in McCall will attest that theirs has been a busy summer. "We were essentially running 12 hour shifts, manning things 24 hours a day for about three weeks to a month there during the heaviest fire activity," dispatcher Duke Norfleet said. "We were trying to get everybody at least one day a week off, so we didn't burn them out," Norfleet said. It's easy to see how mental and physical stress could overwhelm the forest service dispatchers. The people in the dispatch of- fice, located in the McCall Air Taxi building, do not act as air traffic controllers. That job was handled by a Federal Aviation Administration team the forest service requested when use of the airport began to pick up due to the growing number of fires. However, the dispatch office can take on the same tense at- mosphere of a busy control tower if a lightning storm has passed through the area, leaving 12 or 15 fires in its wake, or when if an ex- isting fire "blows up" and demands a lot of attention in a hurry. The dispatch office is the nerve center for the entire aerial firefighting operation, and to a lesser degree, efforts on the ground. This year, that has meant that dispatchers have kept track of the whereabouts of three McDonald Douglas DC -4 tankers used to drop fire retardant. They also kept track of two DC -3s and three Twin Otters used for dropp- ing some of the 96 smokejumpers who worked out of McCall dur- ing the French Creek and Savage Creek fires, or . ferrying ground firefighters to and from various blazes in the West. The forest service also put to use Cessna 185s and 206s as well as a Norman Briton Islander, all of which were leased from Pioneer Aviation and McCall Air Taxi. These aircraft shuttled peo- ple or performed reconnaissance over a fire. In addition, there have been as many as five helicopters in use dropping water on fires, transporting firefighters and their gear and serving as back -ups. The air war against the fire has not been without its casualties, although the toll has been strictly mechanical: A helicopter leased by the Bureau of Land Management and its pilot on loan from Arizona were involved in what Norfleet said has been the most serious aircraft incident this year. The chopper was being used to dip water from the South Fork of the Salmon River and drop it on the nearby Savage Creek fire. On one trip to the river, on Ju- ly 12, the pilot caught the helicopter's blades in a cable car- rier strung across the water and ended up crashing into the river. The pilot was rescued, shaken but otherwise unharmed, and the helicopter was later recovered from the river with the use of a larger helicopter, said David Olson, a forest service informa- tion officer. Closer to McCall, problems with an engine on one of the retardant tankers on take -off caused the pilot to dump two loads prematurely. On Tuesday, the McCall Fire Department was-called to the air- port when a DC -3 carrying smokejumpers to a small fire near Bull Trout Lake in the Boise National Forest blew a cylinder and had to make a smokey return to McCall. But Norfleet said such pro- blems are fairly routine and seldom result in serious pro- blems. "Air tankers change engines about as often as I change socks," he joked. Norfleet said that the air tankers are provided to the forest service by private owners on a contract, and that the contractors are responsible for maintenance. Maintenance on forest service aircraft is done at the Intermoun- tain Region's headquarters in Ogden, Utah. Norfleet said that there are four people on duty at the tanker base in McCall, a foreman, an assistant foreman and two helpers. The tanker base is responsible for filling the planes with retar- dant and keeping track of the planes' flying time and the amount of retardant they drop. According to Kate Jones, who keeps those records, over 228,000 gallons of the slippery red phosphorus -based chemical have been loaded onto tankers so far this fire season. Despite the dry conditions this year, Norfleet said that in one. respect this has been an unusually light fire season. "We haven't received the in- tensity in the storms, as far as starts. The storms we've had this - year have only been starting 12, 15 or 20 fires at a time. In other; years it's not unusual to get as many as 50 starts out of one storm," Norfleet said. But because there has been such an ample supply of dry fuel in the forest, these small fires have required more and quicker response than in previous years, Norfleet said. He said that fires that, in other years might require two smoke- jumpers to bring under control,; require six or eight jumpers this year, and they must be dispatch= ed quickly. This year's fire season is the worst that Norfleet said that he. can recall in the last decade at' least. "The last big year was pro bably `79," he said. "1980 was bad too, but nothing like this." The Star-News 9/11/85 2 hurt in copter crash near forest fire One passenger was hospitalized spokesperson said. any fire, which was really a god - and the pilot slightly injured in a The pilot of the contracted send because the pilot was really helicopter, Vern Gawith, an helicopter crash on the Sulphur trapped in there," Dufour said. employee of Evergreen Creek fire last week. He said that the helicopter was Helicopters in McMinnville, Ore., was trapped in the ship for Kimball McClymonds, of St. being used to transport the even - George, Utah, was a passenger in ing meal into an area near where nearly three hours, but was the Bell 205 that crashed into a firefighters on the wilderness treated and released with only stand of trees on the east of the blaze were camped. bruises `and abrasions, Boise fire about 5:45 p.m. on Sept. 2, a "I guess it was obvious to the Boise National Forest spokesman pilot that he was having pro - said. blems, because he managed to tip the ships runners so that they hit the trees first, rather than crashing head -on," Dufour said. He said that an investigation into the crash was conducted, but that it would likely be several weeks before the results are released. McClymonds was admitted to St. Alphonsus Regional Medical Center in Boise with a concus- sion, and underwent surgery on a shoulder injury on Monday. He was listed in fair and stable con- dition on Tuesday, a hospital forest public affairs officer Dale Dufour said. Dufour said that three emergency medical technicians, two of whom happened to be at the site of the crash, used chains, come - alongs and chain saws to free Gawith from the wreck. "There was no fuel leaks or The Star-News 1 of 2 12/31/85 Fires Two blazes scorch trees, spur dispute By Bradley Blum The Star -News For the Payette National Forest, the 1985 fire season pro- duced a bumper crop of blazes that consumed the third - highest total number of acres since records were first kept in 1913. David Olson, Payette forest public affairs officer, said that a total of about 28,000 acres of the forest were burned in 1985. Of the 107 fires that broke out on the forest this year, almost all of the total acreage burned was the result of two blazes that, at the height of fire activity, had 2,500 people working on firefighting activities on the Payette at one time, Olson said The Savage Creek fire, which burned about 12,600 acres, broke out in the drainage of the South Fork of the Salmon River about 25 miles northeast of McCall ear- ly July 8 following an electrical storm. The season's other major fire, the French Creek fire, broke out July 17 in the drainage of the Salmon River about 15 miles east of Riggins and burned 14,500 acres. The French Creek fire was also the result of a dry lightning storm. The magnitude of both fires was largely due to the ample sup- ply of dry fuels that resulted from dry weather conditions last sum- mer. According to Payette forest weather records that date back to 1916, the 7.42 inches of precipita- tion received from Jan. I through June 30, 1985, made it the driest first six months of any year on record. ��Aw /;V3,/8C Both blazes presented special problems for firefighters, who came from as far away as Alaska and Georgia. The fires burned in steep can- yons, where debris and burning logs rolling down the slopes made firefighting particularly dangerous and contributed to the spreading of the fires. Olson said that firefighting costs for 1985 on the Payette totalled about $7 million dollars. However, he said that a new philosophy toward forest fires save taxpayers money. The forest service made a departure from the past practice of throwing large amounts of manpower and equipment into suppression ef- forts. "There were some substantial savings incurred this year, due to new fire suppression strategies," Olson said. For instance, Olson said that about $2 million was saved when fire management personnel on the Savage Creek fire im- plemented a "containment" strategy once it became evident that the fire would not escape to the other side of the South Fork. The containment strategy call- ed for designating perimeters in which to keep the fire and allow- ing it to burn eastward up into the high rocky peaks where it ran (Continued on Page A -2) !�2 The Star-News 12/31/85 2 of2 ...forest fires (Continued from Page A -1) out of fuel. That , strategy was somewhat' different from the "confinement" strategy used on the French Creek fire. While heavy suppression ef- forts were not used on either of the fires, the strategies differed in that firefighters on the Savage Creek blaze dug little fire line and instead relied mainly on natural barriers, such as the rocky Pilot Peak Ridge, to stop the fire's spread. The French Creek fire also was allowed to burn within an established perimeter, but fire lines were used more extensively to keep it within those boun- daries. In some cases on the French Creek fire, bulldozers were used to build the fire lines, a practice that later drew some criticism from conservation groups because of the area's roadless condition. The criticism of the use of "cat lines" in the roadless area was first voiced by Ron Mitchell, who chairs the natural resource com- mittee of the Idaho Sportsmen's Coalition. Forest service officials and in- dustry representatives argued that it was necessary to move rapidly to implement the salvage sale in order to complete harvesting by early summer of 1986. Otherwise, they said, infesta- tions of pine beetles quickly wood overrun the weakened stands of old growth Ponderosa pine, carrying with them a fungus that produces blue- staining of the wood fibers, which drastically . reduces its value. The Fall Creek salvage sale, as it came to be known, is presently being harvested with the use of tractor skidding, jammer skid- ding and helicopter logging techniques. Because of the area's steep erodable terrain, there was con - siderable concern voiced over the effects of sedimentation in Fall and French creeks, which provide spawning and rearing habitat for steelhead and cutthroat trout, as well as for the main stem of the Salmon River into which they .flow. Following the advertising of the sale, the Idaho Natural Resources Legal Foundation, Inc. in early November filed an appeal of the sale with Inter- mountain Region Forester Stan Tixier and requested a delay of action on the sale until the appeal could be considered. At the time, foundation at- torney Edwin Stockly cited the failure by Payette officials to conform to National En- vironmental Policy Act re- quirements for his organization's actions. Stockly said that the forest ser- mow+ Nw I�s06 � f 1,--' vice failed to consider_ thi cumulative effects o� sedime , from the salvage operatioh, al - earlier clearcut on private Iand ii the same drainage, and future sales that the forest service plait to offer in the drainage. When Tixier denied the fowp dation's request for a stay, moI tions for a temporary restrain order and a preliminary miune tion against the sale were filed h the foundation in U.S. Distric Court in Boise. Meanwhile, bids on the sau were opeiied and Boise Cascade Corp. was the apparent high bid der with an offer of just under 1 half- million dollars for th timber. The matter was resolved a f6 days later when Stockly and th the U.S. Attorney's office reach ed an agreement that the founds tion would drop its suit in retud for the forest service completinj a more complete analysis of th . cumulative effects of the sale. 1 Now under appeal by the fours dation is a proposed sale of abou six million board feet of timbe for a selective helicopter salvag logging operation in the Ell Creek drainage, which was burn ed by the Savage Creek fire. 2/5/86 The Star-News Jumper base start slated By Randall Brooks The Star -News Construction on a $2.9 million Payette National Forest smoke- jumper complex at the McCall City Airport could begin by mid- summer if problems over land ac- quisition are solved by the city of McCall, the McCall City Council was told Monday night. The project includes a new smokejumper complex for the forest's airborne firefighters to be located just west of the air- port, as well as construction and remodeling of housing facilities for smokejumpers and their families at Mission and Forest streets. Completion of the project would make McCall one of four "core" smokejumper operations in the west along the lines of a decision made by the U.S. Forest Service in 1979. Gene Benedict, supervisor of the forest service management team in charge of the project, formally presented details of the project to the city council Mon- day night. Benedict said money for the project has been included in por- tions of the fiscal 1986 budget ap- propriations already passed by Congress. He said the Payette forest management team has a verbal commitment from regional supervisors that money for the project will be available, and that the management team is pro- ceeding with final planning and preparations for the project. A June 1 deadline has been named for obligating the funds to contractors, Benedict said. He said construction on the housing project could begin by mid- summer and the entire project could be "somewhat operational" as early as the sum- mer of 1987. He said immediate action is needed by the city on its acquisi- tion of land of the proposed smokejumper base. That land is necessary for an adequate taxi- way to the airport's runway for the forest service's fire retardant bombers. Other problems which must be solved by the city before the June 1 deadline include taking action to rescind leases to Pioneer Avia- tion and Steven Passmore on the west side of the airport, and mov- ing a pilot's shack, utility pole, and two small buildings south of the city dog pound. The city already has funds to purchase the additional lands in question at the northwest corner of the airport through a Federal Aviation Administration grant. The FAA also is funding im- provements to airport parking and the airport's eastside parallel taxiway. That acquisition was thought to have been proceeding on schedule, but complications arose recently on the land deal, which involves the Union Pacific Railroad, the State of Idaho and at least two private parties. The portion of land necessary for the forest service taxiway was thought to have reverted to state ownership after abandonment of the railroad's right -of -way. But Bryce Taylor of the Idaho Department of Lands in McCall told council members that por- tions of that land had been previously sold by the state bet- ween 1930 and 1940, and those deeds would have to be honored. "We don't want to sell it twice," Taylor said. The state would have to clear title to the land before it could be sold at auction to the city. Airport engineer Ralph Kangas advised the council to contact an appraiser hired by the city to negotiate with the landowners and the state land board. "The land needs no encum- brances," Benedict said. "This is our most pressing problem." New facilities for firefighters based at the airport complex in- clude a para -loft building, which will house equipment drying and storage facilities, as well as train- ing and dispatching facilities. Additional facilities at the site will include an air operations building, complete training unit area, aircraft ramps and parking, a two- station fire retardant base, and a pilot ready room. Plans for improving the hous- ing for smokejumpers includes removal of the forest service trailers at Mission and Forest streets and replacing them with new modular housing for families of married smokejumpers. a,2�sT st�r�v�cr The Star-News 4/6/86 Logging trucks resume use of Salmon road Trucks began hauling logs out of the Fall Creek Salvage Timber Sale last week along the main Salmon River Road. The trucks are operating be- tween Riggins and a landing 18 miles east of Riggins at the mouth of Fall Creek, where helicopters are placing the logs, a news release from the Payette National Forest said. M.W. Renfro and Sons of Horseshoe Bend will be hauling the logs through McCall to the Boise Cascade Corp. sawmill in Cascade. Motorists traveling the Main Salmon River Road during the next two or three weeks should be on the lookout for heavy truck traffic, the news release said. A cautioning sign with infor- mation on citizens band radio reports has been placed at the rodeo grounds in Riggins, and mileage markers have been plac- ed at half -mile intervals on the road. Parking in turnouts is discouraged unless adequate room is left to accommodate a truck and a trailer, the release said. The logging traffic is expected to continue Mondays through Saturdays until early May. A recent inspection of the Manning Crevice Bridge over the main Salmon River was con- ducted by J.U.B. Engineers of Boise, the release said. The inspection found that the bridge could safely handle repeated log truck traffic for trucks up to 35 tons, which is five tons less than the legal limit of 40 tons for log trucks. Boise Cascade is planning to reload the trucks downstream from the bridge. For more information, call the McCall Ranger District office at 634 -8151. The Star-News 6/11/86 Only a drill Smoke and flames spewed from the smokejumper Forest streets, was burned as a drill for McCall housing complex in McCall on Saturday, but all the firefighters and to make way for new housing for excitement was only for the benefit of firefighters. smokejumperssto be built by the U.S. Forest Service The old smokejumper housing, near Mission and this summer. The Star-News 8/12/87 Dollar fire contained BY ERIC BECHTEL The Star -News Only two firefighting crews of about 20 members each were ex- pected to remain on the scene of the Dollar Creek fire Tuesday following containment of the 585 -acre wildfire on Saturday. Seven crews were on the fire Monday, and five crews and an administrative support team were expected to be leaving Tuesday morning, said Bert Strom, North Zone Fire Management Officer for the Boise National Forest. Oregon firefighting crews from Union and LaGrande were left to clean up the fire, which burned northeast of Warm Lake. Strom estimated the cost of fighting the fire at around $650,000, but that figure, like the total acreage figure, is an estimate, he said. "The fire itself was a bunch of spots. It's kind of hard to draw a line around it," he said. The fire was first located on the morning of Aug. 4, but smoke had been spotted by lookouts a few days earlier, ac- cording to Milt Williams, infor- mation officer for the Idaho Department of Lands. After the fire was located Aug. 4, two smokejumpers were drop- ped on the fire but were unable to control the blaze. More smoke - jumpers and a bomber dropping fire retardant were called in, but the fire blew up again. "Sometime Tuesday, they decided it was going to be a pro- ject fire, and they activated a Class II interagency overhead team," he said. An overhead team is a coor- dinated unit, similar to a paramilitary unit, which can be called in to provide support on fires too large for local agencies to control. Included in the team are a medical unit, supply unit, planning unit, logistics unit, com- munication unit, information unit, finance unit, ground sup- port unit and food service. The major concern of firefighters on the fire was preventing the blaze from burn- ing too close to the South Fork of the Salmon River, known for its salmon and steelhead spawning grounds. "The major resource concern is the salmon fisheries," Boise National Forest resource advisor Randy Swick said Thursday. "There's a two -mile buffer be- tween the fire and the main river channel itself." The chances of the fire reaching the river were virtually nil, Swick said. In fact, the fire only burned as close as three miles from the river before its movement was halted Saturday. Most timber in the fire area was sub - alpine fir, Williams said, and the timber had little commer- cial value. "It's not very valuable timber. It has very little commer- cial value because it's in a roadless area." Because the fire was in a roadless area, all supplies had to be flown by helicopter from the base camp at the historic Knox Ranch into the fire. "Just the fact that all access is by helicopter is kind of unusual," Williams said. "Usually, there are some roads available (into a fire)." Another unique aspect about the fire was the way the fire burn- ed, said Payette National Forest McCall District Ranger John Hooper. "Normally, with other fires and species, the fire burns in the ground cover," Hooper said. With an alpine fir fire, however, there is little ground cover, and the fire "doesn't travel on the ground very much at all." The method of attack on an alpine fir fire is to prevent "spot- ting," or fire being carried by the wind from one tree to another, he said. Alpine firs have limbs almost all the way to the ground and a pile of duff or organic material around their trunks. Firefighting efforts were directed mostly at trimming lower limbs on the firs and constructing fire lines around the blaze. In a separate fire in the region, 20 McCall smokejumpers were dropped Monday to battle the out -of- control Deadwood Sum- mit fire about 25 air miles east of Cascade. According to Strom, that fire was about 2,900 acres on Monday and was still growing. Before Monday, the fire had been confined to an uninhabited area, and the forest service had monitored the fire without trying to suppress it. By Tuesday, however, the fire was threatening Sulphur Creek Ranch about four miles east of the front of the fire. Statesman Aug 31 1987 Deadwood Fire flares up; 2 new blazes burn Forest fire activity rekindled during the weekend as the Deadwood Fire raced across more than 1,000 additional acres and two new fires burned east of McCall. The Deadwood Fire, which nibbled about one acre of Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness vegetation a day most of last week, flared up again Satur- day. It added another 1,200 acres to the nearly 5,400 acres it had charred since early August. Boise National Forest fire dispatcher Mary Toews said the hot, dry weather reactivated the fire. Toews did not have the number of acres burned Sunday and other forest officials could not be reached for comment. The fire first was reported Aug. 4 and it burned about 150 acres that day. Be- cause it is in a remote area and is a natu- ral fire, the blaze falls under the Forest Service's prescribed burn policy. Al- though it is Idaho's largest forest fire this year, there are no firefighters on the scene but the blaze is being monitored daily by airplane. The Star-News 9/2/87 New growth hides scars on French Creek burn area BY ERIC BECHTEL The Star -News Nearly two years after a major fire and timber sale in the French Creek area, new grasses, shrubs and trees are growing where only bare ground and charred stumps existed before. Natural revegetation and Payette National Forest reforestation efforts have made it difficult to tell that a 14,000 -acre fire raged through the area in 1985 or that about 27.5 million board feet of timber was salvaged from the area between the fall of 1985 and the summer of 1986. "I would challenge you to tell me if a certain area was salvaged or not," said Dave Olson, Payette forest public affairs of- ficer. Reseeding of grasses for ero- sion control began in the fall of 1985, and reforestation efforts began in the spring of 1986 in the area, located on the south side of the Salmon River east of Riggins, Olson said. According to Glen Jacobsen, Payette forest silviculturist, two - year -old trees were planted on 183 acres in 1986, and 94 percent of those trees have survived. A total of 308 acres were planted this year, although the survival rate on this year's plant- ing won't be available until Oc- tober. Over the last two years, about 245,000 ponderosa pine, Douglas fir and western larch seedlings have been planted, Jacobsen said. "That sounds like a drop in the bucket, but in that area there were no trees standing," Jacobsen said. "The fire had burned really hot. It was also in the commercial timber zone." Other areas not used commer- cially were not replanted with trees. "Why plant trees when you're not going to recoup your investment ?" he asked. About 1,500 acres burned by the fire were reseeded with vegetation for wildlife, because, according to Bill Noblitt, a wildlife biologist for the Payette, most of the French Creek fire was in winter or transitional sum- mer /winter range for big game. "We were concerned, especial- ly with this large a fire," Noblitt said. "You're talking 20 square miles. It's a large area, and on our winter range, there are sometimes up to 35 elk per square Dave Olson displays young tree in restored area. mile. We want to get it back, at least a part of it." The wildlife seed mix included yellow sweet clover, white Dutch clover, ladak alfalfa, ranger alfalfa and small (sweet) burnette. Although nearly 27.5 million board feet of lumber was taken from the area, "the salvage sale didn't really harm wildlife," Noblitt said. "As far as actual removal of trees, all they took were the dead trees," he said. "Probably on 80 percent of the sale, they took dead trees." Fire often is beneficial to wildlife, he said, because it allows revegetation with young tender plants more palatable to wildlife than the vegetation that was burned. The problem with the French Creek fire was its heat. Most previous fires did not burn as hot and left some organic base for growth of seeds released by the fires' heat. The French Creek fire burned down to the mineral soil and so did not leave any base for new plants, Noblitt said. Also, "when you get that hot a fire, the (native) seeds just burn up. It takes a while to get the natural seeding back in, and we just try to help out a bit." From an environmental stand- point, the area burned by the fire and later salvaged for timber had had only about 15 miles of ex- isting road, and only about five miles of new road was con- structed to allow salvaging opera- tions after the fire, said Kelley Dye, the Payette's transportation planner. Because of the soil type and the steepness of the area, only a few roads were built, while the ma- jority of transportation and logg- ing was by helicopter, he said. Statesman September, 29, 1987 Smoky skies McCALL — It was smoky again in McCall last week. Before dawn the scent of a forest burning drifted in through our windows. At sunrise, a thick mantle of smoke lay down on the lake and hid the mountains behind a gray milky blue. In the af- ternoon, the air cleared slightly, but we saw huge plumes of smoke billow up from wildfires raging somewhere off to the north. It has been this way all through the summer. Smoke from the Deadwood blaze, smoke from the wilderness fires, and smoke from hundreds of fires in Oregon and California have kept central Idaho in a strange, hazy dream, where the air is not clean and the natural beauty is hidden. As autumn brings a change in the weather, the smoke will clear. And our brains will try to clear out our memories. It won't seem possible. Has wildfire smoke really blan- keted Idaho for three summers in a row? It certainly has. And we might prepare to get used to it. In Idaho, the future for smoke is bright. Following clear logic and the best scientific evidence, forest managers are allowing wildfire to resume its natural role in Idaho's ecosystems. Wildfire produces for- age and browse for big game. Wild- fire creates the beautiful forest mosaics of old growth, young trees, and open hillsides. Wildfire leaves natural fuelbreaks that lessen the chances for disastrous fires. Wild- fire also clears the way for many J�� f i_=;s IV,4 iii zx; — part of life in Idaho ,"[h v I Clay Morgan Commentary plant species that otherwise would not get to grow. Idaho's people have been just as logical as the fire scientists. Right- ly, they have accepted the Forest Service's reasoning. They also know that letting a fire burn could cost a million times less than equip- ping an army of firefighters. But a main problem is that where there's a fire there's smoke. A lot of smoke. And a lot of smoke, year after year. As fire ecology be- comes more clear, the atmosphere gets gloomy. It is not only fire that is making a comeback. Smoke is resuming its natural role in West- ern skies. Before the coming of the whites, summer skies in Idaho often were `filled with smoke. Wildfires burned unchecked, and the Indians set others for hunting and agricultural reasons. Then came the regime of Smokey the Bear and the 10 o'clock rule. Every wildfire was supposed to be stopped before 10 on the morning after discovery. There were good years and bad years for fires, of course, but the Forest Service's rule was immediate sup- pression. Now, forest managers hope that allowing wildland fires to burn will lead to a progressive reduction in fuels. Things will be natural and, if we're lucky, they will be tidy. But there is also a chance, if fires are not aggressively suppressed, of a catastrophically sudden reduction in fuels: one huge firestorm devas- tating much of Idaho's interior. It has happened before. In 1910, the Big Blow Up burned away much of northern Idaho and west- ern Montana. Then, smoke dark- ened the skies of Chicago and Den- ver. More than 75 years later, the Big Burn remains. Spars of black- ened cedar are still sinking into oceans of brush. The Big Blow Up, and the 1967 Sundance Fire near Pend Oreille, burned with the energy of a Hiro- shima -sized atomic bomb explod- ing every two minutes. These were not simple fires. They were fire- storms, which produced so much smoke that scientists now study them to predict nuclear winters. Firestorms create their own weather, their own appetites, their own rules. Where there's a fire, there's smoke. Where there's a gain, there's a loss. The loss of clear skies may be the price we pay for our necessary co- existence with fire. Clay Morgan is a McCall writer and a commentator for National Public Radio. The Star-News 9/30/87 Man - caused blazes busy firefighters Campfires on the Payette Na- tional Forest are prohibited in all but developed campgrounds, and smoking is restricted due to dry conditions and a recent rash of man - caused fires, forest of- ficials said. Gas stoves are allowed in back country areas. Since Sept. 9, there have been eight new man - caused fires, with one other fire that is still under investigation, a Payette report said. All fires on the forest are in- active and have changed only slightly in acreage since Friday, the report said. Only a trace of precipitation was received throughout the forest from Saturday's weather, and the light snow received at higher elevations has melted. Fire activity will be balanced between warm days and cool nights, and some increase in ac- tivity may be seen in the late afternoon. The lightning- caused Mann Creek Fire, now about 5,190 acres in size, is inactive. A team of specialists is reviewing por- tions of the burned area to evaluate resource damage. The Golden Lake Fire, also started by lightning, continues to have a fire perimeter of about 700 acres. It and the Duck Lake Fire are smoldering in the Lake Fork Fire Management Area east of McCall and are being allowed to burn. The Duck Lake Fire north of Lick Creek Summit is inactive with an estimated perimeter of 400 acres. Some trail work is ex- pected to be completed by late this week to clear the Duck Lake trail of fallen snags. The Duck Lake trail is open and signed. Hikers in burned areas should be aware of the potential of falling snags. The Farrow Creek Fire, a man - caused wildfire in the Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness, had grown to about 2,400 acres. In other parts of the Frank Church Wilderness, the Ramey Ridge, Quartz Spring and Bum Creek fires, all prescribed fires, are smoldering and inactive. The Sleepy Knoll Fire, which had been active, has remained at about 400 acres since Satur- day. All trails on the forest are open. The Star-News Oct 7, 1987 Wildfire Ray Alford of McCall hoses down a fire that broke caused. An investigation was continuing by the out about 11:30 a.m. Friday on his property Southern Idaho Timber Protective Association, southwest of McCall. The fire, which was limited to which put out the fire with the help of McCall one -tenth of an acre, appeared to have been man- firefighters. Statesman October 10, 1987 Stuart Wong /Statesman The blaze burns near Deadwood Road. The Forest Service wants the road to be the fire's western boundary. Deadwood fire still has an appetite. By DAVID ENSUNSA 1 he Idaho Statesman Though slowed by cooler weather and calm winds, the Deadwood Summit fire con- tinued gnawing trees in Idaho's west -cen- tral mountains Friday. "Even though the days are shorter and the nights, cooler, the fire is hotter than it was in August," said Gordon Stevens, inci- dent commander for the fire. "It's really unbelievable." By late Friday, 48,400 acres had been charred by the blaze, which was started 69 days ago by lightning. Nearly 200 firefighters were successful in containing the south and west flanks of the fire, which escaped wilderness boundaries Saturday and had consumed 10,500 acres by late Friday. But most of the fire continued to burn in- side the Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness and will be allowed to burn under the U.S. Forest Service's prescribed burn policy. Twenty firefighters each have been as- signed to the Morgan Creek Ranch and the Sulphur Creek Ranch, which are located less than a mile from the flames. Crews have placed fire breaks around both ranches, and as a precautionary meas- ure, sprinkler systems have been installed around the structures, he said. Stevens said officials hope that road and rivers will act as natural boundaries, to help confine the flames. Those boundaries are: the Deadwood Road, on the west side of the fire; Sulphur Creek Drainage on the north; and Elk Creek River and the Stanley- Landmark Road on the south. There is no natural boundary on the east, he said. Mike Nielsen, a fire behavior analyst for the Sawtooth National Forest, said tem- peratures have dipped to about 15 degrees at night and normally climb to the mid -60s during the day. But the bone -dry conditions and erratic winds keep fire bosses guessing about how to fight the fire, he said. "It has been a drier year than anyone an- ticipated," Nielsen said. "Much of the fire is spreading from tree to tree and not on the ground." Nielsen said an energy release component — which determines the amount of mois- ture in a log — is the lowest it has been in two decades. On Friday, a Vertol helicopter, a dual propeller helicopter being rented for $2,500 an hour, made water drops to help quell the flames, while five water engines helped firefighters on the ground, But Mayor Lloyd "Bud" James said most people in Stanley are not satisfied with those efforts. They think the Forest Serv- ice's prescribed burn policy should be dis- missed and the fire stopped. James said the town survives largely on tourism, particularly in the fall, when hunt- ing begins. "Their policy should be seriously re- viewed," he said Friday. "It is a total disre- gard for the people. To me, it is not caretak- ing for the beauty of the wilderness." James said Stanley has received more than 60 calls from tourists who want to visit the city, but are discouraged because smoke continues to smear the timber -cov- ered valleys. "We get calls from people who find out it's smoky and don't want to come," he said. "Business owners are very, very afraid for next year." The Advocate oct 14, 1987 Page 1 of 2 Deadwood Summit fuels 60 -day drought dries By Gary Rice The Deadwood Summit fire, which started from a lightning strike Aug. 1, is causing the U. S. Forest Service to review what they know about forest fire behavior. Extreme drought conditions have allowed the fire to continue to expand in months when it would have been extinguished naturally by rainfall. On Oct. 1 the fire had burned 30,000 acres. By Tuesday morning, Oct. 13, the fire had burned 49,400 acres, including the 2,500 -acre Blue Bunch Mountain fire which merged with the Deadwood Summit fire during the past week. About 10,500 acres of that is outside the wilderness area. "One thing we know about this fire is that we're always surprised," said Gordon Stevens, incident commander for the fire. Stevens was speaking Friday, in Boise, to representatives of the media who had been invited to fly around the perimeter of the fire with forest service personnel in order to acquire direct information about the fire. Othpr forest service employees providing information before and during the flight were Mike Nielsen, fire behavior analyst, and Cheryl Molis, fire information officer. The three are all assigned temporarily to the Deadwood Summit fire. Nielsen said that when the fire first was discovered Aug. 4, it was expected that the normal rains in September and early October would put it out. Instead of the expected rain, there has been dry, unseasonably warm weather since Aug. 13. This year's has been the driest summer on record since 1870. Stevens said that the continued drought has caused fuel moistures to decrease to seven percent. I hat's about as dry as you can get things in an oven," said Stevens. "Dead trees are so dry you can pick up a whole tree. It's really unbelievable." Stevens said that until about the first of October, the normally wet meadows in the area had acted as natural barriers for the fire, but they have now dried to the point that they no longer slow the fire. "In the last two weeks (the fire has) begun to burn through them just like fire burning through cheat grass in the desert," said Stevens. Nielsen said other effects of the dryness are seen in the way the fire acts in the forested areas. "The trees are under drought stress," said Nielsen. "They don't just crown slowly; they explode." Nielsen said the fire is primarily a crowning fire, driven from tree to tree by dry, gusty winds, rather than staying on the ground. Also, there are many areas where there are, down fuels, which being so dry, burn hotter and more intensely than in fuels with normal moisture content. The added intensity contributes to the crowning in standing trees above the down fuels. Weather conditions continue to be ideal for the spread of the fire. Nielsen said Tuesday morning that the RAWS (Remote Automatic Weather Stations) sites have shown the relative humidity to be as low as four percent in some areas of the fire. At the Morgan ranch and Sulphur Creek ranch, which are private holdings within the wilderness, temperatures have been dropping into the 20s at night, but 1,000 feet above the ranches, at elevations of about 7,500 feet, the low temperatures are typically in the 50s, according to Nielsen. Without adequate nighttime cooling, the fire is not being slowed as much as it normally would be this time of year. When the fire began, the forest service set confinement limits on the west and south sides of the fire, where it would burn outside the wilderness area if not suppressed. The Landmark - Deadwood road was chosen as the western confinement limit, and the Landmark - Stanley highway was assigned on the south. Nearby boundaries were not set on the north and east sides of the fire, since those areas remain in wilderness for a significant distance. The confinement limits were threatened by fire beginning Oct. 1, and suppression efforts began at that time. Approximately 250 personnel have been fighting the blaze on the Landmark - Stanley highway, where the fire threatened buildings and improvements, and on the Landmark - Deadwood road, near Deadwood Summit, where the fire burned to the creek bed adjacent to the road on Saturday, and has burned along the creek bed for about 150 yards, as of Tuesday, Oct. 13. Suppression crews have also been stationed at the two ranches on the Sulphur Creek drainage, where they have been clearing ground fuels, limbing trees and wetting the area in order to increase the relative humidity in the area to slow the blaze should it be a direct threat to the ranches. Stevens said Tuesday that most of the fire near the confinement limits is no longer as great a threat as it was, and he expects to relieve many of the firefighters beginning Thursday. About 70 firefighters are expected to remain in the area. Twentv oersonnel will remain at each of the private ranches, to continue readiness for their protection, should they be threatened When the fire was initially discovered, the cost of putting it out was weighed against the cost of monitoring it. The cost of extinguishing the fire was expected to be $2 million on Aug. 4. Oa Oct. 9 the estimate to extinguish the blaze was $10 million, according to Nielsen. The actual cost of monitoring the fire up to Oct. 1, when the suppression activity began, was $240,000. At the close of the day on Oct. 12, the actual expense was $837,000. Travel restrictions remain in effect in the area. Anyone desiring to travel into the area should check with a Boise National Forest office to obtain current information on the status of the closures. The Advocate Oct 14, 1987 Page 2 of 2 Aerial view, looking north toward Tyndall Meadows, showing smoke from Deadwood Summit fire as it approached the Landmark- Deadwood road Friday. The fire has since burned downhill to the creekbed and has burned along the creek about 150 yards. The road marks the western confinement boundary for the fir3 which had burned more than 49,400 acres since it began Aug. 1. The Star-News Dedication June 1988 Page #1 of 2 Pages Air tanker base can be a busy place during the peak of the forest fire season. Tanker base loads up planes in a hurry The main building of the new McCall Smokejumper Base is the most impressive part of the com- plex, but other facilities round out the base. A 2,200 -foot aircraft taxiway, aircraft and lead plane parking, a helicopter landing pad, an air - tanker base, a tanker pilot ready building, and an aircraft mainte- nance building all are part of the complex. One hundred yards from the main base building is the Airtanker Base, used to mix and load reta- rdant, a liquid cooling agent used to slow the spread of a fire. Two airtankers - airplanes that drop retardant - can be loaded at one time. A total of 2,000 gallons, or about 18,000 pounds, of retar- dant can be loaded onto an air - tanker in 12 minutes, says Kay Jones, the airtanker base mixmas- ter. Up to 20,000 gallons of retar- dant can be stored at one time in two 10,000_gallon tanks. The re- tardant is mixed with water in a mixing tank, which produces 1,000 gallons of retardant in seven iminutes, Jones said Classic aircraft have served base In the earlier years of smokejumping, aircraft and pilots were supplied by Johnson's Flying Service, a private contractor. The first aircraft purchased by the Forest Service in 1939 was the single- engine Stinson, used at Winthrop, Wash., when smokejumping was still in the experimental stage. Aircraft that have been used at McCall are (dates are Forest Serv- ice use, not necessarily dates of use at McCall): • Curtis Travelair (1940 -1969) • Ford Tri-Motor (1941 -1969) • UC -64 Noordyne - Norseman (1945 -1954) • DC -2 (1950 -1969) • Twin Beech (1950 -1974) • Turbo Porter (1966 -1970) • Cessna 206 (1968 -1982) • Caribou (1972- present) • Aero Commander (1959- 1975) "If anything happened to the city water (system), we can operate independently for awhile," said Jones, pointing to a 13,000- gallon water - storage tank. A 2,500 -gal- lon tank is available for storing retardant in the rare case that it must be unloaded from an airplane. (Once an airplane is in flight, it rnnnnt remm loaded because of safety reasons.) "When we have a big (fire) bust, we usually have four people out here," Jones says. At peak times, one person works in the tanker base office, keeping track of flight time and the amount of retardant each tanker receives, while the others mix and load retardant, she said. The old airtanker base, located at the north end of the airport, will be dismantled. The new base can accommodate up to six airtank- ers. Next to the storage tanks and office is the tanker pilots ready building, which pilots may use to gather fire and tltgnt informa- tion and to relax between flights. An aircraft maintenance building is located at the south- west comer of the airport and provides office space for pilots, and serves as a maintenance shop and storage space for large cargo loads. Aircraft owned by the Forest Service and stationed at the base are two DC -3s, a Twin Otter, a Beech 99, and two Beech Barons. The DC -3 is a large. two-en- The Star-News - Smoke Jumper Dedication June 1988 Page #2 of 2 Pages gine airplane that normally car- ries 12 smokejumpers and their gear, but can carry up to 18 jump- ers. The plane provides the quick- est means of transporting 18 fresh firefighters directly to a fire, said Marc Anderson, a For- est Service DC -3 pilot. Also, the plane is used to trans- port fire crews to other airports and to drop firefighting equip- ment. A 20- person fire crew and their personal gear can be carried on the plane, Anderson said. Two doors on the plane can be taken off, and metal rollers on the floor allow cargo to be easily loaded onto the plane. The plane was originally de- signed as a passenger carrier, and many were built for the military. One DC -3 from McCall was flown to Canada last year to take part in the airplane's 50th anniver- sary celebration. The Twin Otter has two turbine engines, and high wings, making it an excellent mountain and backcountry airstrip aircraft. It can carry eight jumpers and was used to transport Secret Service agents when Vice - President George Bush floated the Middle Fork of the Salmon River in 1985. The Beech 99 is a small airplane with two engines, and it can carry six jumpers. The Beech Baron is a small twin - engine airplane, used as lead plane that directs airtankers. It can carry six passengers, including the pilot. Two helicopters are available - one each at Krassel and Price Val- ley guard stations. qr k' L vj'Z eagrs The fleet of aircraft are owned and operated by the Forest Service because it is safer and more effi- cient and economical, says Jim Diederich, base loadmaster. Air- craft at the base are quickly loaded and dispatched, saving valuable time needed to stop a fire that could destroy a great amount of valuable timber and other resources, he says. To insure safety, Diederich said the aircraft are maintained by mechanics at the base and perform- ance records are kept. Even though some of the aircraft are old, they have less flight time than commer- cial aircraft. Training standards for pilots add safety and efficiency, he said. During the winter months, the aircraft are stationed at Ogden, Utah. Smokejumpers: Come home to the famous Lardo Burgers. &Fries 1FC*kWft- Prime Rib • Steaks • Seafood • Specialty Sandwiches • Italian Dishes • Orders to Go & Catering (208) 634 -8191 Welcome Jumpers 6 pack Rainier, , 16 oz. "POUNDER'S" $199 KEN' S 324 W. Lake Street McCall 634 -5921 a MARKET Statesman June 24, 1988 Firefighters battle blaze by Deadwood By STEPHEN STUEBNER The Idaho Statesman Fire has spread across about 40 acres of forest near Deadwood Summit, about a mile from the site of Idaho's largest forest fire in 1987. U.S. Forest Service crews still were trying to contain the blaze late Thursday. The blaze "is the largest fire we've had this early in the year since 1979," when the state was hit by one of its worst fire sea- sons, said Frank Carroll, spokes- man for the Boise National For- est. Unlike last summer's 51,600 - acre blaze, much of which was al- lowed to burn in the Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness, the new fire — about three air miles from the wilder- ness boundary — is being fought aggressively on all fronts, forest officials said. "Our policy on this fire is to fight it and put it out," Carroll said. However, if the fire does move toward the wilderness, forest offi- cials will re- evaluate suppression strategy at that time, he said. Nearly 110 firefighters, includ- ing a group of McCall smoke - jumpers and hotshot crews from the Payette and Salmon national forests, carved fire lines around the fire late Wednesday and Thursday, Carroll said. High temperatures and steady winds expanded the fire from 35 to 40 acres as of Thursday after- noon, he said. Temperatures were in the mid -80s and climbing Thursday afternoon, and winds ranged from 10 to 20 mph. Carroll said the Forest Service discovered the fire Wednesday af- ternoon and suspected that light- ning set off a number of small fires early in the week that coa- lesced into a single blaze. "It's crowning and spotting, but it's not crowning and running," Carroll said. A water - dumping helicopter dropped two loads on the hot spots Thursday afternoon, Carroll said, adding that no target date for containment had been set. No structures or stock were re- ported in immediate danger from the fire, about 20 air miles east of Cascade. The state has had a number of range fires and a handful of ex- tremely small forest fires earlier this season, most caused by light- ning. Land managers have been bracing for a severe fire season this summer because of the ex- tremely dry conditions in the for- ests due to the state's second con- secutive year of drought. Last year's Deadwood Summit fire, which started small in Aug- ust, was fought initially by hotshot crews, but smokejumpers were unable to jump into the fire be- cause of high winds. Two other fires nearby pulled firefighting troops from the Deadwood fire, which eventually moved into the Frank Church Wilderness, where it burned nearly 40,000 acres. The Forest Service's let -burn policy for the wilderness portion of the Deadwood fire proved to be controversial with outfitters, who suffered cancellations. The Star-News Smokejumper Dedication June 1988 Welcome June 1988 Dear Visitor: Welcome to this beautiful area and the McCall Smokejumper Loft Dedication. This is a once -in -a- lifetime event for this community, and the long -term benefits will be many. It has been only through the dedication, support and commitment from the City, the community, the smokejumpers themselves, and other Forest Service employees that we can enjoy the new facility being dedicated on June 25 This investment insures the long -term stability of the smokejumper program in this area. It is a substantial facility for an area where fire occurrences are frequent. Not only is it a key resource for fire sup- pression in the western United States, but it is a key base for visitors to see and learn more about this unique program. Acting Mayor Bill Crowley, former Mayor Clyde Archer, and current Mayor John Allen were all strong supporters for this project. Under their administration, key support came from Jim Smith and current City Administrator Bud Schmidt. Bud deserves special recognition for his diligent work in resolving several com- plex issues. Additional support came from the Idaho State Department of Aeronautics, particularly from Worthy Rauscher and Wayne Pickerell. The Federal Aviation Administration de- sign center's Mike Crater was also ex- tremely helpful. Further thanks goes to Bruce Crockett, Payette National Forest Architect, who de- veloped the basic design for this struc- ture. He, along with Dennis Boles, Larry Newell, and Ralph Geibel of the Pay- ette Engineering staff, were key people involved in the construction activities. Special credit is due to the Payette Fire Management Branch and Branch Chief Gene Benedict for recognizing the need for this facility and initiating the long -range planning process which brought it to fruition. Gene's strong and dynamic leadership was instru- mental in seeing this project through to com- pletion. Finally, the Russell Corporation and its subcontractors are to be thanked. Sincerely, VETO J. LaSALLE, Supervisor Payette National Forest The Star-News Dedication June 1988 Page #1 of 2 Pages Smokejumping's origins traced to World War II Most people think that smokejumping was an offshoot of the military, but it's actually the other way around, said Neal Davis unit manager for the McCall Smokejumper Base. In 1934, the use of parachutes to transport firefighters to reach the rugged backcountry of the West was fast proposed. In 1939, nine men successfully parachute - jumped into the rough terrain on the forests near Winthrop, Wash. In 1940, a major of the U.S. Army visited the jumper training camp at Seeley Lake, Mont., and later incorporated Forest Service techniques to establish the U.S. Army Airborne. During World War II, the first Airborne troops were deployed. The first fire jump was made by Rufus Robinson and Earl Cooley on July 12, 1940, over Martin Creek on the Nezperce National Forest. Nine fires were "jumped" that year, and the early suppression techniques by smokejumpers saved an estimated $30,000 of timber - three times more than the entire cost of the project. Twenty -six smokejumpers trained at Ninemile, 20 miles west of Missoula, Mont., in 1941. They were dispatched onto nine fires that year from Missoula, which became a home base for the jumpers be- cause aircraft and pilots supplied by Johnson's Flying Service were located there. In 1943, two new smokejumper bases were established at McCall and at Cave Junction, Ore. The smokejumper project was offi- cially adopted in 1944. Because of the low supply of qualified people during World War II, the Forest Service started a re- cruiting effort, and several consci- entious objectors to the draft be- came smokejumpers. Military personnel were also trained at smokejumper bases dur- ing the war. In 1943, 25 people from the U.S. Coast Guard, the Canadian Air Observers School and the U.S. Air Force were trained at the Ninemile base. In 1945, 300 members of the 555th Battalion, all blank para- troopers, were trained in timber jumping, and put out fires through- out the West. That year, l4 military para -rescue jumpers were also trained in rough terrain jumping. Today, the Forest Service em- ploys about 290 smokejumpers at four bases located at McCall, Mis- soula, Redmond, Ore., and Red- ding, Calif. In addition, the BLM employs about 110 smokejumpers stationed at Boise and Alaska. faq, 4 / G{. Z_ )-?,q Jumpers hail from diverse Question - A smokejumper is: A. One who trounces on and extinguishes any match, cigarette, pipe, barbecue or campfire. B. One who cleans chimneys by jumping down them. C. A rowdy, drunk, loud- mouth bragger who jumps through smoke rings, not neces- sarily tobacco - blown. D. One who parachutes out of an airplane to put out wildfires. E. All of the above. If you answered "E" — all the above — you may be right, at least for a few smokejumpers, but the correct answer is "D" — one who parachutes out of an airplane to put out wildfires. Last year, 17,000 fires con- sumed about 2.4 million acres in the United States. Smokejumpers are the leading force in battling forest fires, and they have saved thousands of acres of public land from wildfire. The objectives of smokejumpers are to quickly re- spond to wildfires in the rugged backcountry of the West, and to extinguish the fires before they grow. There is no accurate description of a "typical " smokejumper. "Eighty different jumpers will have 80 different personalities and backgrounds," said John Humph- ries, a McCall smokejumper who is starting his 10th season. However, smokejumpers share backgrounds a common characteristic — fight- ing fire as a "ground- pounder." Three seasons as a ground -based firefighter is required before a per- son can try out to be a smokejumper, but most of the jumpers have had five or six sea- sons of firefighting experience before they jump because of the competition to get into the pro- gram. The average age for a McCall smokejumper is about 33, but ages range from 22 to 40. They come from all parts of the country — Idaho, Montana, New Mexico, California and as far away as New York. One smokejumper is from Switzerland. The jumpers have various occu- pations during the winter as well. McCall smokejumpers include a dentist, a veterinarian, a CPA, teachers, a school bus driver, sev- eral ski instructors, carpenters, construction workers and artists. Parachuting out of an airplane to fightfire can be dangerous on a hot, windy afternoon, but most smokejumpers consider this the Smokejumpers await call to duty in the "ready" room. The Star-News Dedication June 1988 Page #2 of 2 Pages 'You're trained so well that when it came time to do it (jump), it just ,happened.' - Ray Brown easiest part of their job. Ray Brown, a McCall smokejumper who is starting his second season, recalls his first jump out of a DC -3: "You're trained so well that when it came time to do it (jump), it just hap- pened." Since the smokejumper pro- gram began almost 30 years ago, there has been only one fatality from jumping on a fire. Each year, only one McCall smokejumper, on average, sits out the remainder of the season because of an injury, say Neal Davis, McCall smokejumper base manager. The real danger for jumpers begins when they reach the fire line, Davis said. Though smokejumpers are a diverse group of individuals, the camaraderie among the "elite" group of firefighters is great. And they all strive for one purpose — to parachute out of an airplane to put out fires. Jumpers are equipped for every emergency. The Star-News Dedication June 1988 Page #1 of 2 Pages 'Big things down there, and that's no lie' Clay Morgan (1986) (Note: The author was a smokejumper in McCall for 12 years. He is an award - winning author, newspaper columnist and radio commentator.) BY CLAY MORGAN It is 1987. Idaho. We stand in the open doorway of the Forest Service DC -3. The wind roars by us at over 100 miles an hour. Thunderstorms rage around us; lightning cracks the sky. Below us expands a broken panorama, a geography as wild as the storm. The 7,000 foot deep Salmon River canyon falls away to our north, and all around us glacier - gouged peaks rise over granite basins crowded with alpine lakes. In the cliffs above one lake, Partridge Lake, a wildlife is blazing. We put on our helmets and lower the steel grids of Our face masks. In 30 seconds, we are going to jump. We are smokejumpers, Tim Farrell, Catfish Bates, Bob Shoe- maker and I. We each wear 75 pounds of gear and protection: two parachutes, a heavily padded Jumpsuit, a Bell helmet, pilot's gloves, logger's boots, a mountain climbers rappelling line, and a one- man emergency fire shelter. The fire bums in a patch of firs near treeline. As we watch, whole trees explode. Fire rolls off their pointed tops and spins into the air. The fire flashes bright hot orange, a dazzling contrast to the cool granite � c and thr AnAtr orer.nc of fnre_0 and meadow. It is a wonderous sight, and in many ways this fire is natural and right. It was started by lightning, unseen and unaided by man. Now, its smoke gently wreathes the mountainside and drapes a meadow turned white with hail. There is nothing above the fire to bran, only snowbanks and rocks, and nothing around it but cliffs. We could argue to let this fire go, to let the fire nun its natural course. But things are different below the fire. The mountainside de- scends into a heavy forest of tall fir, 'As we watch, whole trees explode. Fire rolls off their pointed tops and spins into the air.' spruce, and ponderosa pine. If the fire rolls down the cliff and into the forest, the whole canyon could erupt into flames. It has happened here before. In 1985, Catfish Bates jumped another small fire only 10 miles northeast of here, lower in the canyon. A month later, the famed French Creek fire had consumed 14,000 acres. We circle the fire. It attracts our eyes as if it were a flag waving in the wind. but we have to look past it now, to the cliffs and trees, all the obstacles that wait at the end of our jump. "Bad stuff, down there," somebody says, and we all nod. But it is all beautiful to our eye and it charges our hearts. We feel alert, confident, and alive. Our spotter, Barry Koncinsky, has dropped a set of crepe -paper streamers and we watch them drift. They show us the secret intentions of the invisible wind, how far our chutes might carry us. For a land- ing zone, we choose a long and narrow meadow separating two opposing cliffs. The cliff on the east stands 800 feet tall. A jumble of talus lies at its base. The meadow itself is strewn with boulders and logs. A creek winds through them, then it leaps off a ledge and falls toward Par- tridge Lake. From this angle, Par- tridge Lake is a perfect mirror re- flecting the stormy sky. We decide we'll jump outabove the mountain where the two cliffs come together. Then, we'll drift back with the wind and land in the long meadow, or so we hope. We bank around and begin our first jump run. Tim Farrell and Catfish are the first two out. They make sounds of small explosions as they charge into the wind. Their static lines snake after them and pull open their chutes. Their two canopies spin away. Barry pulls in the empty lines. I hook my own static line to the cable by the door and place my left foot in the doorway, with my toes out in the wind. Barry crouches beside me. `Big things down there, Clay," he tells me, "and that's ... no ... lie. Have fun!" He puts his hand over my toe and puts his head into the blast. I feel Bob Shoemaker getting into position behind me. I grab both sides of the doorway. The pilots steady the plane until it feels like a rock and I flex my knees, thinking, here comes, here comes. I search the horizon for a landmark moun- tain peak and I lock my eyes upon it. Barry slaps my calf and I jump. I launch through the door, pushing for the peak. The slipstream grabs me, I pitch to my left, and in sec- onds my parachute pops open above me, full and bright and beau - tiful. I take a breath. Wind and rain. 'iit my face. I grab my guideline nv s and pull shut some f Ae ground rush is always hvnnotic.' guideslots to turn me back toward the meadow. There's Bob, 50 yards away. He's heavier than I and already he has dropped below me. Far below Bob, Tim and Catfish make a last turn above a tall spruce at the can- yon end of the meadow. The taller cliff rises past me on my right, with patches of last winter's snow. I want to stay di- rectly between the two cliffs, but the wind is funnelling here and it causes my canopy to oscillate. I begin to swing like a watch on a chain, so I turn back toward the .,cur and hold. I'm steady by the time I'm half- way down it. Tim and Catfish land near the end of the meadow. Bob is almost down. Now I see the rocks and logs again, everywhere. I do some last corrections and get ready to hit. The ground rush is always hypnotic. I land between two braids of the creek, in the middle of the meadow. I'm laughing. I hear the others hollering. The DC -3 makes a low pass over the fire and drops us our food and fire gear. Through the trees on the ridge, I can see the flames. We are here to fight that fire. For all of the natural and rational considerations, there is another reason we are here. We are humans. And to hu- mans, fire is downright irre- sistihle_ The Star-News Dedication 6/88 Page #2 of 2Pages (This article, reprinted with permission, originally appeared in Alaska Airlines Magazine.) Card issued A special air mail post card celebrating the dedica- Club. The card can be purchased at the dedica- tion of the McCall Smokejumper Base this week- tion for 50 cents or can be obtained by mail by endhas been issued for the event. The hand cancel sending the amount and a self - addressed was designed by Larry Newell of the Payette Na- stampedenvelope totheMile HighStamp Club, tional Forest who also is with the Mile High Stamp Box 1628, McCall, Idaho 83638. August 27, 1988 Crews pulled back from erratic blaze near Hells Canyon The Associated Press Some 160 firefighters remained' Swirling winds and increasingly ., on the lines around the .1,420 -acre dry conditions forced fire bosses Boston Lake fire in the Frank on Friday to withdraw'.. crews.,, Church- River.. of.,,, No • Return' from the raging Eagle Bar fire Wilderness about ' 20 miles south- near Hells Canyon until they de- east of Elk City, Nez Perce Na- velop a new plan for attacking the 'tional Forest spokeswoman Mary blaze. Zabinski said, and fire bosses "The fire is doing some really were still monitoring the 3,164- weird things," Payette National acre Ladder Creek fire in ,the Forest spokeswoman Carla Tip- same general area as it slowly .ton said. "It's really windy, and . burned down Crofoot Creek drain- everything is extremely dry. It's . age toward the natural fire break very erratic fire behavior." . of the main Salmon River. Hundreds of firefighters were Another 8( firefi =hters were to pulled off the lines after the blaze the north it the 1` �z Pc rce, bat - made another major run early tling the 1 iorst n' ie more Friday, racing to over 3,000 acres wilder .less fires ( st , ,f Moose in heavy timber near- the Idaho- Creek Ranger Stati ,n. , ti f Oregon border. 4.- Fire officials in the Salmon Na- , Thirty firefighters were tional. Forest were also monitor- trapped for an hour in a raging ing the 2,000 -acre Golden fire ,on hotspot and had to use their fire ' the forest boundary withthe Pay- shelters for safety. The_r were fi ette. nally airlifted from the fire by At Eagle Bar, an `elite "hot - helicopter at dawn. shot" crew, dropped into the On the eastern side of the state, Deep Creek drainage just to the between Palisades Reservoir and'.:. east of the main fire to battle spot Grays Lake, fire bosses were just flames in the midst of 12 million beginning to mobilize manpower board feet of commercial, timber, on the 800 -acre Trail Creek fire in ` w2 wit .drawn because" of the the Caribou National Forest. The fir, 's L apredictable behavior, fire was sparked by lightning - '°`Tipton s< id. - Wednesday night. That s,)ot fire finally joined up "Our, problem is- there'�are so''- "With the main blaze at,.Haley many fires burning in the West — Ridge north of Sheep Rock afVer especially - in this area that blackening over 100.acres- of_the we're strapped for crews and commercial, timber.'. The, Forest equipment," spokesman,. Dan .:, � . Pugmire said.'- a _,. , x"+ See FIRES, Page 2C Fires Continued from Page 1C Service has set an area road clo- sure around the fire south of Hells Canyon Dam, she said. Nearly 600 people were com- mitted to the blaze and another 200 firefighters were requisitioned as fire strategists reassessed the suppression plan for the seven - day -old, man - caused fire that had pushed to within a half mile of Kinney Point and several inactive mining claims. Meanwhile, in other Western fires: ■ The U.S. Forest Service scrambled Friday to mobilize firefighters to throw against a new fire that exploded through 18,000 acres of grass and timber in northeastern Oregon while Na- tional Guard troops were called up to relieve weary crews in the southwestern corner of the state. In southwestern Oregon, the lightning - sparked Walker Moun- tain fire crept within a half mile of a subdivision of about 1,000 peo- ple north of Grants Pass. In the northeastern corner of the state, the Ward Canyon fire spread to within a mile of the tiny com- munity of Troy, authorities said. Both communities were placed on evacuation alert. The Ward Canyon blaze had burned 15 unoc- cupied structures, mostly hunting cabins. About 120 children from the Fir Point Bible Camp were taken to a school about 25 miles north of Grants Pass "as a precautionary move" after the Woods Creek fire grew to 500 acres, said Jim Fish- er, a state Forestry Department spokesman. He said the children headed home Friday and the fire was 75 percent contained. The Prophecy fire in Crater , August 27, 1988 Lake National Park and the Winema National Forest grew to 2,000 acres Friday, but was proj- ected to be contained Saturday evening. Also in the state's northeast corner, the Tepee Butte fire ex- ploded to 18,000 acres of grass and timber by Friday morning from 150 acres Thursday afternoon, and firefighters said it could spread to as many as 80,000 acres. ■ Residents of Maxville, Mont., a town of about two dozen house- holds 90 miles southwest of Hele- na, were told to stand by Friday for possible evacuation as a fire spread to about 7,500 acres of heavy timber overnight, said Palmer Bowen, a fire information officer. The fire forced closure of the main road through the area, be- tween Drummond and Phillips- burg, destroyed a trailer home and two bulldozers, and chased fire crews out of a mining camp in the Deerlodge National Forest. Idaho Statesman Aug 4, 1989 Red Cross declares Idaho By Renee Villeneuve The Idaho Statesman The American Red Cross mus- tered its national resources Thursday to aid Idahoans left homeless or forced into evacua- tion by ravaging forest fires. The special disaster declaration by the Red Cross entitles fire vic- tims, primarily Lowman resi- dents, to receive national assis- tance and relief that could approach half a million dollars. "This makes Idaho eligible for Fires From 1A manpower and equipment from 'disasters, all over the country,t said Ray areas , Miller, disaster operations direc- tor for the Boise chapter of the Red Cross. Residents also can count on re- 6 6We're looking at direct fire assistance to 200 to 250 gional assistance from the Boise chapter of the Red Cross. In addi- people. We're trying to help get people's feet back on the tion, the Salvation Army is pro- ground.9 Ray Miller viding assistance to the Lowman Boise chapter of the Red Cross. area and has made an appeal foramount . could swell to at least get people's feet back on the canned goods and clothing. $300,000 with the national pool- ground. On the Red Cross front, about ing of resources, Miller said. "It's basically been black or $20,000 in relief money is set asidE "We're looking at direct fire white," he said. "Either their for Lowman residents, but thE assistance to 200 to 250 people," homes are OK or they have been Miller said. "We're trying to help destroyed." r- — Forest fires rake on "We are stretched for firelight- kiaho firefighters m ing crews, and they're going to be Lowman fires 95 major fires burning harder to get," he said, adding Lowirnan T/Wa Fire Acres burned ' that existing crews are tiring. 21 Springs About 1,300 soldiers and sup- 3. Curren Mountain 7,647 port personnel from Fort Carson, 4. Game Creek 500 Sand int 5. Steamboat fires 7,647 Colo., and Fort Riley, Kansas, 6. Hand Creek 800 16 �J 21 Helende will arrive in Idaho on Saturday Coeur 8. Fleming 5,900 to help fight fires, according to d'Alene 8th Infantry Col. Anthony Trifi- 11. McPherson 1,930 12. Powerline 620 letti, who will oversee the task force called "Fire Chief" The support is needed. Especially troublesome, Ritters- Lewiston bather said, is the 29,556 -acre Lowman Complex blaze, which is threatening homes along Idaho 21 Gr ill and in the Long Creek summer 93 home area. "We're in for a long siege on R' Q; the Lowman Complex," he said. - - Salmt "The Lowman fire continues to warrant its No. 1 priority." *W Take Fire officials reported that no gq 55 ,.. Challis additional structures have been an f: Stanley lost to the Lowman Complex F 93 ° gy blaze, and employees were al- s 11'" Sun lowed back into the popular 10 >,,, Valley South Fork Lodge. B' But Rittersbacher said there is still a "high concern" for strut- 95 Mountain ures within range of the fire. Home "That will remain a concern for the next few days ahead," he said. Twin Falls "The fire conditions in that can- I yon are unpredictable." - - - -- - - -- - - - - -- 93 -- - - -- Areas of the Lowman Complex blaze receiving the most attention .Acres burned as of 12:00 noon, August 3 are on the west side just south of Lowman and in the southeast por- tion of the fire. Fire officials said Wednesday, and fire officials say it is 20 percent contained. they hope controlled burns will The Lowman Complex was orig- join it with the third section so inally three separate fires. But Lhat it is easier to contain. two blazes merged together In all, fire has consumed 94,000 ade progress today. There are now 38 over 97,000 acres of Idaho forests. •a, Burgdorf A • N Warren 95 (J Yellow ne f a McCall 0 10 cl Miles e� e � Banks a�0� �e I oaich Fire burned through lines dug by hand crews FIRE AREA 70 percent contained The Idaho Statesn acres statewide, fire officials said. With the state's fire crisis a As of Thursday morning, Idahoweek old, the American Red Cross had spent $4 million on its fireshas called upon its chapters and lost $45.4 million in natural across the country to help Idaho - resources, they said. ans. Fires at a glance Lowman fires Here is a quick summary of some of Idaho's major fires Lowirnan T/Wa Fire Acres burned ' 1. Johnson Butte 7,700 21 Springs 2. Partridge fire 9,819 3. Curren Mountain 7,647 4. Game Creek 500 5. Steamboat fires 7,647 6. Hand Creek 800 16 �J 21 Helende 7. Eagle Nest 2,000 Campground 8. Fleming 5,900 9. Warm Lake fire 23,700 10. Lowman fire 29,556 11. McPherson 1,930 12. Powerline 620 The Idaho Statesn acres statewide, fire officials said. With the state's fire crisis a As of Thursday morning, Idahoweek old, the American Red Cross had spent $4 million on its fireshas called upon its chapters and lost $45.4 million in natural across the country to help Idaho - resources, they said. ans. CASCADE WILDFIRE ESCAPES CREWS 7/17/90 Photos by Troy Maben/The Idaho Statesmai A plane dumps firefighting material over Stolle Meadows near Cascade. The growing fire caused some fighting teams to be evacuated. Reinforcements head for Mormon Creek By Anne Peterson The Idaho Statesman More than 200 reinforcements are expected today to join the battle against a Boise Na- tional Forest fire burning out of control along Mormon Creek east of Cascade. "We've got real warm, dry conditions," said forest spokesman Frank Carroll. "Plus, it's burning in a roadless area which makes it hard to get into." Temperatures in the 80s are expected again today along with gusty winds and little chance of lightning. The forest also requested a crack inter- agency fire management team as gusty winds pushed the blaze across more than 150 acres by nightfall Monday. The team is made up of `.`the best fire man- agement people we (federal agencies) have in any firefighting agency. There are only 17 of those crews in the country," said Jennifer Callan, Boise forest spokeswoman, who was at the fire site Monday. The team will set up headquarters in Stolle Meadows, about 4'/2 miles south of Warm Lake. The fire was about five miles south of the meadows Monday evening, according to Susan Reinhard, forest spokeswoman. Two 20 -man firefighting crews, one Forest Service and one from the Idaho Penitentiary at Boise, joined the fire line early Monday to put manpower over 60 as the fire doubled in size overnight to more than 50 acres. Two 20- person crews from the Shoshone - Bannock Tribes in eastern Idaho arrived at noon. The additional firefighting power expected today will bring the total to 16 crews or 320 firefighters. Another helicopter was also re- quested to join the four already alternatink between ferrying crews onto the line and dumping water on the flames from hugh sus - See Fire /Back page Elba Fire ;,1 7:`y6 From 1A pended canvas buckets. Two air tankers bombarded the blaze with chemical retardant during the day. Firefighters were hand - digging line in the unroaded area about 17 miles east of Cascade. Cascade is about 90 miles north of Boise on Idaho 55. The fire was advancing to the northeast toward Rice Peak with — treetops erupting in flame and the embers blowing as much as a half - mile ahead of the head of the fire, but no structures were threatened. "It is extremely steep, which is also causing some control prob- lems," Callan said. The Mormon Creek fire erupted Sunday evening from smoldering Statesman 7/20/90 Firefighters get help from the weather , By Patrick Abdo The Idaho Statesman Weather conditions helped fire- fighters gain ground Thursday on two fires in central Idaho. "The weather has been abso- lutely wonderful for fighting fires," said Sue Preece, lead infor- mation officer for the Mormon Creek Fire east of Cascade. "We've had low temperatures and high humidity. "We have a fire line all around it now," Preece said. The efforts of a 468- member crew corralled the fire at 440 acres. Preece said there were a few spot fires outside the fire line and some crown fires within it. How- ever, all the flare -ups were put out by firefighters or helicopters dumping water from buckets. Preece said the progress made during the day canceled the nightshift from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. She added that the estimated containment time for the fire is 6 p.m. today and the control date for the fire is 6 p.m. Saturday. Preece said a fire is considered under control when "the fire is out with the exception of a few spot fires and mop up." About 100 miles to the east of Mormon Creek, 160 firefighters and three helicopters were mak- ing progress on the 220 -acre Big Creek Fire in the Challis Nation- al Forest. "It's not under control yet. It should be under control by (Fri- day) evening," said Kay Bugger, Big Creek fire information of- ficer. Bugger said that cloud cover kept the temperatures low in the area on Thursday. Challis, 30 miles to the west of the fire, reached a high of 86 degrees during the day and had a humidity of 25 percent. There was a 20 to 30 percent chance of eve - nipg thundershowers. "The fire laid down. It didn't really grow any today. We we're able to get a fire line built around helf of it," Bugger said. She said steep, rugged terrain in•semi- primitive forest was a "lo- gistic nightmare" for getting food and supplies into the firefighters. Forest Service 9/28/90 Smoking a forest may be hazardous A recent article in The States- man started me laughing. It de- scribed government studies on the effects of smoke on fir- efighters. I wasn't laughing at the article. I was laughing at the memories. You see, I fought forest fires for 14 seasons. Now, smoke is bad to breathe, no doubt about it. Out on the line, smoke can blind a firefighter. Carbon monoxide can poison his blood and knock him to his knees. He crawls away through the last of his consciousness. When he revives, he agrees with the studies. Smoking a forest is unhealthy. But it wasn't too many years ago that the Forest Service hand- ed out free cigarettes to fire- fighters as they came off the fire lines. Today, smokes are still sold in fire camps to people who can't get enough smoke on the line. So there is always a human side to any "government smoke study" story. I remember one fire in particu- Tsr.It was the Deadline Ridge fire of 1974, on the Sawtooth National Forest south of Twin falls. There, smokejumpers Rick Hudson, Jeff Fereday and I straggled into the fire camp after a long night of breathing smoke. As we walked into camp that morning, some people on our left Clay Morgan Opinion were offering us free cigarettes. On our right, some scientists were conducting a study to see how much smoke we had in our lungs. I couldn't resist the coin- cidence. I took a pack of smokes from the guy on my left and a breatha- lyzer baggie from the guy on my right. When no one was looking, I filled the baggie with a lungful of swirling blue smoke and handed it to the man at the end of the line. Then we smokejumpers went off to eat breakfast. It wasn't long before the camp P.A. system crackled: "Would Clay Morgan please report to the smoke research station." "Your test results are in. They say you're dead," Rick said. "And refusal to take the smoke test again may prove you're dead, in court," added Jeff, who would later become a Boise attorney. But I had a plan. I would pick up a free cigar at the commissary, light it up, take a puff and swallow the smoke. Then I would talk with the smoke re- searchers to show them I was alive and then burp the cigar smoke into the baggie. Voila! I would amaze the scientific world with my ability to live with lungs that approximated the atmo- sphere on Venus. But I barely made it back to the smoke researchers. The cigar smoke reacted in my stomach with the pancakes, pea- nut bars and grapefruit juice to produce a toxic, gastric vortex. By the time I got to the research station, I was so dizzy I could barely stand. A nausea of green pooled in my eye. Vapors vented from my seared left nostril. "You don't look so good," one of the researchers said. "No," I fumed, sinking to one knee. By the time I recovered enough to blow up a baggie, my breath was malodorous but clear. "Not so bad," the scientists said. But not so interesting, either. I hadn't fooled science. But ever since, I have wondered if laboratory rats are on the level. Clay Morgan is a free -lance writ- er from McCall. / ' / f g /i �& The Idaho Statesman 9/8/91 Around Idaho McCall Fire fight: Fire crews continued to ring a 300 -acre wildfire northeast of McCall with containment line Saturday, keeping an eye on burned trees which already injured one man. Some 300 firefighters and support personnel kept the Squaw Lake fire from claiming any more forest near the resort town. Fire bosses predicted containment tonight and control a day later. "It didn't increase in size in the last 24 hours," Payette National Forest spokesman Dave Olson said Saturday afternoon. A member of a Montana hot shot crew was slightly injured Friday when a dead tree fell and trapped his knee against a rock. "What they are watching out for are the hundreds of snag trees left in the burn," Olson said. Fire weakens the trunk and winds knock the unburned portions to the ground. The fire was burning in a popular roadless area just south of Squaw Lake. The cause of the fire was still being investigated. 57ah AleLvs Nov 9, 19?d 195 forest fires fought in 1990 BY JAMES L. KINCAID For The Star -News Preparation and plain old luck combined to make the Payette Na- tional Forest's 1990 fire season a mere shadow of the 1989 inferno, officials said. "We had all the conditions to have a repeat of 1989," Gene Bene- dict, the Payette forest's fire branch chief said, "but we had a combina- tion of luck, lots of hard work and some of it's a matter of chance." In 1989, 385 fires consumed 39,160 acres, but this year 195 fires burned a total of 8,481 acres, Bene- dict said. A total of 8,300 firefighters plus 984 military personnel were in- volved in 1989 firefighting efforts. This past summer, 1,800 people fought 1990's blazes. Air support figures differ as well. Last year, 68 helicopters were used and 12 air tankers dropped 714,000 gallons of retardant using more than 1,800 aircraft hours. Last summer saw only 12 helicopters and seven air tankers that dropped 324,076 gal- lons of retardant and used little more than 1,243 aircraft hours. Smoke - jumpers made 939 jumps in 1989, compared with 509 jumps this past summer. About $30 million were spent on Idaho's 1989 fire season, while 1990 fire costs came to about $2.9 mil- lion- inclndinc* R"Mort to other forests and overhead teams at the Yellow Pine and Wilderness com- plexes. "This year we hired extra people for initial attack, and I feel that en- abled us to be more responsive, even when we had multiple fires," Benedict said. "We also preposi- tioned additional crews and heli- copters and retardant ships, which enabled us to be effective at holding fires small. We were able to keep our head above water most of the time." Due to continuing drought condi- tions, Benedict said the number of 1990 fires and acres consumed was above normal. As many as 100 fires in one week kept firefighters busy, with the majority of fires in the Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness. "The conditions were tougher than the 1990 fire season reflects," he said. "We were busier than nor- mal, but we had a lot of good help." Firefighters hold ground against fires along Salmon Rive--r The Associated Press Despite a return of hot, dry weather, more than 2,000 fire- fighters strung out along Idaho's Salmon River system held their ground Wednesday against a series of forest fires that have blackened about 40,000 acres of timber in the past two weeks. The cost of fighting the fires, the latest of a seemingly endless string to plague Idaho's back country this month, was expect to exceed $5 million, with losse also running into the millions o dollars. Firefighters gained ground on the 12,000 -acre blaze in the French Creek drainage along the main Salmon River in western Idaho as fire bosses mobilized crews to deflect flames from a historic cabin on the south and a ranch to the west. About $750,000 in structures already has been saved, though the fire has encir- cled some completely. Wind blowing down the twisting drainages from the main Salmon was whisking embers into un- burned territory on the fire's south side Wednesday night, giv- ing crews headaches, spokesman David Neeley said. "We've got some hot spots in French Creek itself that are giv- ing us grief," he said. "They're chewing up some acreage." Neeley said the fire, being flanked by crews constructing cleared lines on the east and west sides, was 30 percent contained late Wednesday after running wild for nearly a week. However, no time has been issued for com- plete containment. Meanwhile, crews thwarted in attempts to meet several previ- ous containment targets expected Wednesday night to contain the stubborn man- caused fire cover- ing more than 4,700 acres in the Salmon River Breaks of western Idaho's Nez Perce National For- est. Spokeswoman Mary Zabinski said despite warnings to stay away from the area, about 100 rafters a day have been counted making trips down the popular stretch of the Salmon on the blaze's southeast flank. The raft- ers were interfering with helicop- ters trying to dip huge water buckets into the river for the fire= fighting effort, she said. In eastern Idaho's Salmon Na- tional Forest, more than 1,300 firefighters effectively contained all but one of five fires burning around Long Tom Mountain. The last fire, covering nearly half of the more than 12,000 acres burned so far, was being held in check, spokeswoman Dixie Dies said. Elswhere, manpower on the 10,900 -acre Savage Creek fire, burning in its 17th day, was re- duced again, and only 20o fire- fighters were left to man the 32- mile perimeter. With solid fire lines on the north, south and west of that blaze, spokesman Milt Williams said, "The east side of the fire is being observed and allowed to burn itself out in the high- altitude, rocky, barren area where it's headed." Some crews from the Savage Creek blaze, which saw more than 1,000 firefighters on the line last week, have been diverted to the French Creek fire about 25 miles to the northwest. Firefighters hold the line Firefighters on the Payette Na- tional Forest got the upper hand on a series of lightning- caused blazes this week, including a fire north of McCall that charred about 100 acres. A lightning storm that swept the area on Monday night sparked about 20 fires on the Payette. The largest blaze, the Ditch Creek Fire, burned slightly less than 100 acres before it was declared contained at 6 p.m. Tuesday night. On Wednesday night, firefighters were continuing to put out spot fires on the blaze, which is located about 25 miles north of McCall near Josephine Lake. Lightning started the fire, which could be seen from McCall as it grew in intensity. The fire started in a highly flammable stand of alpine fir and bug - killed spruce. A bark beetle has killed thou- sands of trees in the area over the past several years, and the remaining stands of wood provide abundant fu- els, Payette officials said. "We easily could have had three large project fires," Forest Air Offi- cer Bill Williams said. A combina- tion of high humidity, low tempera- tures and aggressive suppression ef- forts were credited by forest officials with limiting the fire's spread. At one point, three air tankers were dropping fire retardant on the Ditch Creek fire, and helicopters with water buckets joined in the at- tack. On the ground, a total of 70 fire- fighters battled the blaze, falling hundreds of snag around the perime- ter of the fire. At its peak, the Ditch Creek fire showed behavior that denied the heavy rainfall that fell on the Payette last week, Fire Branch Chief Gene Benedict said. Last week, the McCall area re- ceived .86 inches of rain, and afire lookout about 15 miles north of the Ditch Creek fire received about 1.4 inches of rain. But hot temperatures over the weekend quickly raised the fire danger, Benedict said. Among the other fires reported from Monday's storm, all ranged in size from less than a quarter of an acre to five acres. All were contained by Wednesday except for three fires located in the Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness Area. Those fires will be allowed to burn because thay have limited potential to spread, Benedict said. Cost, safety and effects on the wilderness were all considered in making the decision not to fight those fires, Benedict said. The other fires burned timber in all four of the Payette's ranger dis- tricts. One fire, near Carey Dome Lookout, was contained Monday night by the Boise Hot Shot crew, with snag - falling and mop -up con- tinuing on Tuesday. So far, the Payette has not had to call for help from local citizens in fighting the rash of blazes. But if new fires start and grow, the need for help also could grow, a Payette spokesman said. Firefighters this week were ner- vously looking at the calendar, as it didn't take much to remind them of the rash of forest fires that swept the area a year ago. A total of 246 fires were started on the Payette forest from just one dry - lighting storm on July 26, 1989. Those fires combined with 71 fires started by another lightning storm a week earlier to produce the busiest fire season in history. By the time it was over a month later, the fires had consumed $30 million worth of tax dollars and put 6,500 people to work fighting the blaze, including nearly 1,000 U.S. Army troops. .-d ',kv 5�tdie5YA ak 71,7,01,7 )L DROUGHT / FIRE SEASON Idaho 55, reopens from fire By Melanie Threlkeld and Jason Montiel The Idaho Statesman Idaho 55 to McCall and other roads through the charred hills between Horseshoe Bend and Banks have reopened after being closed Friday because of fire, fire officials said Sunday. But speed limits on Idaho 55 have been reduced to 35 mph while fire crews remove burned trees, loose rocks and other de- bris along the highway, said Ar- nold Hatigan of the Boise Inter- agency Fire Center. Fire crews expected to have 100 percent of the Cottonwood Fire between Banks and Garde- na contained today. Some travelers returning down Idaho 55 on Sunday after- noon had their weekend plans sidetracked by the wildfire, and others were simply amazed by what they saw. Truman Brunette and his fam- ily, from the Fort Hall Indian Reservation, were determined Friday to make it to the South Fork Salmon River to fish for salmon, using spears in the tradi- tional Shoshone - Bannock way. The Brunettes were stopped in Horseshoe Bend when the road was closed Friday night. "You should have heard a few cuss words we had," Brunette said. After waiting all night for the Rains aid recovery from fire By Kim Eckart -� I 11� The Idaho Statesman Rain and the melting snow - pack from Southwest Idaho's wettest winter in at least five years are beginning to heal the scatrs left by last summer's fires. That's welcome news for resi- dents of towns like Prairie, which were in the path of the Foothills fire that burned 257,000 acres east of Boise seven months ago. "We're tickled that the snow has melted gently and is soaking through the ground. The green is starting to show through the black," said Nathan Cook, a fore- man for the Mountain Home Highwav District crew at Prairie. road to open, they returned to Boise Saturday morning and drove 150 miles out their way up Idaho 21 to get to the fish. Despite the delay, Brunette and his family bagged five salm- on for their efforts. "We still got our fish, even though it was quite an ordeal," he said. Joanne Webbenhurst of Boise, along with her family and friends, made it to Cascade Res- ervoir on Friday before Idaho 55 was closed. Her husband wasn't so lucky. Webbenhurst said he came later, and had to drive the long way, up U.S. 95. The fire had burned across nearly 6,300 acres since it began Friday afternoon. Boise National Forest officials say it will take two to five years for the land to completely heal. Now they must watch for soil ero- sion after four months of moisture. John Thornton, a hydrologist for the Boise National Forest, said, "There will be potential for problems for quite a while." Intense or long periods of mois- ture can cause serious erosion, which would damage timber and regrowth for grazing, he said. The Forest Service has taken precautionary measures to pre- vent erosion, such as felling trees to form dams and using soil treat- ments to synchronize water flow. Around 100,000 acres was seed- ed with grass last winter to pre- vent erosion. Overall, the amount of precipi- tation this winter adds up to a normal precipitation level — cur- rent runoff is no greater because of the fire than it would be after a winter of normal snowfall. "Erosion depends upon the in- tensity and duration of rain and snow," Thornton said. "We've had enough time in between rains to soak in the soil without caus- ing accelerated soil erosion." .JddGlo STd`ie5mak- 3 /d */ 9-3 Investigation continues into accident that started wildfire BY JAMES L. KINCAID The Star -News An investigation has been started into why a wildfire accidently started on the Payette National Forest on Aug. 30 when flammable Ping Pong balls were dropped from a he- licopter onto the south side of the Salmon River. The accidental fire, called the Tomato Point Fire, was started while the helicopter was igniting backfires against the Porcupine Fire on the Nez Perce National Forest, forest officials said. The Tomato Point Fire, 40 miles northeast of McCall, was contained on Tuesday after burning 2,765 acres. At one point, the fire threat- ened the historic Polly Bemis Ranch one mile east of the blaze. There was an accidental dis- charge of three to five Ping Pong balls on the Payette forest side of the river, according to Payette forest officials. Each ball contains a mag- nesium strip, and while being dis- persed from the helicopter, the balls are injected with antifreeze that re- acts with the strip. The balls are white -hot when they hit the ground, officials said. The balls are a commonly -used procedure for starting backfires and controlled fires, Payette officials said. "We have invited people from our regional office in Missoula and they have interviewed the people in- volved in the accident and examined the machine," said Dave Poncin, Nez Perce National Forest fire staff officer in Grangeville. "There appears to be an equip- ment failure in the aerial ignition device, also called a sphere dis- penser," Poncin said. "We call it a Ping Pong ball machine." The helicopter and pilot were contracted from a private company, Poncin said. Along with the pilot, the helicopter was manned by a Ping Pong ball machine operator and a "bum boss" from the Kootenai National Forest. There also was a ground ignition boss on the ground from the Clearwater National Forest, he said. The Ping Pong ball machine is manufactured by Aerostat Inc. of Leesburg, Fla., Poncin said. "We had some of our best people operating the machine," Poncin said. "We didn't plan or anticipate this happening. This is the first such incident I know of." The investigation needs to play itself out, probably for at least an- other month, before liability for the fire can be determined, Poncin said. "We had a qualified pilot and light helicopter," Poncin said. "It is the machine that is in question now. This will be a major topic in the forest service throughout the win- ter." Due to dry conditions along the Salmon River, the fire spread with tremendous effect and speed, Poncin said. Another helicopter dropped water on the fire within minutes of its ignition, but the fire overpow- ered firefighters, he said. 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C'oN'a c -O a& to M. .a�O.caOvro.c C � .fl vi c � '� vUi b40 � w I E >O �' 3 Z •C rn U �r °�S czEA� ws°A`"a °��C,,3Ea3 cw••� C�. �+ p �-.... Uc�c °"a)'os ro C) �•r- N U 1 0 U C N. w cn -Z�—N r-. i v cl ON ca U v, b0 p wy C ca >.b w cS r3 C.1 bq.. .+ C O Z U °'�y•� c N= C,3 1 8 mC/) U 5� y.0 to y a.. U s o o onE a°i owo �z .: o E� row o.o bo owcr- o.Z�093 z z5 0- w o4'= 01a�p °:eg�a'c�caaa�3'co d4 �' ai oEc.c.;•�u cA"pwcv�o >4. °=ai Ca� a E 0 o c`"iw(i,Qcw C >,3F°r o cva �« 0 4 •E � 0 v �' 02= �'ca'C� 0 > 30 O.T p C r ca N U p C 0 E> ?,0 E xo 0o a.°.>,� °oar °'b .c ❑�cc oi�''covpo�° oo E � �� � ro �• =.E � � 3 T a> ro ° c Esc aO�a3 a� The Star-News 12/31/92 Page 1 of 2 Forest fires race through dried timber A rash of wildfires in forests and brushlands in central Idaho in 1992 led to the death of a Boise National Forest firefighter, consumed thou- sands of acres of forest, threatened homes in the Cascade area and led to a fireworks ban throughout Valley County. • Firefighter Killed: In the most serious incident of the season, a Cascade woman was struck and killed by a falling dead tree while fighting a forest fire near Cascade Reservoir on July 30. Julie Ann Young, 20, died at the scene of the Silver Creek fire while serving as a member of a firefight- ing team for the Cascade Ranger District of the Boise National For- est. Young and other team members were laying a water hose when 'the tree unexpectedly fell, hitting Young, who was wearing full fire protection gear, including a hard hat. The four -acre fire occurred just above Anderson Creek Road on the west side of Cascade Reservoir across from the public boat docks in Cascade. The accident occurred about 100 yards above the road. Young had started in June at a sea- sonal position with the forest ser- vice. Cause of death was listed as in- ternal injuries, according to the Val- ley County Coroner's office. About 1,500 people attended Young's fu- neral which was held Aug. 3 at Cas- cade High School in Cascade. • Homes Threatened: Homes in a subdivision near Cascade were threatened by a wildfire that flared up on Aug. 13, but no one was in- jured and no homes were damaged. The Crown Point fire was re- ported at about 4:30 p.m. on Aug. 13. The fire occurred in the Four Seasons Subdivision on Crown Point on the southeast end of Cas- cade Reservoir. The subdivision is about two miles north of Cascade and about one mile west of Idaho 55. The fire, believed to have been started by a damaged power line in the area, was on land under Southern Idaho Timber Protective Association jurisdiction. About 100 firefighters, three air tankers, four helicopters with water The yea Miin % A special presentation by &a,,. buckets, three bulldozers, 15 fire engines and two water trucks con- tained the fire on Aug. 14 after it had burned about 65 acres. At least 24 homes in the area were threatened by the fire. Resi- dents of the homes were temporarily evacuated on the evening of Aug. 14 and fire retardant slurry was dropped on some of the structures. The Crown Point Campground was also evacuated The fire claimed no structures even though the fire burned among numerous homes. However, two boats, one camper and one wood - hauling trailer were destroyed. • Accidental Fires: On Oct. 12, a planned burn south of Little Hazard Lake on the Payette National Forest escaped control, prompting firefighters to be brought in from several Idaho national forests to con- trol the blaze. A total of 156 firefighters and six helicopters were fighting the Unit 110 fire, which by Oct. 13 had grown to 400 acres. The "prescribed" burn was being carried out by the New Meadows Ranger District of the Payette for- est. The burn was scheduled to cover 100 acres. The burn was to dispose of slash in an old logging area and was being monitored by up to 20 people at a time during the burn. But warm, dry weather led to the fire's escape, although the burn met forest service conditions for ignition when it was started on Oct. 8. The fire spread to insect - killed trees in an area off Goose Lake Road (See "Fires," Page 3) The Star-News 12/31/92 Page 2 of 2 Photo by James L. Kincaid Remains of a boat that got caught in the Crown Point Fire in August. Fires (Continued from Page 1) near the Hard Creek Guard Station, about 20 air miles north of McCall. The Tomato Point fire began Aug. 30 as a helicopter was starting backfires against the 28,170 -acre Porcupine Fire on the Nez Perce Na- tional Forest. The fire covered 2,275 acres be- fore being declared controlled on Sept. 9. The fire at one point threatened the historic Polly Bemis Ranch, one mile east of the blaze. The helicopter crossed the Salmon River and accidently re- leased flammable Ping Pong balls on the wrong side of the river. • Lightning- Caused Fires: Thunderstorms on Aug. 17 -18 crossed 35 miles north and east of McCall, starting 40 fires. Here is a rundown of this year's major fires on the Payette forest: Camp Creek: The Camp Creek fire, 23 miles east of McCall, was declared controlled on Sept. 2 after it had spread to 2,110 acres. Windy Ridge: The largest blaze, the Windy Ridge fire near Hells Canyon, started on Aug. 18, cover- ing about 800 acres. It was declared controlled on Aug. 26 after burning 17,500 acres. Warm Springs: The Warm Springs fire, about 25 miles north of McCall, was declared 100 percent contained at 6,500 acres on Aug. 31. French Creek: The French Creek fire, 35 miles north of McCall, ini- tially burned about 400 acres and spread to 2,590 acres before being contained Aug. 26. The Payette National Forest spent about $15 million fighting wildfires in 1992. Lightning started 166 fires which consumed a total of 31,389 acres. Twenty fires were started by people, and those fires consumed 2,873 acres. A total of 42 fires burned 4,138 acres in wilderness areas. About 4,000 firefighters in 131 crews battled wildfires on the Payette forest in 1992. • Fireworks Ban: The 1992 July 4 celebration raised concerns among law enforcement and fire- fighting officials because the holi- day fell on a Saturday, and because of worries over dry conditions. The officials' concerns led to a countywide ban on all fireworks that was in effect through the weekend. Possession, sale or ignition of all kinds of fireworks, including so- called safe - and -sane fireworks was prohibited throughout most of Val- ley County. The city of Donnelly was the only government in the county that did not ban safe - and -sane fireworks. The Star-News 1/21/93 Page #1 of 2 Pages Payette pays $694,00.0 for fire services BY JAMES L. KINCAID The Star -News Even though wildfires are de- structive and expensive to put out, their positive effect is the amount of money the forest service pumps into the economy of Valley and Adams counties in a few short months. While local businesses appreciate the income from the forest service, the proprietors point out the sea- sonal and indefinite nature of fire seasons. Everyday customers are their mainstay, according to inter- views conducted by The Star -News. "It is great income ... (but) the most important part of our business is the everyday customer." — Mike Pedersen The Payette National Forest spent about $15 million fighting wildfires in 1992, Payette forest of- ficials said. Of that amount, about $694,496 went to businesses in Valley and Adams counties from June through October 1992, accord- ing to Payette forest service records obtained under the federal Freedom of Information Act. About 4,000 firefighters in 131 crews battled wildfires on the Payette forest in 1992, according to Payette forest officials. Lightning started 166 fires which consumed a total of 31,389 acres. Twenty fires were started by people, and those fires consumed 2,873 acres. A total of 42 fires burned 4,138 acres in wilderness areas. "I don't know the percentage, but the forest service is a good part of our business," said Bill Dorris, McCall Air Taxi, Inc. general man- ager. The business received $58,160 in 1992 in fire- related payment. "However, we can make more money flying private parties than from the forest service," Dorris said. The forest service income is nice, but we don't always get it because the contracts are bid every thr;,e years." The forest service makes up a considerable, and appreciated, amount of trade at Paul's Market in McCall, said Mike Pedersen, Paul's manager. Paul's took in $65,646 during the fire season. "I have no idea what percentage of our income comes from the forest service but it is a great income for us," Pedersen said. "But there are fires only about one or two months of the year so what do we do during the other 10 months? The most important part of our business is the everyday customer." Shaver's supermarket not only sells food items to the fire crews, they also sell clothing and other items, said Larry Bouck, Shaver's manager in McCall. The store's 1992 fire - related income was $49,151. "The forest service income is def- initely a real boost for us and makes up a big percentage of our business during the summer," Bouck said. "If we didn't have that, percentage - wise, it would be quite a loss. The forest service pre- orders from us so we have time to get the orders ready. We have had trailer loads go and un- load right at the forest service ware- house." The forest service business helps, but is not expected every year, said Tony Totorica, owner of Lakeshore Disposal in McCall. The business . received $72,631 from the forest service last year for fires. "If it happens, it happens," Totorica said. "If it doesn't, you live without it. We service com- mercial and residential accounts, but appreciate everything we get. This is the first year the fire camps recy- cled aluminum cans and cardboard.' Income from the forest service is a benefit, but the employees of the Long Valley Farm Service in Donnelly work long, hard hours dur- ing the fire season, said Shari Gestrin, co -owner of the farm ser- vice, which saw payments totaling $44,928 in 1992. "It is a little bonus, but you can't count on it every year," Gestrin said. The forest service business has been important, especially in sales of sack lunches, said Bryan Hill, owner of Bryan's Burger Den in McCall, which received $6,210 in fire - related payments. "It is demanding when the forest service calls up, but you have to be ready to deal with it," Hill said. While the forest does about 90 percent of their own chainsaw main- tenance, they still have an impact on business, said Jim Barnett, owner of Jim's Repair in McCall, which drew $13,937 in forest ser- vice business. "I sell them a lot of parts, mix oil and bar oil and new stuff," Barnett said. "We cater to them 24 hours a day during fire season." The forest service reported paying McCall Memorial Hospital about $46,128 during the 1992 fire sea- son, said Karen Kellie, McCall Memorial Hospital administrator. Many firefighters were seen in the hospital's emergency room and the volume of patients has an effect on a small facility, she said. Patients from the fire line often need to see a doctor due to problems including chronic smoke inhalation and bee stings or other medical problems they had prior to the fire that have increased due to the stress and fatigue of firefighting, Kellie said. A few major trauma incidents also occurred involving helicopter evacuation, she said. The Star-News 1/21/93 Page #2 of 2 Pages List shows vendors used during fires Here is a list of vendors Valley and Adams counties who, ceived payments as the result of est fires during 1992 from Payette National Forest: Air Travel McCall Air Taxi: $58,160.56. Pioneer Aviation: $2,425.50. Council Air Service: $400. Total: $60,986.06. Auto and Saw Mechanics Jim's Repair: $13,937.41 . McCall Auto Exchange: $4,778. McCall Tire & Auto Rep $1,013.24. Jerry's Auto Parts, $155.80. Acheson Motors, Inc.:. $131.60. Libby's Auto Electric: $60.95. Bruneel Tire: $18.50. Total: $20,096.22. Groceries: Paul's: $65,646.34. Shaver's: $49,151.01. Total: $114,797.35. Fire Departments McCall Fire Department: $5,250. New Meadows Fire Departme $4,200. Council Fire Department, $4,200 Total: $13,650. in re- for- the 2. air: Convenience stores, food and gas Maverick Country Store: $4,320.17. Ken's.Lakeview Market: $4,064.91. Old Town Market: $3,640.11. Bill's Gas and Grocery: $3,192.70. Aspen Market: $43.85. Total: $15,261.74. Fuel Long Valley Farm Service: $44,928.41. Leo Mink Oil: $19,934.04 Amerigas: $8,067.42. Harp Oil Company: $925. Sackerman Fuel: $84.92. Total: $73,939.79. Logging Companies G. Ikola, Inc.: $27,615.23. J.I. Morgan, Inc.: $14,477.05: Rice Logging, Inc.: $14,196.82. Robinson Logging: $12,092.28. Evergreen Forest Products, Inc,: $9,593.25. Conger Logging, Inc.: $45. Total: $78,019.63. nt: Medical McCall Memorial Hospital $46,128.66. McCall Drug: $8,827.68. Council Community Hospital & Nursing Home: $4,730.94 Payette Lakes Medical Center: $1,088. Total: $60,775.28. Miscellaneous Lakeshore Disposal: $72,631.99. Payette Lakes Lumber: $13,505.79. Brundage Office Supply: $9,044.16. Brundage Mountain Ski Area: $5,200 (parking lot rental). C &M Lumber Company, Inc.: $4,180.66. McCall Rental & Sales: $2,997.13. May Hardware: $2,783.72. Honey Dippers: $1,774.10. Medley Sports: $1,225. Texaco U -Haul: $367.25. Sports Marina: $313.69. The Star -News: $90. Franklin Building Supply: $24.24. Our Lady of the Lake Catholic Church: $11 (table rental). Total: $114,148.73. Restaurants Grub Stake Cafe: $16,791.65. Lakey's Cafe: $15,690.89. Zahn's Cafe: $8,949.16. Bryan's Burger Den: $6,210.75. Lardo Grill & Saloon: $6,117.75. Si Bueno: $3,290.66. Toll Station Pizza: $871.45. Player's Pizza: $628.85. The Huckleberry: $570.69. High Meadows Cafe: $500.58. Lake Street Cafe: $298.95. Maria's Homestyle Cooked Mexican Food: $108.74. Total: $60,030.15. Lodging Clark Property Rental: $36,285. Shore Lodge: $13,381.36 McCall Vacations: $12,553.81. Scandia Inn Motel: $6,183. Riverside Motel, $4,872. Northwest Passage: $1,425. Starlite Motel: $1,335. Hotel McCall: $1,147.50. Meadows Motel: $888. Village Inn Motel: $134.82. Long Valley Motel: $90. Total: $78,295.49. Schools McCall - Donnelly Schools, $4,495.60 (bus rentals). Total: $4,495.60. Grand Total: $694,496.04. ��Ps Cascade Advocate 5/19/93 HORSESHOE BEND Fire blackens Loggers Day Merchants say closed road caused business to drop by 30 percent. By Cedric Puleston The Idaho Statesman Horseshoe Bend merchants re- lying on the annual Loggers Day celebration for added business saw their hopes dashed because of the nearby Cottonwood fire. Businesses said the fire kept enough people away that they saw no more people than on an average Saturday. The problem was compounded by the closure of Idaho 55 between Gardena and Banks. "Actually, today it's been fair," said Chris Goff, manager of the Grub Stake bar and cafe. This is about the pace of a normal Saturday, but we're down proba- bly 25 to 28 percent from this day last year. I guess the fire kept quite a few people away." "It (Loggers Day) didn't do us any good. We're down at least $2,000; that's not even good for a winter Saturday." Bobbi Doxey Doxey's Corner Grocery "It (Loggers Day) didn't do us any good," said Bobbi Doxey, who runs Doxey's Corner Grocery. "We're down at least $2,000, that's not even good for a winter Saturday." Merchants said business was down about 30 percent along Ida- ho 55. Business in McCall was also slow for most of the day. One exception was the Shore Lodge, which received a boost from peo- ple apparently stuck in town while driving south. "We're busy," said Lori Grim - mett, a Shore Lodge desk clerk. "There were quite a few people who were coming from up north and couldn't get into Boise. They were stuck here because they didn't want to hassle with going around. "We actually got a boost from the fire, believe it or not." But the rest of the town seemed less fortunate. "I went. downtown last night and it was dead," Grimmett said. "At the Yacht Club Bar usually you can't move because of all the people. Last night you could sit at the bar, you could sit at a table. They usually get a lot of people from Boise who have cabins near McCall." McCall's Sportsmen's Bar & Grill was hoping for a big crowd for the installation of the area's first karaoke machine. "Lunch was fair, but dinner is, real slow, ",said manager Tammy Dial. "It's definitely affected usj, I'd say it's 30 to 40 percent less than usual." Katherine Jones!The Idaho Statesman Chuck Beyer, left, gives Bill Ranft a run for his money at the 21st annual Horseshoe Bend Loggers Day. Beyer and Ranft took second and third place, respectively. Beyer won ''All- Around Logger." Day The Idaho Statesman 8/29/93 Jumpers grounded as fire season fizzles Cool, quiet summer makes firefighters feel like 'Maytag repairmen.' The Associated Press LEWISTON — The fire- fighters are not fighting. And the smokejumpers haven't been jumping. Across the country, it appears a potentially record -low forest - fire season has all but snuffed itself. "This is the slowest fire sea- son in the United States in the last 10 years," said Joan An- zelmo, spokeswoman for the Na- tional Interagency Fire Center in Boise. The lull is reflected on the Nez Perce and Clearwater national forests in North Central Idaho, where a total of 82 fires to date have burned less than 10 acres. That compares with more than 650 fires last year scorching more than 45,000 acres. It is the same story on lands protected by the Bureau of Land Management and the state. The BLM's huge Boise District that fought the 250,000 -acre Foothills fire last year has seen about 1,300 acres burned in 1993. At the Clearwater Potlatch Timber Protective Association headquarters in Orofino, Russell Eck, who normally works amid fire - fighting chaos this time of year, said he feels a bit "like the Maytag repairman." CPTPA has had 30 fires, re- sulting in 15 burned acres. Some 60 miles south at the Grangeville Air Center for the Nez Perce Forest, smokejumper Pat Wilson laments the lean year. "Basically, we're not having a fire season this year. There's still two of us sitting here wait- ing for our first jump." "Last year by August, we had gone on 76 fires and made 282 jumps," Wilson said. This year, the jumpers have responded to just five fires and deployed their chutes 16 times. "We've had a couple of guys who canceled their college plans," Wilson said, because they were depending on the money from another hot season. The difference can cut a sum- mer's earnings in half. The situation is so tame, said 011ie Goldammer, a fire dis- patcher for the Nez Perce For- est, that fires seem to be putting themselves out. There have been five lightning- caused fires in wilderness areas, for example, that by law are allowed to burn. But Goldammer said one has been declared out and no smoke has been seen from the other four in the past several days. "We've had a tremendous amount of lightning," Goldam- mer said, "but we've had rain with the lightning." A snowy winter, wet spring and cool summer have caused the turnaround, experts said. Whether the trend will continue into next year, they caution, is about as predictable as the next weather forecast. "You don't tend to base long- term predictions on one year," Anzelmo said. "I hate to make any predic- tions," said Eck. "But it's been fall weather lately." The Star-News SEPTEMBER 16, 1993 Fire burns 20 acres Forest Service investigators sus- pect a fire which erupted Tuesday on the New Meadows Ranger Dis- trict of the Payette National Forest was man- caused. At press time Wednesday, the blaze was 60 percent contained at 20 acres, with total containment expected by 6 p.m., according to Payette forest officials. The Fall Fire is located 15 air miles north of New Meadows, on the Little Salmon River, said Heidi Bigler Cole, fire information of- ficer. Although the fire is burning on land owned by the state of Idaho, Southern Idaho Timber Protective Association and the Payette forest, the Payette retains fire fighting ju- risdiction, Cole said. "The fire is burning in a steep canyon, and the up- canyon winds and rolling debris, causing numer- ous spot fires, has made fire- fight- ing difficult," she said. Resources assigned to the Fall Fire include about 80 firefighters, four helicopters and three air tank- ers, which were pulled off Tuesday, officials said. A cabin owned by SITPA was threatened by the blaze, but was not damaged, Cole said. No other struc- tures have been threatened or de- stroyed. Traffic on U.S. 95 was inter- rupted intermittently Tuesday as a resultof helicopter activity, but Cole said no further. delays were expected. Srd h (Ve u"s Sept Ibi ,993 /7;f( : - 111-41 x:-3- '93 was a slow burn BY SHARI HAMBLETON Tiw Stec -News The lackluster 1993 fire season has given Payette National Forest firefighters a welcome reprieve from the above - normal fire activ- ity of the past few years, according to forest officials. With a total of 66 fires to date, Gene Benedict, the Payette's fire management officer, said this sea- son falls dramatically below the average acreage burned annually on the forest. Lightning was the cause of 57 of the fires this year, while nine were man- caused fires, he said. I think everyone was relieved to have a light fire season," Benedict said. "But we know with the fuels we have on this forest, it's not going to last long. We're just catching our breath." Benedict said last year was a different story. The forest had the second largest number of people fighting fire at one time in its his- tory. Acreage burned last year totalled 34,261 acres. Gene Benedict PNF fire manager Based on figures compiled over the past 10 years, an average 18,000 acres burn annually as a result of lightening and man- caused fires. This year fell significantly short of that — 17,934 acres short. "This year was definitely simi- lar to 1984," Benedict said. "1985 through 1992 was just a barn burner." He said 261,000 acres have burned on the forest since 1985. The slower - than - normal fire season has made it possible for the forest to catch up on project work that, until now, has been put off while resources were committed to fighting fires. But firefighters have also had the chance to catch up. The McCall smokejumper corps has gotten accustomed to the in- tense fire activity of the past few years. Neal Davis, Smokejumper Unit Manager, said he was appre- hensive about the affects of a slow year following the "gang buster years of the past." "The bottom line is they all would have liked more activity," Davis said. "But their morale was amazingly high. People actually got to enjoy life." "As a unit we were able to do a lot of project work," he said. "We built a lot of trail, removed a number of miles of old wire telephone lines from the Krassel Ranger District, and worked on building and road maintenance." Wildfires burning in Southern Cali- fornia called back into action" a 20- person Payette forest fire crew last week, Benedict said. That fire crew is helping bring under control the 20,500 -acre Ortega fire burning on the Cleveland National Forest. McCall man gets dose of Ray Stout Staff Writer MCCALL — To an American firefighter on his home turf, the past wildfire season seemed almost nonexistent. But at many of the fires in the boreal forests of Khabarovsk Territory, the Russian fire- fighters didn't even bother to be present. Speaking to Payette National Forest employees at the annual post- fire - season meeting Nov. 18, McCall District Fire Management Officer Larry Swan shared firsthand observations of the Russian culture as well as their fire- suppression and forestry practices. One of three Forest Service officials who went to the "Far East of Russia" under a fire - management exchange for just over a month last spring, Swan said he took a strong liking to the people despite hardships such as conflicting translators, reckless drivers and having to endure cold showers and unsan- itary restrooms. Most of the people there hadn't ever heard of Smokey Bear, said Swan, but patches, pins and stick- ers with the bear's image on it were coveted seri- ously. "1 saw grown men and college students almost fighting over the things we handed out," he said. But every depiction of a Russian Aerial Fire Serviceman, he said, includes the backpack pump, a standard tool in the business. He said the Russian style is more comfortable and easier to use than the one in the U.S. However, they use no fire shelters or hard hats, and he saw no hand tools in use on fires, said Swan. He said many of the fires in the north get so big that the firefighters don't even try to suppress them. While being helicoptered for four and a half hours over a 1976 burn area, he said, he saw "nothing but birch, ashes and brush." There are no fire lookouts, he said. They visited the dispatch office where the officer was equipped with a video screen to monitor countless hectares of forest. firefighting - Russian style "When we asked him how many smokes he had seen on the screen lately," Swan said, "he said, `None in the last five years. "' The Aerial Fire Service doesn't do much for fire prevention, largely because the men want to stay employed to put the fires out, he said . No women have served in the AFS since the 1960s, when sentiment in the unions discouraged their employment, said Swan. "It's a man's world over there right now," he said. The two -way radios squelched constantly. But the batteries seem superior to those in the U.S, last- ing two and a half to three years, he said. Decisions about how to attack a fire are made from the air by the pilot/observer, who doesn't have to have any previous firefighting experience, said Swan. Nonetheless, these men are highly respected. He said the Russians laughed at him and the other two Americans for using earplugs in the planes and helicopters. "They were quick to give everybody a hard time, and we reciprocated, and we all had a good time," he said. The guests explained the long -term threat posed by the noise, "and they said, `Yeah, we know it can do hearing damage,' but it's just not a big deal to them." Alcohol influence, however, is a concern. Smokejumpers and pilots undergo regular blood tests. The hosts "apologized everywhere we went for the Russian alcohol problem. We just told them America has one too," said Swan. He said a low cost of living has made it feasible for jumpers to retire at 37. Though the Communist government controlled the people, their basic needs were met, and it followed that the work ethic was low; said Swan. Bulldozers are considered a necessity on forest fires, he said. If they don't have them in action, they feel they aren't fighting a fire properly. Moreover, nearly all fire suppression is done in groups, he said. Even small fires aren't left to two - man teams. Besides the Aerial Fire Service, he said, logging companies also employ firefighters. But they just "sit around" unless a logging- caused fire gets started, said Swan. He said he didn't see any scars from roads or erosion. But as he showed the audience a slide photo of a large, stump- studded opening in the forest canopy, he said his hosts had told him they don't do any clearcutting. For certain, they don't do any slash disposal or prescribed burning, he said. "They know they need to, but they don't." The logging companies, he said, were the only entities he saw that had much money, as evidenced by their four -wheel drives and high - quality equipment. He asked some loggers why they tended to wear awkward mittens instead of gloves. "They said, `Because you can't buy gloves, "' he said. A supervi- sor later told him that when Swan came back all his men would have gloves. Although many of the loggers drink — mostly vodka — they always do so in conjunction with eating, he said. But littering seemed trivial even to their host/guide Alex Lyubyakm, the head of AFS for Khabarovsk Territory, despite the Americans' cautions against it.