Oregon Public Broadcasting

More than 2500 firefighters from the Northwest have been sent to Northern California to join the fight against the escalating wildfires there.  Correspondent Tom Banse reports.

California’s cry for help is being answered across the Northwest by smokejumpers, rappellers, “hot shot” crews, private firefighting contractors, and fire camp specialists.

Alicia Compton was planning logging road construction in Southwest Washington when she was called up to staff a base camp in Chester, California.

Alicia Compton: “I get butterflies in my stomach every time I go because you’ve got to go to an area that’s different, people you don’t know, you don’t know their processes, etcetera. But for most of us that do this, that’s what we enjoy. It’s something different than our everyday jobs.”

Regional fire coordination centers say they’ve held back enough resources to provide a cushion should fires break out locally. 

The good news is that the Northwest woods are not nearly as dry as California’s due to our cool damp spring.