Firefighter Blog

"Chopper Chick" Desiree Horton is fighting fire from the air again and blogging about it too. Desiree has a special talent for writing about what she sees from the air.

In this artfully written post she tells us about flying above the hundreds of fires burning in Mendocino County, dipping into a hilltop pond between towering pines.

Last summer Desiree blogged about her fire season. She was based in Independence on the east side of the Sierra's but actually spent little time there. Her summer was dominated by the Zaca Fire. If you visit her site check the archives and images of that campaign.

Desiree is the only firefighter I've read that discusses the effects of fire on wildlife.

Labels: 2008 Fire Season, California Firestorm 2008, Copter Chick, Desiree Horton

Zaca Fire helicopter pilot Desiree Horton takes a moment before returning to 16 hour shifts to describe her activities as part of a combined assault on the mile wide flame front heading towards Hwy 33 on Friday the 17th;

"....A combined effort of the helicopters throwing fire from the dozer lines to burn towards the flame front, the water drops to stop the spots, and the ground guys who are the real heroes and in the most risky business of all slowed the fire that day. Every time a spot would cross over the line, guys on the ground would come in and attack the fire by hand, digging line around it and doing what they do down there. I even saw dozers run line right next to the spots, and these spots I’m talking are huge, taller than the dozer. I can only imagine the heat. While we flew next to the fire to throw psd balls down to stop it coming towards the line the heat was so intense even from the air. It was amazing to watch all of the ships but mostly those crews on the grounds with only their safety zones cut out by dozers to take shelter if the fire jumps the line and heads their way. The chills I experienced were from the satisfaction of getting into some risky areas and throwing fire to fight fire. It was truly amazing....." Continue reading at Desiree's Copter Chick blog.

Thank you Desiree, your unique perspective is an amazing contribution to the Zaca Fire story.

Labels: Copter Chick, Desiree Horton, Zaca Fire

Report from Inciweb.org on the lightning caused Inyo Complex outside Independence California.

Summary

A thunder and lightning storm moved quickly through the Eastern Sierra Friday afternoon, July 6, 2007,igniting approximately 10 fires being managed as the Inyo Complex. As of 6:00 pm Friday evening, the three biggest fires are:1)The Oak Fire burning up the north fork of Oak Creek out of Independence. 2) The Seven Fire in the Seven Pines area up Independence Creek out of Independence. 3) The Sage Fire up Big Pine Canyon in the vicinity of Upper Sage Flat Campground.

The following areas have been evacuated: Oak Creek Campground, Lower Grey's Meadow Campground, Onion Valley Campground, Seven Pines and Glacier Lodge.

Independence is where Copter Chick Desiree Horton is stationed. Her bird and crew were assigned to the Zaca Fire near Santa Barbara yesterday according to her recent blog post. It's tough to be away from your home station when an incident breaks out.
From a personal perspective I'll add the smoke from the fires near Independence is blanketing the West side of the Sierras. It's odd seeing smoke from the East side of the range over here. 110 degrees here in the California Central Valley and the weather on the eastern slope of the Sierras is almost as bad with no let up in the near term forecast.

Labels: 2007 fire season, Desiree Horton, Inyo Complex