Fire Weather

Today there was a Fire Weather Warning/Watch due to how dry and cold it is. Daniel, Papa, and I were in the house when we heard the page for a woods fire. We got to the station as quick as possible! The fire was on Silver Springs road off of 214. Someone's backyard fire had apparently gotten out of control and begun to spread into the surrounding woods. Papa, I, and some others came arrived on scene in Attack 10, and Daniel rode with a volunteer on Tender 109. I stood by the truck watching the firefighters battle the flames. The fire was constantly shifting due to the mild winds in the area, so it took a while to settle it down. Once it was "out" I got to help with mop-up. Mop-up is the stage where everything is smoking, but there's little to no flames. I was able to ride on the walkway of one of the Brush Trucks, and "mop-up" the hot-spots with my hose. I also shoveled sand onto some of the smaller hot spots that couldn't be reached by the Brush Trucks. By the time we were finished and had got back to the Station, 3 hours had elapsed! I was surprised that it took so long--time had flown by quickly!
Being a Fire-Explorer is a lot of fun, especially when you get to participate in Fire Calls. And everyone knows that right after a call, a firefighter is hungry... so Daniel, Papa, and I headed home to help finish making homemade burgers!

Family Fire Ends

The Family Fire, has ended after 170 hours of burning. That sets the record of over 1 week! The very last night it was burning, Daniel added wood from one side of the fireplace to the other. It was loaded! It blazed for quite a while. We had to let it die out, so that we could clean the fireplace out before Thanksgiving. Hopefully, in December, we can set a record of two weeks!
-Joseph Cook