PENFIELD – This is the time of the year when most of Pennsylvania’s wildfires occur, and often it is a busy time for staff as well as the volunteer firefighters in communities, according to Wayne Wynick, assistant district forester with the Moshannon State Forest.
In Pennsylvania, he said nearly every wildfire is caused by humans, in some manner or another. One of the primary sources of springtime wildfires, he said, is people burning debris without being aware of how dry conditions might be.
“Once that fire has escaped their control, it is up to firefighters to keep that fire from causing additional property damage or even the possibility of causing an injury or the loss of a life,” he said.
According to Wynick, one of the tools that the Bureau of Forestry uses to attack these wildfires will soon be arriving at the Mid State Airport at Black Moshannon. It is in the form of two Air Tractor 802 “Water Bombers” that will be used for initial attack on wildfires throughout the region.
He said that this particular aircraft was designed specifically to fight wildfires and has become a workhorse across the nation. It has the capacity to deliver up to 800 gallons of water or fire retardant material quickly to a wildfire. He said this can be applied in a number of patterns in order to effectively control a wildfire.
The first aircraft will begin operations on March 28 and be on-station during the peak of the Spring Wildfire Season for this region of the state. The second aircraft will join it April 4. For a time, both will be on duty. The first one will depart on May 1, while the second one will remain until May 10, said Wynick.
After they depart Pennsylvania, he said they will move on to other locations in the western part of the United States to assist with wildfire suppression during the peak of fire activity in other states.
“These aircraft are considered to be a national resource and travel around to where they are most needed during the year,” he said.
He said that the use of aircraft, while costly, can be a valuable tool to a wildland firefighter. He said there are situations where structures are threatened, or perhaps it will take time before the firefighters are actually on scene because of the remoteness of the fire’s location.
In these cases, the aircraft can be a critical tool, said Wynick. He added that it can give firefighters the time they need by protecting structures or keeping a remote fire from becoming a large one that is much more difficult to bring under control.
In order to prepare local wildfire fighting resources to work in close coordination with the aircraft, Wynick said that a training meeting is planned for 10 a.m. March 27. It is to be held at the Black Moshannon Forest Maintenance Headquarters on Airport Road (three-quarters of a mile off from Route 504 on the right).
Topics that will be covered are: basic aircraft operations, air tanker operations and general safety for wildfire fighting when aircraft are in use, he said.
According to Wynick, not only will the training be informative, but the aircraft is also required to make a test drop to certify its readiness to go on-line as part of Pennsylvania’s wildfire fighting resources. This test drop will occur at the Moshannon Air Tanker Base at the Mid State Airport immediately after the end of the training (weather permitting).