The coastland times with which is combined the pilot and herald of Belhaven and Swan Quarter. [volume] (Manteo, N.C.) 1959-1973, 1961-12-08
COOPERATIVE EFFORT
FOR NORTH Carl LIMA
FOREST FIRE CONTROL
Joint Action BY Forestry and Wild
life Uniis. Marines and Army
When Needed
By WADE LUCAS

KINSTON - The dangerous and
dirty task Of fighting major forest
fires in North Carolina is, now a
carefully designed operation high
lighted by a brand Of cooperation
that did not always exist in this
heavily forested State between pub
lie and private forest firefighters.
State-employed foresters and
rangers and their counterparts in
North Carolina-b based industries
manufacturing products from trees
growing on more than II million
acres of State forest lands have
learned and are learning the value
of working together in fighting
woods fires. 1t is the kind of COOP
Grafton that is paying dividends.
This cooperative program was be-
gun in 1866 after a series of de-
structive forest fires caused tremen-
dous losses in valuable timber.
Foresters and rangers employed by
the State and those working for
wood-using industries now work
closely together in fighting major
forest blazes. Now they know what
to do and when to do it. They fight
forest fires in orderly manner and
according to well laid plans.
This example of cooperation and
coordination of effort was pointed
up in dramatic manner near here
recently when some 300 foresters
and rangers went through training
sessions very much in the manner
of an army on maneuvers to get
ready to go into land and air action
against an enemy force.
In this case the enemy is fire,
deadliest foe of North Cardinals
forest lands valued at more than
one and one-quarter billion dollars
and from which wood-using indus
tries in this State produced pro-
ducts last year that had an output
value Of more than one billion doll
lars.
The need for State and industry
forest firefighters to pool their
manpower and equipment in COM
batting major forest fires also re-
suited in a State Forest Fire Plan
and the establishment of an an
nual training school designed to
teach the rangers and others how
to work together more efficiently
and how to get the best possible
use of the tools with which they
are equipped to fight wood blazes.
The 1861 forestry training school
held near here recently at the old
Stallings Air Base by the Depart
ment of Conservation and Develop
ment's Division of Forestry brought
together some 300 foresters and
forest rangers. Half of them are
employed by the State Division Of
Forestry, commonly known as the
State Forest Service, the others by
wood-using industries based in
North Carolina.
Under the direction of Ralph C.
Winkworth, Region I forester for
the State Forest Service, who was
assisted by key foresters from the
forestry division and from industry,
the men attending the two-session
training school were kept busy
morning, afternoon and night as
they were taught the latest tech
niques used in fighting major forest
fires.
Glasses in fire control, aerial de-
livery, and other subjects in forest
fire fighting were held. Field pro-
blems consisting of fighting q
make-believe major forestfire in the
latest and best approved fashion
were mastered over large area in
! high swampland or pocosin locat-
ed below Dover in Craven county.
| Special emphasis was placed upon
the relatively new technique OF
aerial delivery. This is the use OF
| planes in dropping water or chemi.
cally-treated water on fires diff.
cult or impossible to reach from the
ground in short time because Of
,he areas in which they occur, es.
,ecially in dense forest growths il
Eastern and Western North Caro-
lima.
Like a general directing hi.
lr1ny, the problems connected will
containing and finally extinguishinl
the make-believe forest fire in thu