The Day Of Fire

It is human nature to believe in a greater good. My name is Chad I'm a retired Wildland Firefighter, Photographer and Digital Artist. This picture is one of my digital creations and depicts Fire and and can be viewed at my website https://fineartamerica.com/profiles/chad-vidas.

It was 1988 and I got a call from the Forest Service I was accepted as a Wildland Firefighter. I was 20 years old and in my prime. I was preparing for this day and days to come with intense exercise, weight training and mental preparations. But nothing could prepare me for the beast I was about to be thrust into and the Hell I would endure.

The training to be a Wildland Firefighter is intense and lasted more then a month and I finally was ready to stop fire. I was a Fire Dog. I was to be stationed in Walden, Colorado a sleepy little Town filled with mosquitos bigger then Slurry Bombers. We were all celebrating our graduation with a little adult beverages whiskey and beer. We crashed around 10:30Pm.

July 1988 1:30 Am I was in a beautiful dream and was about to kiss a beautiful woman named Taunya when I was shaken to reality and was told we were going to Wyoming where they had a 5000 acre fire and growing we were the initial attack. I was scheduled to take my Red Card test which is the last step of being a fire Dog at 8am but I was getting dressed to put a 30 pound pack on my back and run a mile in under 14 minutes at 2am. I looked in the mirror and asked myself..."This is your dream now you get to live it". So a took a dip of Copenhagen chew and got my running shoes on and got down to business. My time was 13 minutes flat. I was ready to go to war.

The fires name was dubbed the Mushroom Fire. Reason being was for the huge mushroom cloud it was putting off you could see the beast from Colorado. We were 40 men strong all from different parts of the United States joined at the hip. We eat, sleep, exercise and train together everyday we were the perfect weapon to fight fire. We rolled into Wyoming at sunrise and were still about 3 hours from the fire. But we could see the beast and it never slept or laid down. It was already 85 degrees and 60 mile an hour winds just feeding the fire.

9Am Wyoming 1988 90 degrees hot and windy we rolled up on the staging area where we were met with 5 helicopters, 8 engines, some heavy equipment about an additional 50 firefighters and most important...chow tent I was starving. We stowed our gear and got to eating. Fighting a fire is very coordinating event and we started our briefing. Our attack today was 20 of us would work on line construction and the Southwest flank we had to anchor to an outcropping mile and half up wooded terrain when we had line completed we would all attack the beast with a back burn a method of attack where you use drip torches which are filled with fuel light the top and start dripping fire fighting fire with fire.

We would sing as we marched up the mountain todays song Do Wah Ditty. The fire was in heavy timber and for now the wind was in our favor it calmed down only 5mph we had to to build a good mile of line we had the fire flanked on two sides and had started our back burn at 4pm. Were expecting a dry front to come in around 7pm but it came early. We found safety in our black to reassess the fire. The winds shifted and now have increased to 50 mph causing fire to crown which means it was no longer a ground fire it was now in the trees canopy. The beast was on us in nothing flat this was it I was to be initiated by fire.

645 pm Mushroom Fire Wyoming 100 degrees the fire was making its run and we were in its way. We had a moderate safe place but our back burn was just a creeping fire we still had canopy and bushes in front of us and the fire. The sound of a fire is like a train on crack...very loud and embers are flying all around you. The dreaded word came over the radio...Routt 1 Routt 2 deploy...deploy...deploy. OMG was this really happening we had to deploy into our fire shelters we were in danger and time was ticking. When you deploy you deploy your body in such a way to where your facing the fire you can use your body and feet to fight the winds and keep the shelter down...cause if the wind catches it your DEAD.

Down in camp 5 helicopters were fueling and getting water in their tanks tanker Boss Big John was calling in slurry dumps in our area but they were not very effective due to the terrain. Big John can be heard over the radio launch, launch, launch. John can be heard giving the helicopters our location but they were 30 minutes out. Hang tough Routt 1 and Routt 2 help is coming. Big John threw is hour old chew on the ground and said to himself "where coming to get ya"!

7:00Pm Mushroom Fire being overran. Mike was about 25 yards from me...Routt 1 Routt 1 Moore "fire shelter is ripping fire shelter is ripping OMG" A loud scream blood wrenching came from a mans voice Mike was engulfed is flames. None of us could help. The fire was on me. I was next to be killed by the beast.

7:03Pm Mushroom Fire Wyoming help is coming. The fire was raging all around me. Embers starting to make holes in my shelter. Then the worse happened my strap broke on left front...Routt 1 Routt 1 Vidas my strap broke ...my strap broke. Fire Boss Jim can be heard over the radio hold it down rookie hold it down your not dying on my watch kid. Fire is making its way in and getting hot. My only thought was of Taunya my soon to be wife. I prayed again please Jesus let me know if I'm going to make it. Then you hear a voice. I swear it came from above. You will make it. Then I was suddenly hit by a great force and was knocked out.

7:10 pm Mushroom fire Wyoming saved by water. I was surrounded by 19 of the toughest guys on the planet when my eyes opened. I was knocked out by the first water drop which saved my life. Fire Boss said "how you doing kid". I coughed and raised a thumbs up and asked "did Mike make it"? Boss looked around at our guys. No Chad Mike didn't make it. And I cried..

This story is for the brave men and women who fight the beast every year. Remember to thank a firefighter when you see them they are out there for you.