Keeping firefighting helos moving, a joint effort

Fire rages through a draw at the Mendocino Complex Fire, Aug 16th in Northern California. Fighting the fire was a combined effort between CAL FIRE, California National Guard, and Nevada National Guard. (Army photo by Spc. Malachi Mansfield)

ELK CREEK, CA, UNITED STATES

08.16.2018

Story by Spc. Malachi Mansfield 

106th Public Affairs Detachment  

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CHICO, California- Extinguishing the flames of the of the Mendocino Complex Incident, is no small task. One part of the operation is the Nevada Army National Guard 2/238th Aviation. They were responsible for fueling the firefighting aircraft. The efforts consisted of the 1/189th Aviation CH-47 callsign Mustang and the 2/238th Medevac UH-60 callsign Wolfpack. The Wolfpack dropped 427 buckets of water totaling 310,925 buckets of water in over 80 hours of flight time. Mustang performed 136 bucket drops. They dropped 274,000 gallons in 45.2 hours of flight time. This mission wouldn’t be possible without the utilities and maintenance crew but getting the helicopters in the air has its challenges.

“I got a call at 7:00 at night, they wanted me to come out with another fuel truck. We showed up at 4:30 in the morning to get the truck ready,” said Sgt. David Jensen, a Fueler for the 2/238th Aviation, Nevada Army National Guard. He said with only one truck at the heliport near Elk Creek, the fuel crew was left having to drive almost 200 miles per trip. This left the aircraft idle and wasted valuable time that could be better spent fighting the fire.

“It wouldn’t be possible without working together. The mission wouldn’t be functional,” Jensen commented further. The California National Guard provided additional operational readiness by streamlining the fueling process. Even with the additional manpower and fuel trucks, the trucks were still taking long trips. The California National Guard provided a 5,000-gallon tanker, that cut down our travel quite a bit and allowed for faster refueling, Jensen remarked.

On working with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE), Staff Sgt. Melissa Leist, Aviation Operations NCO of the 1/189th General Support Aviation Battalion said: “CAL FIRE ensured that all needs we anticipated or came across were always met quickly.” She said Soldiers transformed a field into a heliport and were designed to stage and maintain equipment. The field also provided a place for the crew to rest and recover. 

“Coordination with the different agencies to ensure the soldier’s needs were met is the most important task for operations and being in a remote location required constant communication with the different representatives and our state.” Said Leist.

As of August 18th, 2018 the Mendocino Complex fire is 380,690 acres and with the help of the Nevada National Guard the fire is 77% contained.

Tropic Care Maui County 2018: Molokai

U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Nick Hochmuth, a kitchen supervisor assigned to the 109th Airlift Wing, poses for a photo in Maui, Hi., Aug. 20, 2018. Earlier that day, Hochmuth extinguished a vehicle fire with a fire extinguisher outside the Mitchell Pauole Community Center in Molokai, Hi. (U.S. Air National Guard photo by Airman 1st Class Jonathan W. Padish)

MAUI, HI, UNITED STATES
08.20.2018
Story by Airman 1st Class Jonathan Padish
194th Wing 


MOLOKAI, Hawaii (Aug. 20, 2018) — An Airman from Delanson, N.Y. who is taking part in the Tropic Care Maui County 2018 Innovative Readiness Training Molokai clinic responded to a vehicle fire Aug. 20 outside the Mitchell Pauole Community Center in Molokai, Hawaii.

U.S. Air Force Staff Sgt. Nick Hochmuth, a kitchen supervisor assigned to the 109th Airlift Wing, ran from the kitchen at the community center to the site of the fire armed with nothing but a fire extinguisher.

“We heard someone yell there was a fire,” said U.S. Air Force Senior Master Sgt. James Wright, the services superintendent for the 181st Intelligence Wing, also a Tropic Care participant. “Staff Sgt. Hochmuth happened to be standing right next to the fire extinguisher. He just whipped it off the wall and ran at the fire. I yelled, ‘be careful,’ because I didn’t know if the vehicle would explode or not.”

Luckily, Hochmuth knew how to battle the blaze thanks to his volunteer activities back home.

“I’m a volunteer firefighter and fire police captain with the Delanson Volunteer Fire Department,” said Hochmuth. “So, it’s just second nature to grab what you need and go.”

Accordingly, Hochmuth did what he knows best: fight the fire.

“I was told there was a fire, so I grabbed a fire extinguisher and ran outside,” said Hochmuth. “I saw smoke coming out of a truck, so I ran over and put it out. It all happened pretty quickly.”

Indeed, Hochmuth’s experience fighting fires was apparent to onlookers. “He was as calm as could be,” said Wright. “You could tell he had training. He focused on it and did what had to be done. It was over really fast because he jumped into action.”

Hochmuth ran toward the fire to put it out, even though he did not know for certain whether he would be able to put it out. “I figured it was small enough,” said Hochmuth. “I did what I could and thankfully it worked.”

Still, Hochmuth recognized that things could have gone the other way for the people in the vehicle.

“If it didn’t work, they would have been in big trouble,” said Hochmuth.

Witnesses to the fire also recognized the danger involved.

“It was really dangerous,” said U.S. Air Force 2nd Lt. Brandon Wilmer, a clinical nurse assigned to the 181st Intelligence Wing. “A fire like that could have been from fuel or whatever. It was pretty brave to step up and take care of it, and it could have been a lot worse. From that perspective, it was pretty important that he put it out as quickly as he did.”

The vehicle’s occupants and onlookers were grateful for Hochmuth’s actions.

“There was a huge crowd at that point with everyone gathered around, and everybody was thanking him,” said Wilmer. “Everybody was super happy that the fire was put out safely.”

Fortunately, Hochmuth was at the right place at the right time, and with his training and experience he was able to jump into action and extinguish the fire.

“It was just instinct,” said Hochmuth.

Crash crewmen drill their drills to enhance skills and abilities

CAMP PENDLETON, CA, UNITED STATES
08.10.2018
Photo by Lance Cpl. Betzabeth Galvan
Marine Corps Installations West - Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton 

U.S. Marine Corps Robert Brewer, rescueman/emergency medical technician (EMT), Marine Corps Air Station (MCAS) Camp Pendleton, and Lance Cpl. Adam Vitek, handline man/EMT, MCAS Camp Pendleton, participate in a handline drill at Marine Corps Air Station Camp Pendleton, California, Aug. 10, 2018. The drill was conducted to prepare crash crewmen to engage and extinguish fuel fires with water or foam. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Lance Cpl. Betzabeth Y. Galvan)

Fort McCoy supports National Night Out event

FORT MCCOY, WI, UNITED STATES

08.15.2018
Story by Scott Sturkol             
Fort McCoy Public Affairs Office           

Representatives with Fort McCoy’s Directorate of Emergency Services (DES) took numerous vehicles and equipment to support the 16th annual Monroe County National Night Out (NNO) event Aug. 7 in Tomah, Wis.

Hundreds of people attended the event, which was held at Tomah’s Winnebago Park. Introduced in 1984 by the National Association of Town Watch, National Night Out is a nonprofit crime prevention organization that works in cooperation with thousands of crime-watch groups and law-enforcement agencies throughout the country.

Representatives of the Tomah Police Department said local officials know it helps build relationships that help create safe communities.

Fort McCoy police and fire department support for NNO included having a technician teach about child safety seats; a bicycle instructor discuss bicycle safety; and people to coordinate Operation Family Safe, which provides free ID cards for children, said Police Liaison Robert Bills with DES.

Fort McCoy personnel provided service to 65 families for the National Night Out event, said DES Police Detective Chase Laffea, who leads Operation Family Safe for Fort McCoy. At the same event in 2017, Fort McCoy personnel provided support to 30 families.

“With the addition of an additional ID station, we doubled the children helped from 2017 to 2018,” Bills said. “This is one of the most requested services that parents ask about at these events.”

Police vehicles and equipment on display included a police all-terrain side-by-side vehicle, a snowmobile, police cruiser with new cameras installed, the Buckle Bear/remote car demonstration, and an interactive and educational display for people on proper 911 usage.

Fire department personnel set up a ladder fire truck and the department’s smoke house. Plus fire department personnel were on hand to answer questions about fire prevention.

More than 40 not-for-profit organizations also had various exhibits, information booths, and displays on subjects like nutrition, school bus safety, weather storm spotting, parenting, water safety, home electricity safety, seatbelt use, boating safety, all-terrain vehicle safety, poison control, mental health, and first aid.

900-mile memorial hike honors 16 lives lost in 2017 Miss., KC-130 crash

MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP LEJEUNE, NC, UNITED STATES
07.24.2018
Photo by Cpl. Breanna Weisenberger
Marine Corps Installations East       

Family and friends of the seven U.S. Marine Raiders and nine Marine Aviator crew members who died in the July, 2017, KC-130 crash in Laflore County, Miss., hike on the shoulder of US-17 in Jacksonville, N.C., during a 900-mile memorial hike from Itta Bena, Miss., to Stump Sound Park, Sneads Ferry, N.C., July 24. 10 teams took turns hiking a continuous 24 hours until reaching Stump Sound Park, but the final stretch finished at the MARSOC Compound on MCB Camp Lejeune. (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Breanna Weisenberger)