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American Morning
Much of Battle Against Western Wildfires Being Waged from National Interagency Fire Center
Aired August 20, 2001 - 11:32 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: Hundreds of thousands of acres of land in the Western United States remain under siege from dozens of big wildfires. Up to 400,000 acres are now ablaze. In the hard-hit Pacific Northwest, firefighters are getting some relief today from cooler weather on the way.
Much of this battle against the Western wildfires is being waged from the National Interagency Fire Center in Boise, Idaho. A long name, basically, it's the place where they keep the eye on the situation all across the U.S.
Our Jeff Flock is there and he joins us now from one of the fire tanker bases.
Jeff, hello.
JEFF FLOCK, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Indeed, Daryn. We, all morning, have been inside where they are planning the logistics of all of this, and now -- you said that it was sort of under siege out there in the Pacific Northwest, and that's why it is sort of like war and why I am standing under the wing of a C-130. Let's take a look at how big this aircraft is. This is something they use typically in battle, and that's pretty much what they're up against right now, battle.
I am with General John Iffland, U.S. Air Force.
How many aircraft does the Air Force have in action now, and what's one doing.
GEN. JOHN IFFLAND, AIR NATIONAL GUARD: Well, between the Air Force Air Guard and the Air Force Reserve, we have eight C-130s configured for aero-firefighting, and these are directed against the fire.
FLOCK: You said direct attack. What is this one doing?
IFFLAND: This one is loaded with about 3,000 gallons of retardant. We'll fly against the fire, as directed by the U.S. Forest Service. We'll fly against the fire as directed by the U.S. Forest Service, and their lead aircraft, to lay a swathe that will break the path of the fire-robbing oxygen out of the fire itself.
FLOCK: Now come show me the tail end of this aircraft, because, I mean, some people may have seen what a C-130 looks like, and if they do, they know that it's just got a big area where you can put pretty much anything. What you put in here is what?
IFFLAND: It's called the modular airborne firefighting system. It's a series of about five tanks, four of which holds the retardant and the one holds air pressure. Load them up on the ground, like we're doing this morning, send them up in flight, in flight, put pressure on the liquid, and out it goes when we tell it to.
FLOCK: Got you.
I want to bring in Ed Waldapfel if I can. Ed, this one's loaded up here. Do you know where it's headed.
ED WALDAPFEL, U.S. FOREST SERVICE: No, I don't. But it's probably going over to Wyoming. The fire is Wyoming.
FLOCK: Wyoming fires.
Now I want to ask you also about this retardant. Take a look here, if you can see down here, this is what you are dumping on the fire. What is this stuff?
WALDAPFEL: Basically, this is a liquid retardant. It's about 80 percent water and about 15 percent of other compounds, liquid fertilizer, and about 5 percent other compounds, like thickening and coloring.
FLOCK: Now some people question whether if this is safe for the environment, that sort of thing? What is this stuff?
WALDAPFEL: It's basically a liquid fertilizer, and they drop it -- it's primarily water. It's 85 percent water, and the rest of it is a liquid fertilizer. It's very safe for the environment. It helps plants and things grow after the fire has burn through.
FLOCK: Now, what does it do? How does it retard the fire?
WALDAPFEL: Basically, it's very cool. It's mostly water, and as they drop this, it gives the firefighters a chance on the ground to get caught up on the build line. It retards. It slows the fire down, so that the people on the ground can build the line.
FLOCK: Do you dump it straight on the fire, or around it?
WALDAPFEL: Basically, they try to get it right on the edge of the fire, and sometimes they'll put it out in the advance of the fire.
FLOCK: I have to bring the general back in, and you know, you are right in the teeth of it right now. This is heavy fire season. Yesterday alone, they tell us 241 new fires yesterday alone. How do you keep up?
IFFLAND: Well, it's pretty difficult, but the U.S. Forest Service here, their coordinating center, does a great job of balancing assets. As they get a handle on fires in one part of the country, they'll bring those assets against the others, and so it's a tactical warfare that's going on, and they do a great job of it.
FLOCK: Can the Air Force commit more aircraft, or are you tapped out?
IFFLAND: We are tapped out, with respect to aerial firefighters. You see all the equipment we've got, so we're at full battle stuff right now.
FLOCK: Good luck to you, Gentlemen. Thank you very much. Ed, I appreciate the trimmer on the retardant.
This one they say, they think, is headed for Wyoming. Plenty of fires out here. Telling us at National Interagency Fire Center, 40 large fires, in which they can classify as large fires, is 100 or more acres, and something that has not yet been contained, a lot of work to do out here. That is the latest from the National Interagency Fire Center here in Boise, Idaho.
KAGAN: Jeff Flock, thank you so much.
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