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HAZE Temp: 39 °F Wind: CLM at 0 mph Friday, November 22, 2002 SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map EXTRA HomeLife Magazine W3 Magazine Jobs @ Mail Tribune Tempo A & E Oregon CarZone Wellness Connection Real Estate Newspaper in Education Prime Times Outdoor Journal Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People CLASSIFIEDS Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Find Everything E SOUTHERN OREGON Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar ABOUT US FAQ What's New Advertise Home Delivery Classified Ad Contact Us Media Kit Email Story to a Friend August 13, 2002 The Biscuit fire central command center stationed in the Medford Red Lion has regular conference calls with zone commanders to keep updated communication between zones and coordinate resources. Clockwise from left are Dave Hays, Ron Coats, Bill Waterbury, Bobby Kitchen, Richard Streeper and Steve Bateman. Click the photo to see a larger (40k) version. Mail Tribune / Roy Musitelli Related story: Firefighters will need help from the weather to put out Biscuit fire . Leading the Biscuit battle Planners in Medford look at the big picture to coordinate the fight against the huge blaze By PAUL FATTIG Mail Tribune At first glance, it doesn’t look like much, just folks calmly working the phones around conference tables. Until you see the strategy maps spread out on the tables and hanging from the walls of three interconnected meeting rooms at the Red Lion Hotel in downtown Medford. This is the war room for the battle against the 376,492-acre Biscuit fire, sparked by a July 13 lightning storm deep in the Siskiyou National Forest. Leading the fight is Area Command Team No. 4, one of only four such firefighting coordination teams in the nation. "What we’re doing here is working with the incident management teams on strategic, long-term objectives," explained Ron Coats, assistant area commander for logistics. "They are taking care of the day-to-day operations on site," he added during a break. "We don’t get into those details." With an army of more than 6,100 firefighters from four countries, four incident management zones established and the largest Oregon wildfire in more than a century on their hands, team leaders have plenty to do coordinating the long-term strategy, Coats said. "We’ve got a lot of resources here," Coats said. "But with something this big, it’s going to take time — a lot of time." "Our main goal is to help incident commanders," added Bill Waterbury, assistant area commander for planning. "They are focused on a specific piece of real estate. "We are looking at the big picture and providing strategic direction and making sure their plans mesh together all the way around the fire," he added. Waterbury is assistant director for fire operations in the Forest Service’s Southwest Region based in Albuquerque. Coats hails from Atlanta, where he is fire director for the Forest Service’s Southern Region. The team’s commander is Rex Mann, a veteran firefighter with the agency in Kentucky. Other core members include a third assistant area commander, risk assessment specialists, flight restriction experts working with the Federal Aviation Administration and an office manager. This marks the third firefighting effort the team has helped coordinate this year. Last week, the team ended a nearly three-week engagement to close up management of the Toolbox complex fire near Lakeview. Before that it was on the Hayman fire near Pueblo, Colo. Both fires exceeded 130,000 acres. However, this fire is a unified command with the Oregon Department of Forestry. The team took charge of the coordinated effort at sunrise Saturday. For the next 14 days, it will coordinate the battle against the stubborn fire. On one wall is a huge map showing the fire’s growth as well as containment lines already built. Another wall is covered with illustrations of fire weather history in the region. Across the room, specialists were studying current fire maps and the fire’s behavior to try to understand where the next hot spot will flare up. A new incident management team about to take over the battle on the California side of the fire was being oriented. Much of the coordination work includes conference calls with incident commanders on the ground. Incident command teams have full control of tactical operations in their zones, Coats stressed. "We stay out of their hair — they know what they do best," he said. Work begins at 6 a.m. with a breakfast meeting to hash over the coordination plans. While most of the staff leaves around 8 p.m., some specialists, like those working on infrared imagery, continue working well into the night. While many members of the team are unfamiliar with the region, it is an old friend to Waterbury, who worked in the Illinois Valley and Gold Beach ranger districts early in his career. "That’s rough, rugged terrain up there," said Waterbury, who had spent time with the Curry County Search and Rescue when he worked in the Gold Beach district. "I’ve been through a lot of that country, looking for lost hunters and hikers," he added. "That’s real rough country." It’s also a real tough fire season, one that won’t be over for the team when the fire season ends in the Pacific Northwest, Coats said. "About the time your season ends, our fall fire season starts down south," Coats said, referring to a dry period after the fall rains in the deep South. "It’s going to be a long season, even after this one is out." Reach reporter Paul Fattig at 776-4496 or e-mail him at [email protected] Printer Friendly Version Email Story to a Friend Subscribe Archive: Click to Search Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright 1997-2002 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy webmaster feedback A D V E R T I S E R S