Published: July 18, 2008 10:45 am         

Air Attack

Aerial firefighting equipment based again at local airport

By Lacie Morrison
lmorrison@mineralwellsindex.com

For 12 to 13 hours each day, Dick Stiliha waits at the Mineral Wells Municipal Airport terminal with his crew.

They aren’t waiting for a plane – their equipment is already sitting ready to go on the tarmac – because as air attack personnel, they are waiting for that next fire call. Within minutes, Stiliha and his crewmembers are in the air and on their way to provide aerial assistance to fires in the north central Texas area.

“The [Texas Forest Service] folks in Granbury moved us up here … because of a lot of fires in and around this general facility,” the California resident explained. “The airport facilities are primarily why the Single Engine Air Tankers are here and one of the reasons why we’re here, too. It’s centrally located for the SEATs and us. We will cover clear to the Oklahoma line to past the Metroplex if we have to [and] south to around Brownwood.”

According to the TFS, much of the state is at or above normal drought conditions. The TFS reported that drought readings surpassed those of 2000 and are nearly as high as they were in 2006, the same year of the Cass Holland Road fire that was sparked by power lines and consumed a number of homes south of the airport.

When Stiliha first arrived in Mineral Wells in June, he described the area’s fire danger as “bordering on high to extreme” danger, dropping to “moderate to high” in the past few days.

A retired U.S. Forest Service employee in his 48th fire season, Stiliha remarked, “It won’t take long to get back up there.”

Since their arrival a little more than a week ago, Stiliha said they’ve flown to four or five fires that burned from 50 acres to 200 acres. On Wednesday, his group flew south of Abilene where the Type 1 helicopter made 15 1,000-gallon drops alone. The SEATs made six drops of fire retardant, totaling 4,200 to 4,500 gallons.

As the air attack coordinator, Stiliha flies in a Cessna with a pilot. From his vantage point, he explained that he directs the air operations over the fire.

The other aircraft based in Mineral Wells includes two SEATs, a mix plant that makes fire retardant and a Type 1 helicopter – also called an S61 – that drops water. Using a large snorkel, the helicopter is able to dip into a water source and pull in 1,000 gallons of water in 45 to 50 seconds.

There are also 15 or 16 people stationed in Mineral Wells with the equipment, including pilots, mechanics and managers, Stiliha estimated. “We’ve had people from Florida, Tennessee, Georgia, all over.”

Air attack, Stiliha said, is a vital part of fighting fires, especially when the flames aren’t easily accessible because of the terrain or because of urban interfacing where homes are in more rural locations. By communicating with the ground fire fighting personnel, Stiliha explained they are able to tell them where critical areas of the fire are and suggest where to start their air operations.

“We talk to them on the ground to make sure no one’s in the drop zone. We can’t drop if you’re standing in the drop zone. … It’ll just flat put you on the ground,” he said.

With the SEATS, Stiliha said, “For this fuel type – grass, low brush and trees – these are very effective out here.”

The question of how long they will be stationed in Mineral Wells doesn’t have a definite answer. According to the TFS, the peak of summer fire activity is in the later part of August and as fire activity subsides in some areas of Texas, aircraft and equipment will be repositioned to areas of higher risk.

Stiliha remarked, “We could be here for another month or we could get a call and be moving tonight.”

Until then, the crew members are at the terminal - on their computers or flying toy helicopters around the room – ever ready for that next fire call.