Photo by Bill G Archives - Page 18 of 29

Firefighting, structure protection, and public relations

Bill GabbertJuly 27, 2012August 25, 2019UncategorizedJohn Thune, Myrtle Fire, Photo by Bill G, South Dakota, White Draw Fire8 Comments

Myrtle ICP July 26, 2012 — What is left of the Myrtle Fire Incident Command Post at Custer High School, July 26, 2012. The fire is contained and has been turned over to a smaller Incident Management Team, a Type 3 team. Photo by Bill Gabbert (click to enlarge)

When the Myrtle fire, which is now contained, was threatening structures between Pringle and Hot Springs, South Dakota, many firefighters were assigned to structure protection. Most homeowners who evacuate have little understanding of what will happen around their house while they are hunkering down in a motel or school gym. Firefighters, when time permits, will do far more than spray water on the structure, as Lynn and Gardner Gray discovered when they visited their home near Pringle the day after they evacuated.

Jim Kent, a columnist for the Rapid City Journal wrote about the Gray’s experience in today’s edition. Here is an excerpt:

…During a return visit the following day, Lynn encountered four firefighters taking what she considered extraordinary steps to fully protect her property.

Once the Myrtle Fire moved out of range and the couple were back in their house, Lynn insisted I tour the property so she could point out the care and attention given by complete strangers.

From removing the propane tank on the Grays’ outdoor grill, to fully sealing their garage door and saturating 6 cords of wood stacked against the side of their home, the firefighters left no combustion hazard to chance.

They even took down a flammable decorative flag and repositioned a wood-handle rake before digging a protective trench around the property. In fact, the list of what the firefighters actually did is too long to include here.

And speaking of public relations, Craig Bobzien, the Forest Supervisor of the Black Hills National Forest in South Dakota, met with a group of citizens from the Edgemont area who had concerns about how the White Draw fire was fought. Mr. Bobzien explained in a Rapid City Journal article attributed to him that he had heard about some complaints in the media and wanted to hear them first hand.

White Draw Fire, June 29, 2012 Photo by Bill Gabbert

Those citizens from the Edgemont have been generating a lot of publicity about how some of them thought the firefighters could have stopped the 9,000-acre rapidly spreading timber fire in late June if only they had paid more attention to the locals. Previously, on July 6 South Dakota Senator John Thune traveled to Edgemont with reporters and photographers in tow to also meet with those citizens. This was the fire on which a military C-130 MAFFS air tanker crashed, killing four members of the crew and injuring two others.

15+ new fires in the Black Hills

Bill GabbertJuly 24, 2012September 12, 2012UncategorizedPhoto by Bill G

Draw Fire, Air Crane, — Sikorsky Skycrane dropping on the Draw fire south of Argyle Road, northwest of Hot Springs, SD, July 24, 2012. Photo by Bill Gabbert

The 10,000-acre Myrtle Fire is nearing full containment, but firefighters in the Black Hills of South Dakota are not getting a break. With hundreds of lightning strikes almost every day, fires are breaking out by the dozens. Prompt, aggressive initial attack with both ground and air resources is keeping most of the new fires very small, but occasionally one escapes.

Below, from Great Plains Fire Information, is a list of 15 fires that were discovered on Tuesday, July 24, plus the Mossagate fire which was reported on July 21. There are approximately 7 others that started late in the day on Tuesday that didn’t make this version of the list.

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Date: July 24, 2012 / Time: 9:00 p.m.

Fire Crews Respond to New Lightning Ignited Fires in the Black Hills

Rapid City, SD – Thunderstorms rolled over the Black Hills again today and federal, state, and local VFD firefighters responded to another 15 new fires. Most of the new fires were small and were contained at less than ½ an acre. However, because of the hot, dry, and windy conditions, several of the new fires required numerous air tanker retardant drops and the use of helicopters to drop water; allowing firefighters to build fire line to contain the spread of the fires.

Fire resources on the Myrtle Fire, which is nearing containment, assisted with initial attack of several new fires in the southern Black Hills. Five Interagency Hotshot crews, responded to three nearby fires. Aviation resources, including helicopters and air tankers assisted with initial attack on eight new fires.

With fire activity remaining high throughout the region, fire resources are being reassigned to other incidents after they are released from their currently assigned fire.

Falls Fire
The Falls Fire started between Falls Canyon and Lindsley Canyon, six miles southwest of Hot Springs. The fire threatens powerlines to the northwest and is burning in steep and rugged terrain. No structures are threatened at this time. A Type III Incident Commander has ordered additional crews and engines.
Size: 150 acres
Cause: Lightning
Containment: Unknown

Placerville Fire
Location: Just north of the Pactola Work Center, in the Mystic Ranger District
Size: 0.1 acre
Cause: Lightning
Containment: 100%

South Dakota: Myrtle fire 75% contained

Bill GabbertJuly 24, 2012August 25, 2019UncategorizedMyrtle Fire, Photo by Bill G, South Dakota4 Comments

Thanks to the great efforts by firefighters, and favorable weather, the incident management team is calling the Myrtle fire in the Black Hills of South Dakota 75 percent contained. The size has not changed in the last few days, and remains at 10,080 acres. Monday evening I visited the fire and saw no major fire activity, only scattered smokes.

Two weather stations near the fire measured 0.28″ and 0.30″ of rain between 9 and 11 p.m. on Monday, but it was a mixed blessing, in that it came with a great deal of lightning, as you can see in these photos.

Investigators determined that the likely cause of the fire was a U.S. Forest Service road grader that was performing road maintenance. The belief is that the metal blade fractured a rock on the road surface igniting the grassy fuels on the roadside.

All evacuations and road closures have been lifted, and electrical power as been restored to primary residences in the area. Wind Cave National Park plans to reopen today.

A map of the fire current as of Monday night can be found HERE. While it came very close, the fire still has not burned anything within Wind Cave National Park.

Photos of lightning in the Black Hills

Bill GabbertJuly 24, 2012August 23, 2014Uncategorizedlightning, Photo by Bill G5 Comments

Lightning at Wind Cave National Park, July 24, 2012. Photo by Bill Gabbert.

We have had a boatload of lightning in the Black Hills of South Dakota in recent days. Almost every day we have been seeing numerous downstrikes which have started dozens of fires over the last week in the Black Hills and the prairies to the east.. Most of the fires have been caught at less than a couple of acres, but several have burned thousands.

I shot these photos Monday evening in Wind Cave National Park.

Report: air tanker makes emergency landing after engine fails

Bill GabbertJuly 22, 2012April 22, 2020Uncategorizedengine failure, Photo by Bill G12 Comments

Air Tanker 43 (on the right) experienced a loss of power in an engine while taking off at Rapid City on July 20. Photo by Bill Gabbert

We have a report that air tanker 06, a 50+ year old P2V, experienced a failure in an engine on July 22. Thankfully, it was able to land safely at Fox Field a few minutes after 6 p.m. local time. We are attempting to confirm the report and will have more details as they emerge.

Two days ago Tanker 43, another P2V air tanker, experienced a loss of power in one of its 18-cylinder radial piston engines just after lifting off the runway at Rapid City. The crew had to jettison the 2,000 gallons of retardant on the runway but they turned around and landed safely.

Photos from a burning operation at the Myrtle fire in South Dakota

Bill GabbertJuly 22, 2012November 8, 2012UncategorizedMyrtle Fire, Photo by Bill G, South Dakota2 Comments

Myrtle Fire burnout Song Dog Rd — A helicopter dropped off a couple of passengers at the intersection of Song Dog Road and Argyle Road.

Today I spent several hours on the south end of the Myrtle fire in the Black Hills of South Dakota where firefighters were successfully conducting an extensive burning operation in Cold Brook Canyon and Song Dog Road. They usually had the wind at their backs and the milder weather along with a little rain yesterday minimized any extreme fire behavior, but the fire still burned extremely well. It only took a few drops out of the drip torches to convince the fire to spread quickly from the firelines and roads into the timber. The temperature maxed out at about 90 while the relative humidity was in the high 20s.

Myrtle Fire burnout Song Dog Road — Tom Contreras (on the right), the Forest Supervisor of the Angeles National Forest in Southern California drove up in a vehicle on Argyle Road and said hello. He explained that he was representing the Regional Forester of the local Rocky Mountain Region. (How do I get that job?)

Firefighters enjoy burning operations. It’s not as physically exhausting as constructing fireline, for example, and it can be very satisfying to conduct a well-planned and skillfully executed burnout. You can very quickly see the effects of your efforts, whether they are positive, or if you’re chasing spot fires across the fireline.

Two of the crews working on this operation today were the Sawtooth and the San Juan Hotshots. It is always a pleasure to see such highly trained and experienced crews work. This was not a simple burning operation, and it involved igniting some distance away from the firelines to draw in the heat that was later generated closer to the lines. These crews did it as if they do it every day, with very little verbal direction from the supervisors. They know their jobs. The only raised voice I heard was when someone running a drip torch completed her assignment, stopped to extinguish the torch with her back to what she had just lit, and didn’t realize that 3-foot flames were heading her direction and were about 6 feet away. Someone said “GET OUT OF THERE!”. And she did. Safely. No harm done.

(More photos are below.)

Continue reading “Photos from a burning operation at the Myrtle fire in South Dakota”

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