Vetter Wrap - October 11, 2004

October 11, 2004

The day for the Vetter Wrap project was at hand.  Stanton is the Public Information Officer for the Angeles National Forest, and I have accepted the position of Public Information Officer for the Lookout Association.  We met at the Charlton Flats to escort the ABC Channel 7 News team to the summit.
At the summit, preparation work had started as the Winema Hot Shots from Klamath Falls, Oregon was assigned as they have experience with fire wrapping structures.

During the fire emergency, many units were called from out of state, even though there was no fire.  The situation was that dangerous.
Bob and Ric hold open the shutter while Maria opens the lookout to  make a last minute check as the lookout will be wrapped and secured for the winter.
Channel 7 gets some "B-Roll" of the shutter being symbolically closed.
The Winema Hot Shots start checking out the tower while the news crew takes its last shots of the lookout.
The first roll of fire retardant wrap is attached to the tower.
Work continues on the tower while Stanton and I continue to take pictures and we both automatically scan the horizon for smoke.
The wrap is continuing around the tower.
This is one of two "buggies" that the crew uses.  I wished I had a shot of the interior because hotshots get special status as they are the best trained and most experienced of the line fire fighters. 
Hurry up and wait... when doing work of this kind there are always periods when a larger group must wait for a smaller group to finish a task.  They found some nice shade.

I had a chance to talk to a few of the members and they told me that they never seen conditions as dry, nor the hills so steep as the Angeles Forest.  One of them said he felt like sitting in an oven full of wood and gasoline with the only thing missing was a spark.
For many years, Vetter Mountain has not had a fire to clean out the overgrowth of trees and bushes.  The Hotshots identified several high-risk areas where the vegetation needed to be reduced and/or eliminated to reduce the fuel loading.
With the tools of the trade and chainsaws, the Hotshots started to clear the danger areas.
A few small trees had grown near the garage creating not only a fire danger, but the trees also blocked the view of the fire lookout that protected thousands of trees behind them.  

Fire danger was the key to cut down a small tree, and I know there are some people that want to save every leaf and needle of every tree in the Forest, but the fact is... if a fire comes through this area and naturally destroys the trees, the damage would be much worse to the environment because the fire would be so hot due to so much fuel being available.

The fact that there is so much fuel is unnatural and that is why the Forest Service has changed its fire suppression policies over the years.
With more bushes cleared, the two crews are busy working.
The lookout crew finishes the first wrap and starts working on the second level.
Although the paper is not that heavy, it does have some weight to it and it is hard to move around.   A few hands working together get the job done.
The bad thing about this wrap is the number of staples used to hold the wrap in place.
Each staple would have to be removed at a later time because it would be a hazard and rust in place.  After the staple is removed, it will leave a hole that would have to be painted shut or water would get into the wood of the lookout.
Not done yet... but time for a picture.
As if to tease and mock us... the first rain clouds of the season began to form over the lookout.
Here you can see that the lookout is fully wrapped.  All holes sealed and even the handrails are wrapped.  The wrap is designed to protect the structure from hot embers that would sit on the wood and start its own fire.  The wrap will give some protection (but not much) to direct flames, so the bushes and weeds around the lookout are cleaned away to prevent that from happening.
Another view... the clouds getting thicker.
The lookout is fully wrapped.
The wrapping crew move down to the garage and other structures on the summit.
The Hotshot pictured here yells in pain as the unrolling paper started to burn his fingers due to friction.
As the garage is uncovered the chainsaw team cleans up the final high risk areas.  It looks better already.
Another Hotshot uses a "McLeod" fire tool to rake and hoe the ground around the garage.  You can see where the pile of needles from the trees would transport the fire directly to the garage.
A small fire break is created that would/could save the garage.
Almost done, the garage is wrapped and in the end all the needles and bushes would be cleaned away.
The Angeles National Forest, and the Angeles National Forest Fire Lookout Association would like to thank the hard working efforts of the Winema Hotshots during this day of hard work.

They were an impressive group of young men and women that did an outstanding and professional job.  May they be proud of the work they did saving our historic Vetter Mountain Lookout, as we are as proud of them.

Job well done!

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