Duck and Cover!
On a hot September afternoon in California (back in ’89), it got exciting when the fire blew up below us. Officials ordered retardant drops to bring down the heat. Fire retardant is a reddish-pink liquid chemically designed to slow the spread of fire. The thick liquid coats the ground, trees and brush …when it’s applied right.
“Hey, guys, they’ve ordered a retardant drop. Move off the line and get ready for a show,” our squad boss ordered.
We were in the perfect position to see the giant air tankers spray the mountainside below us. We moved about twenty yards away from the fire line and I dug in my pack, searching for my small camera, remembering that I was on my last roll of film. I blew dust and grit from the lens and heard the rumble of an approaching plane. It was a rare photo opportunity so I focused to find the perfect angle when I heard panicked yelling.
“DUCK AND COVER!”
“DUCK AND COVER, NOW!”
A deafening roar drowned out all other sounds as I looked to the treetops to see the air tanker flying right toward us. I had half a second to realize the pilot was off course. All we could do was drop to our knees and cover the back of our necks. I shoved the camera down the front of my fire shirt before the slime sprayed my pack and hardhat. A free flow of cussing came from nearby firefighters before the red rain stopped.
Pulling out the camera, I started snapping photos before I had even focused. Five feet behind Pam, I was only lightly sprayed, but she was closer to the main drop-zone and had a gallon of goo dripping off her hard hat. We both laughed.
Crewmember John Workman had used the wait time to take off his pack and adjust his shirt. With no time to put it back on, the entire back of his fire shirt was coated in retardant slime. Both he and Pam looked like they had taken a shower in Pepto-Bismol.
We laughed again when his fire shirt dried. It was so crusty, it literally stood by itself. The laughter was partly relief, knowing that people could’ve been hurt. We heard stories of slurry drops dislodging giant boulders, crushing cars, creating rockslides, breaking tree branches, and even knocking down entire trees… but not that day.
The pilots did eventually drench the fire’s hotspots and our fire line held. All in all, it was a good day and a good ending to a long summer. In the dreary, cold, rainy months back in Eugene, Oregon, I smiled remembering that sometimes slime happens.
What about you? Got a slurry story? Did you ever duck and cover?
1989 Horseshoe Meadows Hotshots Pam Henderson and John Workman get slimed.
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