Well... it is finally here. I know it seems as though we are behind the curve, and truth be told we are just a little later than normal. If you are interested in applying for a seasonal position with Zion Helitack, you should follow the directions below to ensure you have an oportunity at employment.
Zion Helitack will be looking at the potential for one GS-5 senior firefighter position, and 1-3 GS 3 or 4 firefighter positions. There is never a gaurantee that these positions will be available as we often offer returning crewmembers the opportunity to occupy the same position that had the year previous. What we can gaurantee you is that without applying you will not have the opportunity to be considered for employement, should we have positions open... so bottom line is this; Apply if you are interested... it doesn't committ you to anything other than a small amount of work to get your application in.
To Apply:
go to - www.usajobs.gov
under the keyword search enter - NPS-FIRE-2010-020
under the location search enter - Cedar City
Press Enter!
The only position that should come up is the following announcement
NPS-FIRE-2010-020
Helitack Wildland Firefighter GS3/4/5 Seasonal
Please read through the entire application prior to following the directions for application which are on the How To Apply tab.
IMPORTANT: January 26,2010 will be the cut off date for early consideration.
Often times we will not pull another certificate following this early consideration, as we typically have enough interested candidates that no further consideration is necessary!
So there you have it... the announcement is out! I highly recommend that you apply early! (Prior to January 26,2010) It is also recommended that if you have any questions concerning the job, you call the Helicopter Program Manager his number will be listed below...
Again, there is no known position that will be available... however, the potential exists for a GS-5 senior firefighter and 1 to 3 additional GS 3/4 positions.
IMPORTANT: If you are a previous employee of Zion Helitack and wish to return after a break in service (i.e. you did not fight fire for us during the 2009 season), you should apply! This ensures that we are aware of your desire to return to the crew... If you are a member of Zion Helitack that fought fire seasonally during the 2009 season, and you wish to gain a different level of employement (i.e. you were a GS-4 in 2009, but would like to be a GS-5 in 2010), then you MUST apply to this announcement again. We cannot give a promotion to you without proper competition... Call you supervisor with any questions regarding this post.
We look forward to seeing a large number of applicants... so apply early and be thorough!
Zion Helitack
Helicopter Program Manager
Michael Reid - 435-865-4640
or you may e-mail your questions to zionhelitack@live.com
Good Luck!
Friday, December 4, 2009
Monday, November 16, 2009
Short-haul or Rappel
There are many crews that have added valuable tools (skills) to supplement their capabilities as a helitack crew. Two tools that often carry a lot of hype are Rappel and Short-haul. Rappel is of course what you would imagine. It typically involves two rappelers and a spotter working out of a helicopter allowing for access to terrain and vegatation that would be difficult to land in.
The practice of Short-haul is fairly well regulated, and requires the right skilled people with a very skilled pilot. There are no reported accidents or injuries using NPS helicopters to do Short-haul. Many years ago, there was a death during a Short-haul evolution when a military aircraft performed a similar style of extraction and inadvertantly drug a patient through the trees... killing the individual. So it is conservative to say that Short-haul is also a risky tool that we utilize.
So this is the question that has come up recently... could Short-haul be utilized as a tool to insert firefighters the same as rappel. Are the risks greater than that of rappel? Could risk be mitigated if a crew was not utilizing both tools (i.e. rappel to insert firefighters, short-haul to rescue victims)? Recently Short-haul has been approved to insert law enforcement into locations for the seizing of marijuana plantations, could the same tool then be utilized for firefighters?
Rappelers can decend from the helicopter at great speed from varying heights up to 250 feet above the ground. It takes a skilled pilot, and a lot of training for the crew to obtain this skill and remain proficient in its use. Many agencies within land management have excercised this practice. It is utilized primarily by firefighters that are looking to gain access to fires that are in very remote locations, typically wilderness.
Rappel requires that a pilot pull into a hover over a predetermined location. Upon inspection of the location, a spotter will drop ropes out of either side of the helicopter. Once the ropes have reached the ground and following a series of checks, the spotter will tell the rappelers to go to the skids. Once each rappeler has taken his/her position on the skids and all looks good to the spotter... the word is given to rappel. Both rappelers will then negotiate their way off of the skids and into a free slide rappel. Rappeling has an inherent risk associated with it... there are a lot of checks and training that takes place to ensure that no accidents occur, however despite every effort there is the occasional injury associated with rappeling. Until recently those injuries have typically been minor in nature, however this last year the first recorded death associated with rappeling occured.
Short-haul is a practice that is primarily exercised by the National Park Service, and some state agencies. It has been utilized almost exclusively for Search and Rescue activities. The practice of Short-haul requires incredible skills by the pilot and a well trained group of individuals to perform the Short-haul. In Short-haul individual technitions are connected to the bottom of a long line and lifted from one location to be delivered to another location. It is primarily a life saving activity used for extracting injured individuals that require medical attention.
The practice of Short-haul is fairly well regulated, and requires the right skilled people with a very skilled pilot. There are no reported accidents or injuries using NPS helicopters to do Short-haul. Many years ago, there was a death during a Short-haul evolution when a military aircraft performed a similar style of extraction and inadvertantly drug a patient through the trees... killing the individual. So it is conservative to say that Short-haul is also a risky tool that we utilize.
So this is the question that has come up recently... could Short-haul be utilized as a tool to insert firefighters the same as rappel. Are the risks greater than that of rappel? Could risk be mitigated if a crew was not utilizing both tools (i.e. rappel to insert firefighters, short-haul to rescue victims)? Recently Short-haul has been approved to insert law enforcement into locations for the seizing of marijuana plantations, could the same tool then be utilized for firefighters?
We want to know what you think about this topic... on the right there is a survey that asks the question, feel free to give your opinion by answering that survey. However, I would suggest that you add a comment (whether you want to be annonymous or not) by clicking on the comment box at the bottom of this post... give us your two cents about the topic... particularly, do you think it is a viable alternative to rappel... and if so or if not, why?
waiting to publish your comments,
Saturday, October 31, 2009
Mill Flat Fire
This season has been different... and the terminology attached to that difference was "Fire for Resource Benefit". Many members of the crew felt that we should have made up some T-shirts that prominently displayed "Fire for Resource Benefit Tour of '09"!
Mill Flat was one of those fires... It started mid season and spent the better part of a month creeping around the wilderness of the Pine Valley Mountains. For the most part doing some good for the resource... This fire ended in controversy and pain! We do not pretend to understand nor do we pass judgement on the decisions made concerning the management of this fire. Our job is to be available to support those decisions made... early on the decision was made that this naturally occuring fire would be left to its own agenda in the wilderness. Mother Nature was in control, and fire managers took a sideline seat to monitor and observe what she had in store...
This was the unfortunate result... a fire that quickly spread downhill out of the wilderness and into the town of New Harmony. Again, we do not wish to question or second guess what decisions were made... we want to focus on the role we took once the fire became unruley.
The picture above is of a retardent drop from a heavy air-tanker... this photo was taken the morning after the big push into town. New Harmony was not out of the woods... a lot of damage had been at this point but the threat of further damage was still very real. At this point a Type I incident management team had been ordered and Zion Helitack was engaged in establishing a base of operations for the large amount of helicopters that were already on order.
As you can see in this picture... the fire still had a lot of vegatation and topography that it was able to march across. It is difficult to see in this picture, so I will describe what was occuring. A wall of fire that was backing downslope, against the wind, allowing for dramatic uphill runs!
New Harmony was definately on the edge of the continued threat... several homes had already been lost, and many more homeowners were still nervous about the coming hours and days. The tension in town was thick! Many people had (and still do) emotional opinions concerning the decisions made about this fire, and the continued efforts of the fire fighters on the ground. We did our best to be understanding of the situation they were in, while trying to focus on the job we must do... The above picture was taken from town, and shows just how close the fire was and the altered veiw of the landscape that most will live with for many years.
On a positive note... a look to the East still holds a dramatic veiw of Kolob! It reminded us of the extreme oposites that Mother Nature can be... The gorgeous vista compared to the destructive power of a wildfire.
Back to our role... above, a picture of Zion Helitack crewmembers discussing the fire and their current roles. Hamm had been given the opportunity to work on the Color Country handcrew. She found us setting up a heliwell along her division and took the time to chat with Thayer and Damron about the events of the night prior.
She was obviously having a good time... it is always good to have a change of pace. We all love what we do on Zion Helitack... however, getting the chance to play a different role in fire is a welcome change... and Hamm was soaking up every minute of it!
Initially a 6000 gallon pumpkin (foreground) was established for the engines that were engaged in structure protection. We were asked to switch gears and establish a water source for the large helicopter show that had already engaged the fire. So we set up this 15,000 gallon Heliwell (transported to us from McCall Idaho)...
We had set up two Heliwells, both 15,000 gallon! This one was established a little further away from the fire in the foreseeable chance that the fire would smoke in the other water sources. We did a lot of work to ensure that the air show would not be slowed due to a lack of water. These large Heliwells are a monster to put together... but they are so valuable when you have large heavy helicopters looking for water. This one was brought to us from Richfield Utah.
Mill Flat was one of those fires... It started mid season and spent the better part of a month creeping around the wilderness of the Pine Valley Mountains. For the most part doing some good for the resource... This fire ended in controversy and pain! We do not pretend to understand nor do we pass judgement on the decisions made concerning the management of this fire. Our job is to be available to support those decisions made... early on the decision was made that this naturally occuring fire would be left to its own agenda in the wilderness. Mother Nature was in control, and fire managers took a sideline seat to monitor and observe what she had in store...
This was the unfortunate result... a fire that quickly spread downhill out of the wilderness and into the town of New Harmony. Again, we do not wish to question or second guess what decisions were made... we want to focus on the role we took once the fire became unruley.
The picture above is of a retardent drop from a heavy air-tanker... this photo was taken the morning after the big push into town. New Harmony was not out of the woods... a lot of damage had been at this point but the threat of further damage was still very real. At this point a Type I incident management team had been ordered and Zion Helitack was engaged in establishing a base of operations for the large amount of helicopters that were already on order.
As you can see in this picture... the fire still had a lot of vegatation and topography that it was able to march across. It is difficult to see in this picture, so I will describe what was occuring. A wall of fire that was backing downslope, against the wind, allowing for dramatic uphill runs!
New Harmony was definately on the edge of the continued threat... several homes had already been lost, and many more homeowners were still nervous about the coming hours and days. The tension in town was thick! Many people had (and still do) emotional opinions concerning the decisions made about this fire, and the continued efforts of the fire fighters on the ground. We did our best to be understanding of the situation they were in, while trying to focus on the job we must do... The above picture was taken from town, and shows just how close the fire was and the altered veiw of the landscape that most will live with for many years.
On a positive note... a look to the East still holds a dramatic veiw of Kolob! It reminded us of the extreme oposites that Mother Nature can be... The gorgeous vista compared to the destructive power of a wildfire.
Back to our role... above, a picture of Zion Helitack crewmembers discussing the fire and their current roles. Hamm had been given the opportunity to work on the Color Country handcrew. She found us setting up a heliwell along her division and took the time to chat with Thayer and Damron about the events of the night prior.
She was obviously having a good time... it is always good to have a change of pace. We all love what we do on Zion Helitack... however, getting the chance to play a different role in fire is a welcome change... and Hamm was soaking up every minute of it!
Initially a 6000 gallon pumpkin (foreground) was established for the engines that were engaged in structure protection. We were asked to switch gears and establish a water source for the large helicopter show that had already engaged the fire. So we set up this 15,000 gallon Heliwell (transported to us from McCall Idaho)...
We had set up two Heliwells, both 15,000 gallon! This one was established a little further away from the fire in the foreseeable chance that the fire would smoke in the other water sources. We did a lot of work to ensure that the air show would not be slowed due to a lack of water. These large Heliwells are a monster to put together... but they are so valuable when you have large heavy helicopters looking for water. This one was brought to us from Richfield Utah.We spent a lot of time supporting the Mill Flat fire... from initial recons when it was still considered a fire doing good for the wilderness to establishing multiple helibases to run the large air show that would fight the fire out of control to the transport of weather stations up the hill that will monitor rain fall and the potential for flooding... it was a long duration fire! A lot of lessons were learned from this fire... some of which were very upsetting to the community and the local land managers... the most important lesson, which seems to be one that is learned over and over again, is that Mother Nature is difficult to predict and even harder to control!
cheers,
Saturday, September 19, 2009
Our role in Park Management!
Below are a few random yet connected pictures of the various ways that Zion Helitack plays a role in the management of Zion National Park. On occassion we are asked what we do for the Park, below are a few pictures showing a couple of the things we do. The pictures weren't really chosen for their great example of the job we do... but more for the beautiful scenery! Enjoy...
The picture above is of Ben Suerig and Craig Thexton (Fire & L.E.) This was during the Cliffs Fire when we were mobilized to support evacuation of LaVerkin Canyon. It was in the general direction that the fire was heading and the Ranger staff knew of several back-country permits that would place people in harms way... we landing in the canyon in order to deliver these two SAR individuals, that they might have a head start in finding and evacuating those in the canyon.
This picture is a beautiful aerial veiw of Angels Landing, one of the most visited places in the Park. Unfortunately this photo (as were some of the others on this blog) was taken when we responded to the Park that we might help in an investigation and body recovery of a woman that fell from the edge of the Angels Landing trail.
This photo shows just how sheer the rock is from top to bottom... an awe-inspiring sight!
You can see several Rangers on the SAR (Search and Rescue) team standing on the trail. It gives a level of perspective to the steep and rugged country that makes up most of the main canyon. Again this photo is of the Angels Landing trail.
It is a small part of this photo... but hopefully it gives you the idea of what we see as we enter the park in search of a fire. The small smoke on the rim of the canyon is about 2 acres in size... for those that don't speak the language of "firefighter", an acre is approximately the size of a football field. We are still a few miles away from the smoke in this picture.
I love this photo... it really shows a great aerial view of Zion National Park. To truely respect and understand the rugged and unforgiving landscape that is Zion, you must see it from a vantage point much like this. It's a wonder why they call Southern Utah... Color Country!
Again, another view of the lanscape which makes up Zion National Park. In this photo you can see the West Rim trail on the left side of the photo. On the right side of the photo you can almost see the canyons that lead to the Subway, which is another very popular trail in the park. It is landscape like this that makes having a helicopter not only a usefull tool, but at times a necessary tool.
I threw in this last photo... to help those whom ask why so many people tragically lose their lives due to falls in the Park. Again in this photo you see the spure ridge that leads up to Angels Landing. The pullout that you can see at the bottom of the picture is Big Bend. You can see the vehicles parked their... they establish a great scale for reference. Each year we seem to have at least one fatality on this climb. It is unfortunate, but it is well signed and people are warned that it is not an easy trail. A single moment of inatentive hiking can lead to a very unforgiving fall.
The picture above is of Ben Suerig and Craig Thexton (Fire & L.E.) This was during the Cliffs Fire when we were mobilized to support evacuation of LaVerkin Canyon. It was in the general direction that the fire was heading and the Ranger staff knew of several back-country permits that would place people in harms way... we landing in the canyon in order to deliver these two SAR individuals, that they might have a head start in finding and evacuating those in the canyon.
This picture is a beautiful aerial veiw of Angels Landing, one of the most visited places in the Park. Unfortunately this photo (as were some of the others on this blog) was taken when we responded to the Park that we might help in an investigation and body recovery of a woman that fell from the edge of the Angels Landing trail.
This photo shows just how sheer the rock is from top to bottom... an awe-inspiring sight!
You can see several Rangers on the SAR (Search and Rescue) team standing on the trail. It gives a level of perspective to the steep and rugged country that makes up most of the main canyon. Again this photo is of the Angels Landing trail.
It is a small part of this photo... but hopefully it gives you the idea of what we see as we enter the park in search of a fire. The small smoke on the rim of the canyon is about 2 acres in size... for those that don't speak the language of "firefighter", an acre is approximately the size of a football field. We are still a few miles away from the smoke in this picture.
I love this photo... it really shows a great aerial view of Zion National Park. To truely respect and understand the rugged and unforgiving landscape that is Zion, you must see it from a vantage point much like this. It's a wonder why they call Southern Utah... Color Country!
Again, another view of the lanscape which makes up Zion National Park. In this photo you can see the West Rim trail on the left side of the photo. On the right side of the photo you can almost see the canyons that lead to the Subway, which is another very popular trail in the park. It is landscape like this that makes having a helicopter not only a usefull tool, but at times a necessary tool.
I threw in this last photo... to help those whom ask why so many people tragically lose their lives due to falls in the Park. Again in this photo you see the spure ridge that leads up to Angels Landing. The pullout that you can see at the bottom of the picture is Big Bend. You can see the vehicles parked their... they establish a great scale for reference. Each year we seem to have at least one fatality on this climb. It is unfortunate, but it is well signed and people are warned that it is not an easy trail. A single moment of inatentive hiking can lead to a very unforgiving fall.So there you have it... we provide several services for Zion National Park. Primarily we are a delivery method for those that need to navigate this very rough terrain. Stay tuned for the next update where we will share many pictures of the various fires and projects that we assisted in during the 2009 season.
cheers,
M.L.
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
New Post
I know that it has been a long while since the last update. A lot has occured! When things slow down, it is our intention to update the blog with pictures and stories. Until then, we will continue to ramp down for the season...
We completed the Greenville Bench RX
We spent time in Central Utah at the Sawmill Canyon Fire
We came home to Cedar only to witness the Mill Flat Fire come off the hill into the town of New Harmony... tragic
We have spent the past 12 days going from a managed Mill Flat Fire for Resource Benefit... to a Type III team... to a Type I team... now back to a Type III team... we are hoping to assist in putting the final nail on the coffin of the Mill Flat Fire, over the next few days.
We are 16 days from the end of the contract with Hillsboro... potentially 16 days from the closeout of the season for us... It has been a slow, and yet somehow very long season!
Cheers,
M.L.
We completed the Greenville Bench RX
We spent time in Central Utah at the Sawmill Canyon Fire
We came home to Cedar only to witness the Mill Flat Fire come off the hill into the town of New Harmony... tragic
We have spent the past 12 days going from a managed Mill Flat Fire for Resource Benefit... to a Type III team... to a Type I team... now back to a Type III team... we are hoping to assist in putting the final nail on the coffin of the Mill Flat Fire, over the next few days.
We are 16 days from the end of the contract with Hillsboro... potentially 16 days from the closeout of the season for us... It has been a slow, and yet somehow very long season!
Cheers,
M.L.
Monday, August 10, 2009
Deepest Sympothies
Sorry no pictures this time around... just a quick mention and a heartfelt thought! Yesterday (Sunday the 9th) we responded to the park to assist in a Search and Recovery. A wife and mother fell unexpectedly to her death on the Angel's Landing trail. It was a rough day for the recovery team, overshadowed only by the thoughts of a husband and children that witnessed the event. I took several crewmembers in to assist with the carry-out... sombering event.
I would like to state that myself and the crew hurt for the family left behind. They have been in our thoughts and prayers!
It reminds me that life is fleeting... and it doesn't take a dangerous job, or a desire for adrenaline filled activities in order for a life to be taken unexpectedly. Simply enjoying life can sometimes sneak up on you and rob away the moments you thought would last. Please, take the time to share your feelings with those you care about... and don't spend your days angered by the little things that we can't control, rather spend time enjoying the little things that make you smile!
Live Life!!! Make a memory... and most important, Smile!
Deepest Sympothies...
M.L.
I would like to state that myself and the crew hurt for the family left behind. They have been in our thoughts and prayers!
It reminds me that life is fleeting... and it doesn't take a dangerous job, or a desire for adrenaline filled activities in order for a life to be taken unexpectedly. Simply enjoying life can sometimes sneak up on you and rob away the moments you thought would last. Please, take the time to share your feelings with those you care about... and don't spend your days angered by the little things that we can't control, rather spend time enjoying the little things that make you smile!
Live Life!!! Make a memory... and most important, Smile!
Deepest Sympothies...
M.L.
Thursday, August 6, 2009
It's what we do...
In our line of work (Helitack) there are times that we stay incredibly busy, barely able to keep ahead of the next request... and there are times that we must entertain ourselves, for fear of going insane from the mundane work that is our job. I have engaged in countless discussions in which people have thrown out the cliche joke "L.C.E.S. = Locate Cooler Establish Shade". Truely few people that have spent any time on an exclusive use initial attack helicopter crew, would argue that those men and women stuck on the Helibase wouldn't rather be up on the hill fighting the fire! But someone must support the aviation operations that have become essential in fighting fires...
That being said... as a fire heads into the mop-up stage, the days get very long at Helibase. Now, I can't divulge the names... and I dare not speak of the program... primarily out of respect! However, I couldn't resist sharing with you the way in which some crews pass the time when Helibase operations become slow...
This particular crew is making a music video, in which an unnamed... unidentified crewmember dances to the music while typical helitack operations occur in the background. We all had a really good laugh watching these helitack producers strut their stuff in front of the "skycrane" as it dipped out of the lake...
I am aware that those who are familiar with this crew will recognize them immediately... but then anyone who has spent time around this particular crew knows that this ongoing production is taking place... to the fear of their supervisor, it will most likely end up on YouTube...
If you would like to check out some more super funny videos created by super bored helitack crews... try visiting YouTube.com and searching Helitack Videos.
That being said... as a fire heads into the mop-up stage, the days get very long at Helibase. Now, I can't divulge the names... and I dare not speak of the program... primarily out of respect! However, I couldn't resist sharing with you the way in which some crews pass the time when Helibase operations become slow...
This particular crew is making a music video, in which an unnamed... unidentified crewmember dances to the music while typical helitack operations occur in the background. We all had a really good laugh watching these helitack producers strut their stuff in front of the "skycrane" as it dipped out of the lake...
I am aware that those who are familiar with this crew will recognize them immediately... but then anyone who has spent time around this particular crew knows that this ongoing production is taking place... to the fear of their supervisor, it will most likely end up on YouTube...
If you would like to check out some more super funny videos created by super bored helitack crews... try visiting YouTube.com and searching Helitack Videos.
Until the next post... keep busy!
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Managed Burn in Monticello/Moab
The Monticello Burn required two helicopters. We utilized the Spec 2000 torches... this is saying a lot, as it has been 10 + years of modification to reach the successful use of these torches that we had.
We did a fair amount of recertification and training on day one... The picture above shows a trainee from Moab, filling the torch. The helicopters were coming in for a refill at a rate of one per every 6-8 minutes... it kept us hopping!
Hamm doesn't always like the many pictures taken of her... but she is always a good sport! This was a great shot of her giving me the, "not another Damn picture" look!
I love this picture... (above)... we have to placard the area where we vent the fuel fumes with a "no smoking" sign. It just so happens that the area overlooked the burn...
The parking tender awaiting the helicopter to land... so we could then move in and fill the torch!
Day Two... took us to Moab! Where we again utilized the Helitorch to light up some country. The second day was a little less complicated with only a fraction of the people and a single helicopter. The pilot struggled in the beginning to avoid tipping the torch... and his flight profile was a little choppy at first, but he kept it in the air and only got better as the day progressed.
I am not sure what Clint is describing here... but I thought his cotton shirt was fashionable and I couldn't resist the picture. Coveralls as a MixMaster are very hot... and in the Moab sun it was everyone's desire to avoid wearing them... try finding a long sleeve cotton shirt in Moab... people give you a weird look, to say the least. Thus the fashionable duds...
Iceman in the "Bannana Coveralls"... watching the handy work. It is always a good day when we can see the fruits of our efforts... Day 2 was definately more laid back than day 1....
This final picture sums up our three day trip... Linda took a moment to sit down, relax, and observe the show... this is something that doesn't happen often for the mixing crews on a Helitorch Helibase. It was a successful trip... we accomplished most of what was expected. I am excited for our next oportunity to support a managed burn via Helitorch... next time perhaps the whole crew can be there and our pilot can enjoy in some of the fun!
Cheers,
Saturday, June 20, 2009
'Bout Time!
It has been a while since our last post... Crew training is done! We went through Cargo Let Down recurrency, no issues. We have hosted our first group of detailers, and although we did not get any fires we spent a lot of time training... the two detailers who left this last week felt that the time spent on the crew was beneficial even though there wasn't any fires.
We accomplished a two day repeater project. Flying radio techs and equipment to the top of West Temple and Timber Top mountains. West Temple has a beautiful view of the main canyon in Zion, and is one of the highest points in Zion National Park. It is an isolated platuea on top of another platuea. It is possible to climb... however, few have the skill or time to do so. We choose to utilize the helicopter as an elevator to the top. Timber Top is one of the highest points overlooking Kolob. It is rather remote also... again, the helicopter makes sense!
Tomorrow, some of the crew will leave with the boss for Monticello Utah. The Manti-Lasal N.F. has a Prescribed Burn that will require Helitorch as the lighting method. We will be sure to update the blog next week upon the crews return... they have been instructed to take lots of pictures. This particular burn requires two helicopters, and a lot of Torch qualified people to make it all happen... our fingers are crossed that things will go well. Stay tuned for updates on this.
Outside of that... we have began a project cutting on a control line for the Pocket Mesa RX that we will do later this fall. The main canyon is providing most of the labor for the 3-4 miles of line that must be cut, however we have chipped in by sending 2-4 people each day for the past 2 or 3 days. It gets crew off of the base and helps with keeping sane...
speaking of sanity... it is slow! The season that is... the season is slow to begin! We have received a fair amount of moisture, but more than that the tempuratures have been cool and most days are overcast. There have been several small single tree fires on the district, but nothing they require our help to control. So it has been many long days at the yard for the helitack crew. Most projects are complete and finding things to keep us occupied and out of trouble are becoming harder and harder to find. We have instigated the 1600 ice cream social... all are welcome to join. I am not sure this is totally working... as Thea took on a challenge the other day at the social that tells us all we still have too much time on our hands. She deserves massive props for getting down 20 ice cream sandwiches in 20 minutes and keeping them down for another 10 minutes... she obtained a fair amount of cash, dinner, and a bottle of her choice for torturing herself like that. Mad Props!!!
The following picture sums up our days... we are hoping that the rainbow over the base is a sign of good things to come! Everyone should keep there fingers crossed for a little more fire activity. If not here in Color Country, than somewhere in the Nation that might call for some help.
"Have helicopter... will travel!"
Sunday, May 24, 2009
Zion Grass RX
On short notice, Helitack was invited down to the park in order to support the annual grass burn. I am pretty sure that most of the crew was glad to be free of the training for an afternoon, as we loaded the trucks to head South.
The backdrop for the grass burns was spectacular. It seemed as though the number of people on the burn was a little excessive for some of the units, but it paid to have the additional hands on other larger units we burned during the day.
Despite the lack of fast paced action, which usually comes with the suppression side of firefighting, the crew was enjoying the time out in the field doing something that resembles what they signed up to do... Thea had a hard time wiping the smile off of her face!
Most of the crew spent some time on the torch... a good refresher. No one likes the smell of a grass burn, the smoke stinks and burns the eye's and nose in a very noticeable way. It was good to stand in the smoke and break in the lungs for this 2009 season!
Just a little perspective on the beautiful grandier of Zion National Park... the picture below shows several members of the crew standing below the stone of Weeping Rock. You can't beet this... we get paid to do this stuff!
I'm sure that Thayer (Senior Lead) is sick of the photo sessions. The look on his face seems to say that once again he is wishing that the camera hadn't found his mug... The crew always seems to like the end of the year when we go through the pictures of the season... I'm sure Thayer will forgive the impromptu photograph.
Suerig (Lead Crewmember) enjoyed a moment of contemplation. Reality is... he too knows the camera is on him, and chooses to act as if he doesn't know he is being photographed. Both Leads enjoyed the opportunity to observe the crew and put into practice a few of the things that we have been training on for the past 10 days.
It was a great day... we enjoyed the work, the veiws, and each other! I think we are ready for the season... helicopter arrives on Monday and is on contract by Thursday of next week... Here we go!
Tom Green (Zion Engine Crew)... capped off the day with the ultimate pose of satisfaction. He is sporting the always fashionable weed eater... I am of the opinion that he enjoyed using that weed eater a little too much! Forget burning the grass... just set Tom loose with that machine and watch the progress made in mowing down the cheat grass! I appreciate Tom and his attitude towards having fun... he puts a smile on my face every time I'm around him.
Tom will be one of our first detailers to join the crew for a two week period this season... we look forward to him running with the crew for a couple of weeks!
The backdrop for the grass burns was spectacular. It seemed as though the number of people on the burn was a little excessive for some of the units, but it paid to have the additional hands on other larger units we burned during the day.
Despite the lack of fast paced action, which usually comes with the suppression side of firefighting, the crew was enjoying the time out in the field doing something that resembles what they signed up to do... Thea had a hard time wiping the smile off of her face!
Most of the crew spent some time on the torch... a good refresher. No one likes the smell of a grass burn, the smoke stinks and burns the eye's and nose in a very noticeable way. It was good to stand in the smoke and break in the lungs for this 2009 season!
Just a little perspective on the beautiful grandier of Zion National Park... the picture below shows several members of the crew standing below the stone of Weeping Rock. You can't beet this... we get paid to do this stuff!
I'm sure that Thayer (Senior Lead) is sick of the photo sessions. The look on his face seems to say that once again he is wishing that the camera hadn't found his mug... The crew always seems to like the end of the year when we go through the pictures of the season... I'm sure Thayer will forgive the impromptu photograph.
Suerig (Lead Crewmember) enjoyed a moment of contemplation. Reality is... he too knows the camera is on him, and chooses to act as if he doesn't know he is being photographed. Both Leads enjoyed the opportunity to observe the crew and put into practice a few of the things that we have been training on for the past 10 days.
It was a great day... we enjoyed the work, the veiws, and each other! I think we are ready for the season... helicopter arrives on Monday and is on contract by Thursday of next week... Here we go!
Tom Green (Zion Engine Crew)... capped off the day with the ultimate pose of satisfaction. He is sporting the always fashionable weed eater... I am of the opinion that he enjoyed using that weed eater a little too much! Forget burning the grass... just set Tom loose with that machine and watch the progress made in mowing down the cheat grass! I appreciate Tom and his attitude towards having fun... he puts a smile on my face every time I'm around him.
Tom will be one of our first detailers to join the crew for a two week period this season... we look forward to him running with the crew for a couple of weeks!
Week 2... More Training!
Week two of train-up was absolutely packed. We had the final member of the crew join our team. Thea arrived on Monday, and we introduced her to the park with the Fire Orientation Meeting and Bar-B-Que down at the park.
Tuesday, we did our fire refresher which included the Fire Shelter drill. Here are a couple of pictures of the crew during the Fire Shelter drill.
Each crew member takes the opportunity to practice deploying a practice fire shelter. The day cooperated well, winds were gusting at about 15-20mph which made for a more realistic deployment practice.
The crew gathered around one particular crew member that not only successfully deployed in a decent amount of time, but had a great seal... he set a great example of how it should be done.
We're glad to have Paul Damron back on the crew once again. He did a fabulous job during the shelter deployment drills...
We understand that deploying practice shelters on a lawn is not nearly realistic to what conditions will be like if it becomes necessary to utilize our shelters in the field, however the more repetitive the action is for the crew... the better prepared they should be to use the shelters if ever necessary. This is only the first of the shelter deployment practices we will have... these drills will be revisited throughout the season.
We followed shelter deployment with a team building P.T. The weight chase is a simple game, with simple rules. Two teams of equal size are created. The team members are bound together with a rope, which they are able to disconnect from if necessary. Each team member is handed a bag of weight... for this particular exercise it was 20 lbs per bag.
Each team starts on an opposite end of a course... then moving in the same direction they chase one-another until one team catches the other team. Simple.... right?
In the picture above you will notice that the teams have reduced in size... that is part of the rules and strategy of this game play. Each member has the option of dropping off the rope line if they feel their team will do better without them. They can do this but before doing so, them must hand their weight to another team member increasing that team members burden. In the picture above you will notice that team 1 is down to three... team 2 is down to two and moving in fast.
The final shot of the race.... as one team catches the other... in the background you will see that those who have dropped out from exhaustion or strategy, are rooting their team on!
It was 50 push-ups for the losing team... but as you can see, on Zion Helitack we are not a group of teams... we are one team!
The season is off to a great start... the crew making it through week 2 of train-up! Only one more week to go prior to the ship coming on. The projects are starting to stack up, and the weather is looking promising for a busy season. As always, we'll be ready!
Tuesday, we did our fire refresher which included the Fire Shelter drill. Here are a couple of pictures of the crew during the Fire Shelter drill.
Each crew member takes the opportunity to practice deploying a practice fire shelter. The day cooperated well, winds were gusting at about 15-20mph which made for a more realistic deployment practice.
The crew gathered around one particular crew member that not only successfully deployed in a decent amount of time, but had a great seal... he set a great example of how it should be done.
We're glad to have Paul Damron back on the crew once again. He did a fabulous job during the shelter deployment drills...We understand that deploying practice shelters on a lawn is not nearly realistic to what conditions will be like if it becomes necessary to utilize our shelters in the field, however the more repetitive the action is for the crew... the better prepared they should be to use the shelters if ever necessary. This is only the first of the shelter deployment practices we will have... these drills will be revisited throughout the season.
We followed shelter deployment with a team building P.T. The weight chase is a simple game, with simple rules. Two teams of equal size are created. The team members are bound together with a rope, which they are able to disconnect from if necessary. Each team member is handed a bag of weight... for this particular exercise it was 20 lbs per bag.
Each team starts on an opposite end of a course... then moving in the same direction they chase one-another until one team catches the other team. Simple.... right?
In the picture above you will notice that the teams have reduced in size... that is part of the rules and strategy of this game play. Each member has the option of dropping off the rope line if they feel their team will do better without them. They can do this but before doing so, them must hand their weight to another team member increasing that team members burden. In the picture above you will notice that team 1 is down to three... team 2 is down to two and moving in fast.
The final shot of the race.... as one team catches the other... in the background you will see that those who have dropped out from exhaustion or strategy, are rooting their team on!
It was 50 push-ups for the losing team... but as you can see, on Zion Helitack we are not a group of teams... we are one team!
The season is off to a great start... the crew making it through week 2 of train-up! Only one more week to go prior to the ship coming on. The projects are starting to stack up, and the weather is looking promising for a busy season. As always, we'll be ready!
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