by Jack Lee
Today was the lull between the storms for me. There was the rush to get mobilized and prepare to fight the existing fires and then there is the anticipated fires due soon if we have more lightning strikes. Because of this brief down time my C/O just advised me I have about 20 hours leave. effective immediately! After a quick debriefing I made a bee-line back to my home in Chico and right into more smoke!
I’ve been in Sacramento working on Operation Lightning Strike, which represents the sum of the California forest fires and its been, well, intense. My duty station is in the National Guard Joint Forces Headquarters and although Ive only been on active duty for 4+ days it sure seems longer since Ive been working 12 on and 12 off which really is more like 15-16 hours on… by the time you ad in all the briefings and prep time.
Unfortunately, some of our best fire fighting weapons, like tanker drops, have been restrained by a warm air inversion that has caused this throat burning layer of thick smoke that seems to be covering most of the state. We can’t use the air units when visibility is so severely limited. This has impacted a portion of the ground crews in some areas too who can’t access remote areas safely without backup from air support.
Downstairs from our office is the JOC which is the Joint Operations Command and this is a real high tech war room with illuminated maps, massive TV screens, rows of computers and lots of satellite equipment. The short version of what they do goes like this, they use the fire intel to communicate with various commands to get the right resources to where they will do the most good. Sounds simple, but its not.
Back on my side at mobilization, we’re processing in a fairly steady flow of soldiers coming from as far away as Southern California and Nevada. I ran into four guys from Chico yesterday who were on their way to the OES building about 4 blocks away and then they were heading to a fire line.
I’ve got to tell you this one personal story. This is about a young man who just enlisted… his first day in uniform was about 16 hours long because of the fire emergency. Since then he has been pulling shifts every day. I’ve been using him as assistant for our in IN-MOB section. Between the rush of incoming personnel and the quiet times I have been giving him a crash course on military protocols. Yesterday I asked him how he liked it so far and his reply was a genuine, “I love it!” Then he was grabbed by another unit who needed his civilian job expertise. the poor guy had to leave so fast he left with only the uniform on his back. But, don’t worry, well take care of him.
I mention this soldier’s story not because his attitude was so motivated and exceptional, but more because it isn’t. This is just the typical kind can-do attitude you’re likely to find around here. I don’t want to turn this into a sappy recruiting ad, but hey, if you are interested… we’re looking for a few more good men and women. Or there’s always the Red Cross, they need volunteers too.
You might want to check this out.
I’m not sure when I will be able to check in again, so I better wish you a happy and safe 4th of July now while I can. Oh, and when you see those fire trucks or our soldiers headed to the fire line, please give em a wave, it will be much appreciated.