We had a bit of a scare this morning when a forest fire was ignited right in the middle of the town that I live in. It is warm and windy today, and the fire was growing alarmingly fast at first, threatening many houses, business, and the school. Not to mention my house, which is further away (1 mile), but downwind. I watched the fire burn from a bluff outside of town with a group of other residents, a few of whom live very close and were ordered to evacuate. It was obvious though, when the tanker plane showed up from Fairbanks, that the fire was no match for the cavalry. There are now 2 tankers, and 2 helicopters with buckets circling above, and the fire looks to be pretty much out. A little too close for comfort, but is was neat to see how quickly state-wide resources were on top of it.
The tanker arriving from Fairbanks.
Big flames!
My buddy Jon in the park helo - hitting hot spots with the bucket.
Tanker dropping a load - school in the background.
