The Western news. [volume] (Libby, Mont.) 1933-current, 1939-08-17
Forest Fire
Burns Over
Large Area
Started Monday in Slashings
in Bull Lake District by
Gypo Operations.
CLOSE TO 700
MEN ON FIRE LINE

A forest fire that started about 4
O'clock Monday afternoon in the
Bull Lake region had burned over
approximately 1000 acres up to last
night. 1t is believed to have been
started by a gypo logging oper-
tons in logging slash, and spread
quite rapidly. The forest service
soon had $50 men on it. Most of
them were CCC boys, the local crew
being augmented by others from
the Cabinet, St Joe and Occur
dAlene forests. The fire sent a pail
of smoke over Libby Tuesday but
1t had largely disappeared by yes
terday.
Supervisor Klehm flew over the
lire Wednesday morning in plane
sent here from Missoula. He later
established a hundred man camp at
the head of the fire in a position
where it was necessary to drop
supplies to them from the plane.
All kinds of produce for the men
was dropped, said Supervisor
Klehm, even to eggs. The practice
Of dropping supplies from plane
for forest fire fighters is becoming
quite common where the nature of
the terrain makes it desirable.
The lower sector of the fire had
been placed under control by last
night and this morning 200 men
were being moved from there to
the upper line of fire. That is in
steeply mountainous and rocky
land. 1t is most difficult to get into
It, reported men who came back
from the forward line last night. A
trail will have to be cut out over
which pack horses can carry sup
plies to the fighters. Until that is
done, supplies will be dropped from
a plane.
This new method of dropping food
and other materials by airplane into
inaccessible places is interesting
and sometimes humorous. Para
chutes are fastened to the packages
and they float around more or less
before landing. Hence, it Is easy to
lose some of them, in a heavily
timbered country. To avoid such
loss, man on the ground counts
every package that is dropped and
thus it can be known whether all
have been recovered. A humorous
incident happened in dropping the
first batch of supplies to the Bull
Lake fighters. A quarter of beef
caught in the top of 75-foot spruce
and hung there in sight of the hun
cry men on the ground but far out
of reach. That difficulty was solved
by cutting down the tree
II is interesting to visit the fire
fighters camp Everywhere is evil
dence of careful organization and
planning with complete supplies of
food and equipment available and
with more moving into camp every
day. The men are given the best of
food and it is some task to move
into mountainous country equip
ment to take proper care of several
hundred men. When it comes time
to sleep each man is supplied with
bedding and he beds down any
where that appeals to him. One
finds them scattered hither and yon
throughout the timber.
Telephone lines are hurridly run
SO as to give connection with forest
headquarters between the camps on
on the Bull Lake fire, each with
radio equipment.
1t is grueling work, on man and
beast. The fire at Bull Lake ran
eastward from the highway over
the high mountains, which are very
steep and rocky there 1t is now
progressing into country in which
it is extremely difficult to work. AS
the writer left camp last night, or
ders were being given to have the
men out of bed and ready for break
fast at o'clock this morning. At 8
o'clock several strings of pack
horses were to be on the ground,
ready to take up the work of pack
ing supplies onto the front of the
line.
Will Place Contact Men
This fire again brings up the
question of closing the forests dur
ing the fire hazard season, said
Klehm. However, the service, is
very reluctant to close the forests
and as an alternative Supervisor
Klehm has decided to place six con-
tact men in the six most hazardous
areas in the forest. These men will
contact all people going into the
forests, explain to them the dan
ger of fire and ask them to be care
full This plan will be tried but if
man-caused fires continue to in
crease, the forest will be closed abb
solutely, said Klehm, despite the
fact that the service does not wish
to inconvenience the public to that
extent.
Supervisor Klehm took an ex-
tensive inspection trip over the for
est the first of the week. He said
that contrary to general belief the
forest is not in an unusually dry
\ condition. There is still considerable
moisture In the higher elevations,
although vegetation on the lower
levels is becoming quite dry.
.