The Columbia press., April 27, 2018, Page 7, Image 7

April 27, 2018
T he C olumbia P ress
Firefighters prepare for another busy season
The Oregon Department of
Forestry has begun gearing
up for this summer’s inevita-
ble wildfires.
A lot of preparation goes on
behind the scenes each win-
ter and spring, said Blake El-
lis, the agency’s interim fire
operations manager.
“We essentially double our
firefighting forces going into
the summer, when wildfire
risk is highest,” Ellis said.
Readiness activities include
ensuring contracts for equip-
ment, aircraft and other re-
sources have been signed
and hundreds of miles of fire
hose have been cleaned and
rolled, ready for use state-
wide.
A new policy governing use
of drones has been adopted.
Hiring of seasonal firefight-
ers is under way. New fire-
fighters will attend training
at ODF and interagency fire
schools across the state in
June.
Permanent and returning
firefighters will take fire line
refresher training over the
next two months.
Last year, ODF had great
success testing infrared tech-
nology, the agency reported.
Carried on aerial vehicles, the
equipment sawed through
7
heavy smoke on two Oregon
wildfires – Horse Prairie and
Eagle Creek.
The technology provided
sharp images and real-time
fire mapping for fire manag-
ers.
“From detection to fire-map-
ping and active wildfire sup-
pression, aircraft continue to
play a critical role in the fight
to save lives, resources and
property,” said Neal Laugle,
ODF’s aviation manager.
Contracted aircraft flew
1,477 hours on firefighting
missions for ODF last year,
Courtesy ODF
more than 100 hours above Firefighters train last year at an interagency fire school in
average, he said.
Sweet Home.