If anyone has been paying attention to interior Alaska, then you have seen coverage the 79,000 + acre forest fire caused by, well, artillery practice on the 19th of June. Below I posted a picture that was provided by a reader of the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner paper. In the distance, you can see my buddies flying over with a bambi bucket (a big, orange flexible plastic bucket they dip into bodies of water and dump on the fire). If you read some of the articles, this fire has been very unforgiving. Including advising an evacuation of residents in threatened areas yesterday afternoon. The evacuation order was lifted today, but the fire is only around 5% contained. We see a lot of smoke and clouds from it, and yesterday a bit of ash, but we aren't in any danger, thank goodness.
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| Not my photo, but one of my units CH-47F doing their part. |
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| Our view in the back yard yesterday morning. Technically, there wasn't a cloud in the sky. This is all smoke from the fire. Here is a link to a pretty good article about the fire: http://www.newsminer.com/news/local_news/stuart-creek-fire-doubles-in-size-to-acres-evacuation-order/article_c80adcf6-e747-11e2-92b4-001a4bcf6878.html I've really seen the community come together with this emergency. At the fairgrounds, they have set up shelter for all the residents of the threatened areas' pets and livestock. There is a large dog-mushing community, as well as cattle farmers and hobbyist. They are prepared for anything you need to bring. Storage is offered at an elementary school for large equipment and vehicles, such as motorhomes, tractors, etc. |
