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Army soldiers in Washington get their first fireline assignment

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags , , , ,
army soldiers Onata Fire
Captain Tran Sugai (second from right) briefs his platoon leaders as three crews of the Army’s Task Force First Round prepared to spend their first day on an active fire.

Tom Story, who is in Washington documenting some of the wildfire activity, has been spending time with some of the 200 soldiers that were trained last week to assist on the fires. These are his photos, and below is his report.

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Three crews from the freshly fire-trained Army Task Force First Round, from Joint Base Lewis-McChord near Tacoma, Washington, made their first trip to the fireline August 24, 2015 when they traveled north of the Kaniksu Complex’s Tower Fire in eastern Washington to the 300-acre Onata Fire. The Incident Management Team welcomed the additional help and gave the soldiers two tasks for the day: put in some hand line and help plumb, or install fire hose, on the bottom edge of the fire along a road the team wanted to use to halt the fire’s spread.

Like most things in fire, the plans changed on the scene and the hand line assignment was cancelled and the crews were put to work putting in a 1,500 foot hose lay in preparation for a burnout. Not only did the crew haul and lay a bunch of hose, they tied in with the Forest Service’s McKenzie River Hand Crew who were doing chain saw work, prepping for the burnout, lending a hand with swamping the cut material.

army soldiers Onata Fire
Part of the Army’s assignment on the Onata Fire was to assist putting in a hose lay as part of preparation for a planned burnout. Robert “Hippie” Horn (left) of North Dakota Forest Service hands rolls of hose to soldiers to distribute along a road.
army soldiers Onata Fire
Members of the Army’s Task Force First Round swamp behind the McKenzie River Hand Crew’s Sawyers in prep for a future burnout operation.
army soldiers Onata Fire
Following the sawyers of the McKenzie River Hand Crew, Penn Woolridge and other crew members move the cut material across the road and onto the green side of the planned burnout area.

Soldiers complete firefighter training in Washington

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags , ,
soldiers fighting wildfires
Luke Lanphear (left) and Rene Drew do the initial bucking of a 60′ hazard tree they had just dropped near one of the Kalispel tribal elders homes that the Army Task Force was doing Firewise work around as the last part of the military’s training prior to being deployed to the fireline. The professional fallers dropped the tree so the Army’s fledgling sawyers could finish bucking the tree so that the rest of the crew could stack it for fire wood.

The 200 U.S. Army‬ Soldiers fromt the 5th Battalion, 3rd Field Artillery Regiment, 17th Field Artillery Brigade, 7th Infantry Division, at Joint Base Lewis-McChord near Tacoma, Washington completed their firefighting training Sunday and will begin to perform actual fireline work Monday on the Tower Fire in eastern Washington near the Idaho border.

Tom Story took these photos for us on Sunday.

soldiers fighting wildfires
Michael Mora of the BLM (center) works with Crew 9 from the Army’s Task Force First Round as the soldiers put in some hand fireline behind the home of one of the elders of the Kalispel Tribe of Indians. The tribe was hosting the Tower Fire Incident Command Post at their Pow Wow Grounds, across the river from Cusick, Washington.
soldiers fighting wildfires
Vegas Valley Hand Crew Lead Chain Saw Jonathan Pilkerton (left) instructs Specialist Robert Sandoval in the specialized skills of fire line chain sawing as PFC Timothy Illig (cq) (right) stands by to swamp for the saw. Members of the Army’s Task Force First Round was finishing up their training August 23, 2015 on the Tower Fire in northeastern Washington. The Task Force was divided up into crews and were using the training opportunity do some Firewise work around the homes of some of the elders of the Kalispel Tribe of Indians.
soldiers fighting wildfires
Russ Long, the Incident Management Teams Operations Section Chief, (center), talks with the Army’s Lt. Col. James Dunwoody (the Task Force First Round Commander), Command Sargent Major Tony Phelps and Major Tim Lynch (left to right) after the Tower Fire morning briefing on August 23, 2015.
soldiers fighting wildfires
Members of Crew 10 clamber up a steep section of hand line they had just put in near a home on the Kalispel Tribe of Indians.

Military to attack the Tower Fire

Author Bill GabbertPosted on Categories UncategorizedTags , , , , 1 Comment on Military to attack the Tower Fire
Soldier training
Jay Karle, center right, a wildland firefighter assigned to assist Soldiers of 5th Battalion, 3rd Field Artillery Regiment, 17th Field Artillery Brigade, points out boundaries to be used during wildland firefighting training near Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Aug. 20, 2015. The “First Round” Soldiers have been activated to help suppress fires in the Pacific Northwest due to civilian resources running low. (U.S. Army photo by Sgt. 1st Class Andrew Porch, 28th Public Affairs Detachment.)

Approximately 200 U.S. Army‬ Soldiers assigned to the 5th Battalion, 3rd Field Artillery Regiment, 17th Field Artillery Brigade, 7th Infantry Division, at Joint Base Lewis-McChord near Tacoma, Washington have been activated to assist in the suppression of wildfires during a period when over 32,000 regular wildland firefighters are deployed but still more help is needed.

The Soldiers were trained at their base by wildland fire agency personnel, including the Bureau of Land Management Vegas Valley Crew comprised entirely of military veterans. They arrived at the Tower Fire in western Washington near the Idaho border late in the afternoon on August 22, where Tom Story captured some images.

Members of the Army's Task Force First Round are briefed on the layout of the Incident Command Post after arriving at the Tower Fire, near Newport, Washington August 22, 2015. With more than 17 major fires burning in Washington alone, the 200 soldiers along with support personnel underwent fire suppression training prior to traveling from their home at Joint Base Lewis-McChord to assist in containing the blaze.
Members of the Army’s Task Force First Round are briefed on the layout of the Incident Command Post after arriving at the Tower Fire, near Newport, Washington August 22, 2015. Photo by Tom Story.
After a briefing on the layout of the Tower Fire Incident Command Post, The Army's Task Force First Round joined the other firefighters in the dinner line. The Saturday evening meal was pasta with sausage meat sauce, veggies, salad and garlic bread.
After a briefing on the layout of the Tower Fire Incident Command Post, The Army’s Task Force First Round joined the other firefighters in the dinner line. The Saturday evening meal was pasta with sausage meat sauce, veggies, salad and garlic bread. Photo by Tom Story.