For the past month, anyone driving on I-5 past the Mountain Gate exit north of Shasta Lake City has seen an assortment of helicopters and their crews lifting off from a field on the west side of the highway.
The field, dubbed Mountain Gate Helibase, is one part of CAL FIRE’s many pronged response to the fires ravaging California this summer, described by Governor Schwazeneggar last week in his joint press conference with President Bush at the Redding airport as, “the single largest fire event in California’s history.”
Under the direction of CAL FIRE’s Incident Command Post in Anderson, the Mountain Gate Helibase has been hosting 19 fire fighting helicopters from around the nation, including four Black Hawks capable of carrying 660 gallons of water each, and a Chinook capable 2,000 gallons.
Aside from their respective pilots and crews, each of the choppers also has a mechanic and fuel truck driver and various support vehicles. Lake Shasta serves as the main ‘dip-site,’ where the helicopters load with water before heading off to fight the Moon and Motion fires. Depending on the distance between the dip-site and the fire, some of the choppers stationed at Mountain Gate are able to drop and reload water as many as 15 to 18 times an hour. The men rest in yurts and tents pitched on the edges of the field when they are not flying missions.
According to CAL FIRE’s Matt Eddins, the Mountain Gate Helibase deck coordinator, nearly 200 people are stationed at the site, including contingents of National Guard, local firefighters, and ambulance units for quick response and crash protection.
Last Thursday, shortly after Bush’s tour of the Motion fire in Marine One, Eddins said, “The President flew over and we waved to him. Everything has been good, everyone’s effort has been outstanding. The weather has cooled off a little. The weather and humidity have helped us.”
One crew stationed at the Mountain Gate helibase is the Helitack R-3 Rappellers, from the Prescott National Forest in Central Arizona. A 10-person wildland firefighting helicopter rappel crew, the Helitack flys a Bell 212, provides “initial attack and large fire support,” and averages 95 fires per year.
As described on the Helitack website, “Helicopter rappelling is a means of delivering firefighters to the ground through the use of approved ropes and descent devices… Rappelling often requires firefighters to remain overnight in remote locations and pack out up to 120 pounds of equipment over difficult terrain to reach a pick-up point.”
During a brief press visit to their chopper, the Helitack R-3 Rappellers, in hard hats and denim rappelling uniforms stained with soot, described setting hoses, food, and spike teams on the ground in their missions fighting the Motion Fire.
“What you feel out here is a different feeling,” commented Eddins as he supervised the visit. “Everyone who works at the helibase loves aviation. And you know you are making a difference in fighting the fire.”
Each evening, Eddins radios the Anderson Incident Command Post with information such as the estimated costs of the day’s missions and how many drops were made. Situated on private land, the helibase is operated by CAL FIRE in a special agreement with the owner, and is closed to the public for security and safety.
Shasta Lake City, Calif. —
