Verdi Fire
The fire started midday Friday, August 11, 2006 and quickly spread through the bone dry fuel. This is a nearby access road to the 444.975 repeater site. You can see that the fire burned to within 50 or 60 feet of it.
When we arrived on Sunday, the fire was mostly out and the fire crews were mopping up. You can see how close the fire came to the road. This is east of the site.
A couple of fire fighters are taking a break. One of them said he hadn't seen his wife in seven months, and said he is probably being reassigned to Oregon or Washington after this is done. Firefighters work hard, put in long hours and deserve our gratitude. Thank a firefighter when you see one.
A picture along the ridge towards the east. The smoke in the distance is another fire that started this morning. It was out by the time we left, fortunately.
Here's a picture of the facility after it was hit with retardant. It actually wasn't a direct hit, as they were dropping it between the facility and the fire in order to protect the site. In talking to one of the firefighters, we learned that a direct hit by retardant would cause some serious damage, certainly destroying the antennas. The antennas on the wooden array belong to the Verdi Translator Association.
Here you can see one side of our building is colored red with retardant. The wind probably blew it towards the building.
The Propane tank was hit also. The dark coloring looks like dirt, and is probably caused by the retardant mixing with smoke and dust.
Another view. Retardant (or Borate as it is more commonly known), is made by mixing water with a surfactant (to improve wetness, allowing it to penetrate fuels), then adding clay and coloring. The clay allows it to stick to, and cover the fuel, the coloring shows where it has been applied.
A front view of our building. Seems almost normal, except for the discoloration of the ground, Propane tank and fence.