Whenever I see firetrucks go by I feel deep emotions.

[alittlelark]

I don't really know what the root of it is.....

I just think of them as the rare ppl that are willing to go into the worst of the worst situations to protect others. They spent a lot of time going through training to save ppl from dire situations. They are really true heroes.

This Yarnell firefighters story is heartbreaking.



...edited for spelling screw-up.....

[Purveyor]

1. Whenever I see a life-flight copter fly over, I feel the same way... eom

[alittlelark]

2. I have that problem as well....

Same w/ ambulances.

[Warpy]

3. Out here, they draw heavily from people on the reservations

who spend the warm months eating smoke to make enough money to eke out the government allotments during the winter. I know quite a few who do that every single year.

Fire is necessary out west, it's how forests renew themselves. The problems are that decades of fire suppression have left the forests choked with fuel and that people have built their homes deep in the forest.

My heart goes out to the families of the firefighters and to people who have lost their cabins outside Yarnell.

NM got a respite from the extreme heat today. Maybe that will spill over and into the fire area, allowing them to get it contained tomorrow.

[alittlelark]

4. I'm a NM native as well - I understand the need for fires for some species.

Why won't they allow us to collect dead wood everywhere... instead of only in certain areas? Seriously? My place in Jemez is surrounded by by dead wood..... but I cannot collect it for my fireplace. The firefighters I talk w/at Los Ojos gripe about the same thing.

PS- although not there at the moment, friends are keeping me updated.

[Warpy]

8. I know, the rules covering dead wood collection are INSANE

People out on the Pueblos tend to keep their forest areas cleaned up and only burn the dead wood they gather for home heating. They think the policy is nuts, too.

It could only have been dreamed up by a Republican.

[alittlelark]

9. My property is adjacent to Nat Forest land....

DENSE w/dead wood.... but I am not allowed to harvest it.

[Triana]

5. Horribly tragic - 19 of them

All died trying to save others. My thoughts are with their families.

[nadinbrzezinski]

6. I used to be one of those crazy people

Who went on emergency calls.

An old EMSer in Mexico once told me when I was young and dumb (got over half of it) that when you see a vehicle going code three to a scene, say a little thanks and wish them they go home at the end of the shift.

Fast forward 20 and some years I do that...and lord knows I lost my religion in a call. I also always tell them to stay safe...

(As to the dumb...these days I go to those wild fires to find what we need to keep people safe by telling them where the shelters are. I regularly take photos at the fire line...and what happened today...it's always in the back of my mind. Three weeks ago my local fire department were damn lucky...wind shifted on them in a controlled burn...they had to run for it)

[niyad]

7. thanks to this post, I just read about the yarnell firefighters. how truly sad and awful. I am so

Last edited Mon Jul 1, 2013, 10:12 AM - Edit history (1)

glad that in the waldo canyon fire last year, and the black forest fire this year, and now the west fork fire so far, that we did not lose any of these brave people.

your post also reminded me that this week is the 19th anniversary (6 july) of the storm king mountain fire outside glenwood springs, where 14 firefighters (12 smokejumpers and 2 pilots) died.