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Forestry officials warn about risk
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An N.C. Department of Forest Resources helicopter demonstrated its firefighting capability last Friday over Lake Glenville. The tank attached to the aircraft holds about 250 gallons of water that can be transported and then dumped where needed. A number of area county and town officials were on hand for the demonstration and a briefing on the threat of devastating forest fires as a result of this summer's drought and the large fuel load on the forest floor left by storms such as Hurricane Opal.Herald photo by Lynn Hotaling |
Monday's rains came just in time to ease a potentially dangerous situation in Jackson County's forests. However, if showers don't continue at least every two weeks or so, conditions will remain ripe for a catastrophic forest fire.
That was the news N.C. Forest officials passed along to county and town government leaders during a briefing last Friday (Oct. 29) in Cashiers. Organized by N.C. Senator Dan Robinson (D-Jackson), the informational session brought home to local government officials the very real danger of destructive forest fires. Billed as the Western North Carolina Fire Summit, the event featured remarks by Robinson, state Division of Forest Resources Director Stan Allen and Cashiers-Glenville Volunteer Fire Chief Randy Dillard. The ever-present risk of forest fire is currently exacerbated by two factors the summer's extreme drought and an excessive fuel load (downed trees and limbs) left by storms such as Hurricane Opal in 1996, Allen said. The threat to real property has intensified over the last decade as more and more houses are constructed in wooded areas, he said. |
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"What has really made the difference is that lots of people have now decided they want to live in the woods," Allen said.
Another concern, said the forest official, is the public's lack of awareness of the danger. "Citizens are more and more unaware of the risk (of forest fire). Many are not taking the proper precautions," Allen said. Many houses are "literally unprotectable," he said, because of leaves and litter right up against the houses. "All it takes is drought, high winds and low humidity for disaster to strike," Allen said. Local volunteer fire departments do a lot to help forestry officials in the event of a fire, said the director, who called area volunteer firefighters "a tremendous asset" and said the departments are "tremendous partners." Allen told county commissioners who attended that the money county governments contribute to the Forest Service is like "a Lloyd's of London insurance policy. That little bit of money could bring all 700 N.C. Service people to your county on a given day." Jackson County's current budget includes almost $50,000 for the state Forest Service. Part of Friday's event was a demonstration of Forest Service firefighting equipment. A helicopter filled its tank in Lake Glenville and then dumped some 250 gallons back into the lake to show how water can be taken to the area of a fire. The division's Young Offenders Forest Conservation Program "helitack" crew performed a rappelling demonstration from the helicopter, showing how equipment and personnel can quickly be airlifted to the scene of a fire. Due to technical difficulties, the centerpiece of the forestry department's firefighting fleet, the CL-215 "Super Scooper" amphibious aircraft did not demonstrate its capacity to dump some 1,400 gallons of water as part of the division's initial attack on fires. A display of forest service equipment was located at Blue Ridge School. Local Fire Chief Dillard echoed Allen's thoughts on the danger forest fires pose to real property. "It's virtually impossible to have a fire that doesn't threaten a structure," he said. Another problem his department is facing is the difficulty accessing some of the homes being built in the Cashiers area. "People are not building roads designed for big fire trucks," he said. Narrow, steep roads and a 200-square mile district mean it can take up to 30 minutes to reach some houses in the Cashiers-Glenville service area, Dillard said. "I was concerned about the drought, and I want to make sure our communities are as safe as possible from the wildfires," Robinson said. "I thought it would be a good idea to have the folks from forestry come in to talk to us about how to protect lives and property." |
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