{"id":60419,"date":"2019-06-11T04:00:37","date_gmt":"2019-06-11T11:00:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/?p=60419"},"modified":"2019-06-10T16:04:11","modified_gmt":"2019-06-10T23:04:11","slug":"wildfire-episode-three-incident-command","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/podcasts\/wildfire-episode-three-incident-command","title":{"rendered":"Wildfire Episode Three: Incident Command"},"content":{"rendered":"<span class=\"cb-itemprop\" itemprop=\"reviewBody\"><p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/player.simplecast.com\/b0241145-e116-499c-8b5e-382a7b087af0?dark=false\" width=\"100%\" height=\"200px\" frameborder=\"no\" scrolling=\"no\" seamless=\"\"><\/iframe><br \/>\n<a href=\"https:\/\/www.rei.com\/blog\/podcasts\/transcript-wildfire-episode-3-incident-command\">Transcript<\/a><\/p>\n<p>After the 15-year-old threw a lit smoke bomb that caused the Eagle Creek Fire to erupt almost immediately during Oregon\u2019s record dry summer of 2017, he and his friends fled downhill toward the trailhead. \u201cDo you realize you\u2019ve started a forest fire?\u201d, demanded a hiker also attempting to escape the flames. \u201cWhat\u2019re we supposed to do about it now?\u201d, the kids replied, clueless as to the severity of their actions.<\/p>\n<p>In episode three of Wildfire, we examine the incident command structure of wildland firefighting forces, how these response systems work, and what drives these men and women to keep going as they put their life on the line to stop these fires. We talk to a Fire Captain from Eastern Oregon, to one of the commanders from the Eagle Creek Fire itself, and to a wildland firefighter who worked in the early 2000s, the most-deadly era in wildland firefighting. And, of course, we hear from the people of the Columbia River Gorge about the initial days of the Eagle Creek Fire evacuation, when they were trying desperately to save their homes, their town and their lives.<\/p>\n<p>Listen to Wildfire on\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/podcasts.apple.com\/us\/podcast\/wildfire\/id1463624066\">Apple Podcasts<\/a>,\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/show\/5DOpMMuF4khwtHUQTWuOcB\">Spotify<\/a>,\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.stitcher.com\/s?fid=405439&amp;refid=stpr\">Stitcher<\/a>\u00a0or wherever you listen to podcasts.<\/p>\n<h4>Key takeaways:<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>1:45 \u2013 One of the boys in the group pulled a smoke bomb out of his pocket&#8230;<\/li>\n<li>4:58 \u2013 \u201cI wanted immediate punishment. I was so livid.\u201d<\/li>\n<li>6:32 \u2013 \u201cAfter the kid threw the smoke bomb into Eagle Creek, the following days unraveled into a gradually worsening nightmare.\u201d<\/li>\n<li>8:58 &#8211; On the fourth of September, the weather was dry and hot. The wind was gusting, and the fire in Eagle Creek was growing rapidly.<\/li>\n<li>9:39 \u2013 \u201cA huge feeling of helplessness. Even with all those firefighters, there was nothing we were going to do to stop it.\u201d<\/li>\n<li>10:10 \u2013 \u201cHow does all this wildland firefighting work?\u201d A conversation with Kurt Solomon, captain of the City of Bend Fire and Rescue, and Division Supervisor of Northwest Team 8.<\/li>\n<li>15:07 &#8211; \u201cThey just didn\u2019t realize the severity of the wind in the Gorge.\u201d The citizens of Dodson, Oregon feel the effects of the Eagle Creek Fire<\/li>\n<li>17:24 \u2013 \u201cSurely fire could not jump a mile of water\u2026\u201d The fire jumps the Columbia River.<\/li>\n<li>18:47 \u2013 \u201cOut of this unimaginable hardship, a spirit of resilience was brewing in Cascade Locks.\u201d The community rallies to feed and support the firefighters<\/li>\n<li>20:59 \u2013 \u201cIt\u2019s hard to imagine a more harrowing job, outside of military service.\u201d The life of a wildland firefighter<\/li>\n<li>26:53 \u2013 \u201cThe thing that kills firefighters is not necessarily even the heat\u2026 You\u2019re basically inside a tornado, a fire tornado.\u201d<\/li>\n<li>27:55 \u2013 \u201cThe proverbial cavalry had arrived.\u201d The battle to save The Multnomah Lodge<\/li>\n<li>33:28 \u2013 \u201cThe bond you create in the face of chaos\u201d How do forest fires build camaraderie among wildfire fighting teams?<\/li>\n<li>36:35 \u2013 \u201cI didn\u2019t know anything about PTSD\u2026\u201d The physical and emotional strain experienced by wildland firefighters<\/li>\n<li>38:09 \u2013 \u201cIn the Columbia River Gorge, a sense of guarded optimism was settling in\u2026\u201d<\/li>\n<li>41:46 \u2013 \u201cThe fire\u2019s initial, explosive growth had slowed significantly\u2026\u201d Reflecting on the work of the fire professionals<\/li>\n<li>44:05 \u2013 Is there a better way to \u201cfight\u201d fires?<\/li>\n<li>44:54 \u2013 Back in the Gorge, the firefighters were working hard to use the opportunity afforded them by the calm winds. But the fire was only 7 percent contained.<\/li>\n<li>46:40 \u2013 Who was the teenager who started it all? How was he being handled by the legal system during this emotionally-charged time?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h4>Resources:<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li><span class=\"gmail-s1\"><span style=\"font-family: arial,sans-serif;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.fema.gov\/incident-command-system-resources\">FEMA&#8217;s Incident Command Resources Page<\/a><\/span><\/span><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.multnomahfallslodge.com\/\">Multnomah Falls Lodge<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h4>More about the Wildfire podcast<\/h4>\n<p>When a wildfire arrives at our doorstep, it\u2019s a tragedy. This is especially true when these fires are human caused. But fire has always been an immense and immovable part of the natural order, particularly in the forests of the western United States.<\/p>\n<p>Forest fires and the destruction they cause are not black and white phenomenon, and they cannot be understood without looking closely at the issues that swirl and mutate around the subject of wildfire as much as the fires themselves.<\/p>\n<p>In <em>Wildfire<\/em>, hosts Graham Zimmerman and Jim Aikman explore the natural forest habitats in which wildfires burn, and how humans have historically interacted with forest fires and fire-susceptible terrain. Graham and Jim lead us into wild places impacted by forest fire; into history books; into conversations with scientists, naturalists, firefighters and politicians; and into the story of the destructive <a href=\"https:\/\/www.oregonlive.com\/pacific-northwest-news\/2017\/09\/live_updates_eagle_creek_fire.html\">2017 Eagle Creek Fire<\/a>, a human-caused forest fire that forever changed <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fs.usda.gov\/recarea\/crgnsa\/recreation\/hiking\/recarea\/?recid=29912&amp;actid=50\">Oregon\u2019s Columbia River Gorge<\/a>, one of the most unique and beloved scenic areas in the Pacific Northwest.<\/p>\n<p>Guided by the story of the Eagle Creek Fire\u2014and the ordeal of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hoodrivernews.com\/archive\/about-hikers-trapped-by-fire-at-eagle-creek-trail\/article_2cced0df-886f-53f5-8827-62d9456e4808.html\">150 hikers<\/a> who were unexpectedly trapped behind its towering flames\u2014<em>Wildfire <\/em>explores how, over the last 100 years in the United States, we have demonized and sought to suppress wildfire in an effort to <a href=\"http:\/\/www.conservationalliance.com\/\">preserve natural resources, scenic spaces<\/a>, and, of course, human civilization.<\/p>\n<h4>Connect with the team<\/h4>\n<ul>\n<li>Graham&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.grahamzimmerman.com\">website<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/grahamzimmerman\/\">Instagram<\/a><\/li>\n<li>Jim&#8217;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.jimaikman.com\">website<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/jimaikman\/\">Instagram\u00a0<\/a><\/li>\n<li>Evan&#8217;s (aka: the audio wizard) <a href=\"https:\/\/www.podpeak.com\">website<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/podpeak\">Instagram<\/a><\/li>\n<li>Sean&#8217;s (aka: the wordsmith) <a href=\"http:\/\/www.cascadecadence.com\">website<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>You can see more of Graham and Jim&#8217;s work through their production company, Bedrock Film Works.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/www.bedrockfilmworks.com\/\">Website<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/bedrockfilmworks\/\">Facebook<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/bedrockfilmworks\/\">Instagram<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/span>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Transcript After the 15-year-old threw a lit smoke bomb that caused the Eagle Creek Fire to erupt almost immediately during Oregon\u2019s record dry summer of 2017, he and his friends fled downhill toward the trailhead. \u201cDo you realize you\u2019ve started a forest fire?\u201d, demanded a hiker also attempting to escape the flames. \u201cWhat\u2019re we supposed [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":57,"featured_media":60422,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1726,1861],"tags":[],"internal-tag":[],"class_list":["post-60419","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-podcasts","category-wildfire"],"parsely":{"version":"1.1.0","canonical_url":"https:\/\/rei.com\/blog\/podcasts\/wildfire-episode-three-incident-command","smart_links":{"inbound":0,"outbound":0},"traffic_boost_suggestions_count":0,"meta":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","headline":"Wildfire Episode Three: Incident 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