One Wild Day

The Camdenton Fire Station

For the last couple weeks I have been stationed in Lebanon and Camdenton Missouri. The weeks have held the occasional perscribed burn and a couple false alarm wild fires, but today that all changed.

This week I am on a four person team stationed at a really cool fire house, complete with fire poles. We started our day around noon and went on a four acre wild fire at one. Around two we responded to another wild fire that was only about one acre. At three we responded to a 60 acre fire and by six thirty we were on another fire that was 86 acres. This last fire went until eight thirty. We put them all out and had a really good time. In one day I went on more wildfires then I have all fire season. Tomorrow is supposed to be an even better fire day... wish me luck.

Ready, Aim, Fire

For the last three weeks I have been putting in fireline at a place called Peck Ranch in southern Missouri. This included cutting and dragging logs and sticks thirty feet from the line and using backpack blowers to blow around dead trees by the line. It was a long three weeks, but today it all became worth it.

I went on my first fire. It was a prescribed burn on two hundred acres of land. We used torches to light the fire from the line and watched as the flames grew. The wind helped us out but we had to be on constant watch so that the fire didn't cross over the line into an area that wasn't supposed to burn. The fire took about six hours but the time flew. I get to do another one tomorrow... I think I am going to like fire season in Missouri!!!