How Big Forest Fires get Fought

About 10 days into a regional lightning bust across the Klamath and Siskiyou Mountains, the fires on the Smith River, near Gasquet, east of Crescent City, have emerged as the largest and most complex. This video talks about how large fires are fought, using the Smith River Fires and smaller fires in the Klamath Mountains as a case study.
We talk about fire aviation, mapping, what goes into planning a 'big box' and why fire managers are set up for failure during these sorts of events.
The Lookout is an independent media company reporting on wildfire, forestry, land management, and rural culture. We are driven by a desire to help people understand how wildfires work, the strategies employed by people attempting to manage them, and the intersection of fire and culture. We are based in Chico, in Northern California. We are 100% user-supported. If you enjoy our content, check out the-lookout.org and consider becoming a subscriber at the-lookout.org/donate.

[@Dave_9547]

This channel is by far the best information on fires and fire management.

[@niohhanonya3071]

Thank you for the update I'm in Crescent city and am worried about a friend's homes in Gasquet. My nephew is also fighting the smithriver complex fire he's a firefighter. So truly thank you.

[@Slash70737]

I wish him safety tell him thank you so much for helping are precious woods

[@lezleaspelund32]

Oh my goodness! You are brilliant at the maps. Thank You

[@Slash70737]

Thanks for the update I just got power back on today at my house in the crescent city area

[@CNP-rn3gd]

I dread monsoon/lightning weather in CA. It's hard to live with fire fear year after year. I miss the expansive verdant forests of the 1980s-1990's. Thank you for your channel - there's very little information available other than the endless scrolling through the fire cameras

[@fromSpringfield]

My first time here. Excellent work it is.

[@bobbysnow5478]

Thank for your work on this subject..
can you also provide updates for southern Oregon?

[@Patriot_Lady1776]

Thank you for all that you do. ❤️.

[@dozer1642]

I’ve been doing this for a decade or three and the country you speak of makes the hair on the back of my neck stand on end. We spent three weeks or so on the Dillon complex in the early nineties and I don’t think we saw the sun one time. I just pray that folks in the Klamath River drainage are prepared if the inversion lifts. I applaud you for saying that “just because it had a dozerline on it, doesn’t mean it held!” Wise words my friend. 👍🇺🇸✌️

[@dozer1642]

I met my wife when we worked together on an R5 hotshot crew in the 90s.
In those days when anyone said “there’s A fire on the Klamath” we would shutter.
So many of these fires going on right now are in “worst case scenario” locations. Honestly, probably all of them. I know that all of this country needs to burn on a “good” year and maybe this is the year.

[@janejanis9199]

Thank-you... your info is so helpful. Can you give us anymore detail for the Blue Creek and Dwight Creek (Oregon)areas.

[@Steve_with_coffee]

Local input could have saved a lot of acres on the Chetco Bar Fire, especially concerning the unique foehn winds that the area gets. My understanding is that meteorology on the ground didn’t know about them and so firing operations were conducted and the winds kicked up and it got really bad really quickly. You’d think the area being known as the Banana Belt would have prompted someone to ask questions.

[@ConfirmedPatriot]

I often wonder about all the cloud seeding that is done in the US that it could have detrimental affects of creating storms/lightning/fires.

[@dixiedawnmillergoode6850]

I think the little splashes in the smith river complex might be from the fact we had a lot of lightning between 8 and 10 pm last night.

[@fromSpringfield]

It is so sad that we no longer have as many skilled and knowledgeable professionals who can help manage the forest, and fires. Soft has succeeded.

[@skyblue-lb9kr]

Gasquet is a precious redwood rainforest

[@dozer1642]

🤨

[@kilo6490]

There are no redwoods in Gasquet lol you got a good ways to go past hiouchi to see the redwoods. No way the fire touches the redwoods.

[@user-dy7ze2ey8q]

@@kilo6490 About 10 miles! Lol 😆

[@victor-th4qs]

We called it Naturalizing the line. Denaturalizing the line. It downt make it a good thing.

[@artemisXsidecross]

👍

[@eugenearchibald7375]

Don't rehab block.... omg such a mess!

[@steveberkson3873]

Fought the fire based out of Orleans in ‘77 ..

[@victor-th4qs]

I am sorry. I got burned over. Deployed in Hells Canyon. It's hard for me to believe in some of this stuff. The aircraft are good though.

[@mysticpluck8]

Hard to understand what you're showing.

[@CaptainRon13]

Not if you know what you’re looking at?

[@williamlloyd3769]

These relief maps together with the colored overlays show the fire perimeter on a day by day basis as provided by the various fire incident command centers.