Week proved to be firefighters' nemesis

by DAN DAVIDSON  Star Correspondent

DAWSON CITY - The third week of June was a tough one for Yukon firefighters, and one that would have been hard to predict any time before June 5.

Until then, the season had been chilly and damp, but it wasn't really wet. Paul Butra, the regional manager of field operations for the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development, says the constant drying of the land that took place then was a part of what happened later.

On June 6, summer arrived in the Klondike with a vengeance. Temperatures jumped to 26 C, and pretty much stayed there for the next week. Sure enough, seven days later, on June 12, lightning strikes sparked 12 fires in the Dawson area alone, 17 throughout the territory.

Butra said the territory is divided into action and observation zones. In the former, the possibility of danger to human life, settlement and property dictates an immediate involvement with any fire that starts. Outside of that area, the fires are monitored, but events are left to take their natural course.

A new action zone map was prepared for this spring.

Dawson #3 began near Coal River in an observation zone. There are cabins that may need protecting, so that is being looked after.

Dawson #4, the fire at Sulphur Creek, erupted in the gold fields and was beyond initial attack capabilities by the time a crew could there. It went to rank five very quickly, but it had a lower priority than the next fire to begin.

That was Dawson #7, being called the Moosehide fire. It was 3.5 km north of Dawson and closer to the Han village of Moosehide.

Said Butra: "The tankers were redirected to begin work on Dawson #7 and an initial attack crew was sent to that fire. It became one of our priorities for action."

It was only about an hour later that a brand new, man-made factor entered the equation. At Burwash Landing, a dump fire was initially extinguished and thought to be out, according to published reports, though the tales about who declared it out vary.

For Dawson, the importance of the Burwash fire was that it rekindled, leaping to rank five status before the initial attack crew could return. It became the number one fire priority in the Yukon within about 40 minutes, and resources from everywhere including Dawson had to be dispatched there.

There were also five fires in the Mayo district.

"The manpower we had at the time... those resources were being stretched,", said Butra. "We never anticipated 17 starts that day. It's an anomaly for the year.

"Fires were spotted by fire detection aircraft, tankers lifted off and the fire went from a point or spot to one or two hectares, and by the time the tankers were there, they were five or six hectares in half an hour to 40 minutes.

"If you didn't get there within 30 minutes, the fire was what we term 'beyond resources', and we didn't want to put manpower in front of those and risk life there."

Priorities were assigned in order to Burwash, Dawson #7, Dawson #4 and Mayo #7. The latter fire was in the Na Cho Nyak Dun land claims area and threatened timber resources.

During the first three of four days, little changed. Burning conditions were optimum - for the fires, that is. For the crews, the combination of heat, wind, smoke and long hours was a killer. By the end of the week, things stacked up as follows.

Dawson #7: Moosehide - 1,200 hectares involved along a stretch four km wide; 25 firefighters deployed; a three Cat-wide (width of the blade) fire break just about three-quarters completed.

As the fire is surrounded and contained, ground crews begin to make their way in with hoses. Like most warfare, it takes ground forces to finish the work.

Dawson #4: Sulphur Creek - 8,500 hectares involved down in the Indian River district; 30 firefighters working along with Cats to do site protection. Miners helping.

Dawson #16: About four hectares; began north of the Moosehide fire. By last Thursday, 10 firefighters were on the ground mopping up a fire that seemed to be out.

"This was a good combination of detection by the tower, bombers and ground crews," said Butra.

Meanwhile, several fires had started in the Old Crow region, also part of the Dawson fire control district. Those employed about 10 people.

Overall, Butra was optimistic. It had been a tough week, but there had been some rain Thursday.

"Now, with a slight bit of rain, it gave us a little breather, kept the flames and smoke down for a bit so we could consolidate the lines, or most of them, and hopefully hold this thing before the weather turns warm again.

"We can't let it (Dawson #7) get wider on us and we can't let it get north and south."

A Type 1 overhead team was brought in from British Columbia to assist the local crews with the fire management, along with the crews from the first nation.

The change in the weather, with chances of showers over the weekend, has been a break for all concerned. Firefighters are assessing areas, preparing strategies to deal with the areas already on fire and planning for what happens if and when new ones break out. They will soon know what the bill has been so far.

"The concern now is that if the weather changes, if we get another wind event or we get some more lightning, we're going to be right back where we were two days ago," said Butra. "We have to do as much as we can right now with the fires that we have to ensure that if we have to move on to another initial attack, these fires will be secure and we won't lose them.

"We don't want to lose something that we've already put a lot of work into, and at the same time, we've got to ensure the initial attack capability that we're going to need around Dawson."

If you'd like a clue to the changing circumstances, watch your barometer for signs of movement to the "stormy" side.

When the readings from the weather balloons break 500 millibars, Butra said, lightning generally happens, and if that combines with the right heat and lack of humidity, fires are probable.

Said Butra: "The indices are indicating good burning conditions, and that's clear from the way things have burned during this week. We're into the second year of a bit of a drought scenario."

Things are dry, and as soon as they get hot, you can easily get fires.

DIAND officials were to meet with Dawson municipal council late this afternoon.