FROM: U.S. AIR FORCEA Vandenberg Hot Shots vehicle backs into the belly of a C-17 Globemaster here from March Air Reserve Base June 27. Eighteen members of the Vandenberg Hot Shot crew, along with two hot shots crew carrier vehicles, one superintendant support vehicle and one all terrain vehicle deployed to Colorado to support the wildland fire fighting efforts. (U.S. Air Force photo/Andrew Satran)
Vandenberg sends Hot Shots to Colorado wildfire front lines
by Staff Sgt. Erica Picariello
30th Space Wing Public Affairs
6/27/2012 - VANDENBERG AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- Vandenberg deployed the only Department of Defense wildland fire fighting asset at 2 p.m. June 27 in support of the wildland fire fighting efforts in Colorado Springs.
The 18-member Vandenberg Hot Shot crew, along with two hot shots crew carrier vehicles, one superintendant support vehicle and one all terrain vehicle, loaded into the belly of a C-17 Globemaster from March Air Reserve Base at approximately 1 p.m. on June 27.
"This is national support at its finest," said Mark Farias, Vandenberg Fire Department chief. "Vandenberg Hot Shots, being the only DoD hot shots, bring a critical skill set to the fight. These guys will be on the front lines of this wildfire using their training regarding wildfires and urban interface to save lives and structures in the state of Colorado."
The hot shots will most likely be assigned to the Waldo Canyon Fire. As that fire rages in Colorado Springs, engulfing more than 15,517 acres, many military bases and residential areas are in danger and facing mandatory evacuation. This hot shots crew has been explicitly trained to save structures, not just to extinguish the flames.
"When a building or community faces a wild fire danger we use structure triage," said Jesse Hendricks, Vandenberg Hot Shots superintendent. "First we remove any fuel source, like trees or shrubbery, from around the home using hand tools. Once we've created an area clear of fuels, we actually burn a fire around the structure that will carry the initial fire away from the homes."
Vandenberg's Hot Shots are going into this inferno mentally and physically prepared.
"We all got into the mindset that this is going to be a nasty situation," Hendricks said. "We understand fatigue will be a factor, so we are all hydrating and are trying to get as much sleep as we can before getting to Colorado. When we go into any wildfire we try to relate it to our 'mental slides,' meaning that we recall similar wildfires and pull from those lessons learned so that we will be more effective."
Vandenberg's Fire Chief feels confident that this hot shot crew will prove to be a valuable asset to the containment of the Colorado wildfire.
"Thousands of people and homes are threatened, but the most skilled DoD wildland fire fighters are being deployed. Our hot shots are difference makers, having saved this base numerous times, our surrounding communities and now Colorado Springs," Farias said.
