Anyone want to buy a good slightly used well-used portable water tank? The tank, known as a pumpkin because of it’s round shape and coloring that resembles a pumpkin, was used on the Fern Lake Fire and still contained water when snow and below freezing temperatures hit the fire. Firefighters were challenged to remove the tank on December 9 when it contained ice several inches thick. They resorted to using a combi tool (shovel), a pulaski, and finally a truck which was used to turn the pumpkin inside-out. I have a feeling that there may be a few patches on that pumpkin the next time it is seen full of water on a fire.
HERE is a link to a photo of an Air-Crane helicopter on the Fern Lake Fire drafting water out of a 5,000-gallon pumpkin (before the water froze!).
As a changing climate results in more fires in the shoulder seasons, firefighters will be forced to adapt to longer fire seasons and fighting fire in different conditions.
All of the photos were provided by the National Park Service, which was responsible for suppression of the fire in Rocky Mountain National Park west of Estes Park, Colorado.
Management of the Fern Lake Fire will transition from the Type 1 Great Basin Team #2 to a local Type 3 team at 6 p.m. Monday night. After four to six inches of snow fell on the fire Saturday, on Sunday the IMTeam called the fire 60 percent contained. Today they decided it is 88 percent contained.
More photos of the ice extraction process are below:
The joys of dealing with frozen cotton fire hose on a late season fire.
Yes you are right about patches, Bill
Sharp tools + Hurriedness “to get a job done the right way” + some cold weather are sure to reduce this 3,000 to 10,000 USD item to rubber scrap.
Oh I know…….let’s get it on Ebay…..no one will EVER know!!!!
Leo, I can assure you that the pumpkin was still in servicable condition after it was emptied. Now the one that was attacked by a bull elk, well that’s a different story altogether!