2. 2009

May 13 - 19 East End Road Fire, Homer, AK

A task force of engines from the Mat-Su area was assembled to head south and help fight the fire at Mile 17 East End Road in Homer. The day we were dispatched, the fire grew from 30 acres to over 700. It eventually died down at 1072 acres.
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A self portrait overlooking a deep gully from my perch on an overhanging log.
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A self portrait overlooking a deep gully from my perch on an overhanging log.

AlaskaHomerFirefightingCMSFDEast End Road FireJohn Borland2009

  • After driving all night in our fire engines some 300 miles, we hit the fireline before the sun came up. Looks like it might be a hot day for fires.
  • A forest fire is an uncommonly beautiful thing, but unfortunately I didn't have my better camera this trip. This is our first glimpse of the fire as we pulled up on a hillside overlooking a dimly lit slope with cool smoke drifting through the black outlines of trees. Here and there a "candle" glowed bright from the top of a burning tree to add to the feel of the moment.
  • Our staging area for the week on the fire was the local elementary school, which positively thrilled the kids as they took tours of the fire engines standing by for assignments.
  • The crew works a hotspot with a bit of water from the engine. Having engines made things easier for us because of the amount of water we carried with us all the time, but it also kept us confined to the road system, and even then only a few roads would suport our trucks.
  • Construction and land clearing often lead to piling of debris in giant mounds, which make very deep hotspots when a fire rolls through. Here, the crew mops up a big one.
  • Helitack maintained a constant attack overhead, dropping buckets on trouble hotspots and trying to keep the fire from growing.
  • Our second night on the fire we camped in the school's field. A few unprepared members of the crew were forced to rig whatever shelters they could, and managed to survive the frosty night without too much discomfort.
  • A light rain picks up as Bowzr Diaz gets his gear together after mopping up a few hotspots around a house. Our main job was structure protection, but fortunately for the locals we didn't have to do very much of that, so we wandered the neighborhoods making sure everything was completely out around the buildings.
  • Tommy Hightower runs the hoseline putting out a hotspot. Things got a bit chilly in the mornings, especially with the water we were using splashing around and soaking everything.
  • When water is scarce or even not available at all, simply "grubbing" with a tool is the best option to put out the fire. Just mixing hot dirt with cool dirt helps disipate the heat and prevent continued burning. Here Steven cuts away an embankment with smoldering heat underneath, helped by a bit of water from the hoseline and a light rain.
  • The mood lightens a bit as we laugh about getting our engine stuck, but in a different situation with higher fire activity this could be an extremely dangerous predicament. We do our best to avoid this.
  • Very often in firefighting, conditions are such that you can't even see your feet. In this case it's just a small hotspot Greg Adamietz is working, but sometimes the whole fireline is like this. It gets a bit tough to find and fight the fire then.
  • The dense wood in the heavier fuels holds heat remarkably well. When we find hotspots in tree stumps or logs, we first have to expose the heat, and then cool it either with water or grubbing in the cold dirt. Greg Adamietz exposes the heat inside this stump to let it all cool down.
  • A self portrait overlooking a deep gully from my perch on an overhanging log.
  • The high stress of long hours and hard work often leave us starving for a bit of relief. Enter: Tom, and a rubber glove.
  • Bowzr Diaz extinguishes a hotspot alongside the road.
  • Bowzr Diaz and Greg Adamietz finish off some heat at the base of a burnt spruce tree.
  • The scenery in Homer is hard to beat, with the whole hillside angling down into the Kachemak Bay, which is bordered on the other side by steep mountain slopes and more than a couple glaciers.
  • Greg Adamietz and Bowzr Diaz pose for a portrait in front of the Homer Scenery.
  • Greg Adamietz and Bowzr Diaz pose for a portrait in front of the Homer Scenery.
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