One of the BIGGEST Shows in the Air

Pocatello Air Tanker Base has one if the biggest tankers in the nation refilling at our base to fight the Lodgepole Fire in Challis, Idaho. Our crew had a chance to drive to the base and check it out. The DC-10 Air Tanker is an American wide body jet air tanker, which has been in service since 2006. It's a converted DC McDonnell Douglas DC-10 airliner, that is now used in to fight wildland fires.  It can carry roughly 12,000 U.S. gallons of water or retardant in the exterior belly tanks. It takes roughly 30 minutes to fill up. The contents can be released in 8 seconds. It is an impressive aircraft.

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Granite Mountain Hotshots

Watch "Granite Mountain Interagency Hotshots Tribute" on YouTube

This is a well put together tribute for our fellow firefighters. They will be missed.

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Idaho National Guard Search and Rescue

The Idaho National Guard put on a search and rescue training for the:  B.L.M., U.S. Forest Service, Inkom Fire Department, and Power County E.M.S.
Class room training was done at the Pocatello Fields Office then moved on to live helicopter training at East Fork Nordic Center at Scout Mountain on Thursday, 10th.
The Idaho National Guard, out of Boise, flew in two Lakota helicopters for the live training session, that were equipped with a 250 foot side winch to lower and raise an individual. The students were briefed and practiced low level patient winch evacuation. Plus hot (helicopter rotors still moving) loading and unloading of patients from the helicopter while landed on the ground. The Lakota patient doors are located at the rear of the helicopter. That was personally unsettling for me due to the fact from my previous years as a fire helirappler to never walk near a helicopter tail rotor.
We learned great E.M.S unified tactics and proper protocols if we need to call the National Guard for assistance.

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2 1/2 Mile Fire Went Gunny

We were performing a burnout out operation when the other side of fire had an ember cross the dozer line and created a spot fire that almost compromised our vehicle staging area.

The flames that were coming off the junipers were over 50 feet in height. I could feel the heat from the flame front that was approaching. I suddenly became their lookout and we luckily only had minor damage to an ATV from the flame front and nobody was hurt.

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2 1/2 Fire

Donavin mopping up with little sleep from the night before.

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