iditor’s note: National Forest -takes place this year from May 7 to 13, In recognition of _ ,> the importance of forests_to, the _ ‘lifestyle and economy of the Terrace. area, the Terrace Review will be publishing a “ series of articles dealing with the work of the B.C. Forest Service. “>... Contributed by the. ’<“\Every year, forest fires _ “destroy ‘precious trees, timber -and wildlife. Sometimes they ““even. take human lives, But “ B.C.’s highly trained Forest Ser- vice is there to fight back. These " dedicated firefighters can be proud of their success and safety record in the annual battle - against forest fires. ~.- Over the past 75-plus years since its founding, the B.C. ‘Forest Service has developed the world’s most effective, tech- nologically-advanced approach . to fighting wildfires. Their . , primary goal: ‘‘Fast initial at- “tack”? — controlling fires before “they can spread. Their record: - 86 percent of ali wild-fires con- tained within the first 24 hours _of detection. The. Forest Service fire opera- _ tion is organized into several dif- ferent kinds of units. This ‘in- ' cludes conventional ground forces, teams that operate fixed wing tankers, and helicopter- borne rapattack crews. About 450 people are trained _ for conventional ground attack. _ ‘Working in teams with between ‘three and 20 members, they are _ stationed around the province during the forest fire season. - When needed, the Forest Service can call upon another 700 fire wardens and 900 forest fire pre- * vention officers, along with ex- "“ perienced forest industry crews. ' Helitack and rapattack crews. are sent to fight fires that are “ The cost of restoring t . Andthe persons res difficult to reach by ground transportation. These rapattack teams lover themselves right into the fire site by rapelling down ropes from a_ hovering helicopter. Besides carrying firefighters, helicopters may also be fitted with tanks or carry a ‘‘monsoon bucket” for dump- ing fire retardants or water on hot spots. Based in: Salmon Arm, the rapattack force is available for use anywhere in the province. When needed, a contract rappel “squad .stationed in Revelstoke can go into action. Rapattack crews are highly skilled in two very dangerous oc- cupations — firefighting and chainsawing — and have one of the riskiest jobs in the province. Yet, even with the high level of danger inherent in their work, the rapattack units. have a near-100 percent safety record. In fact, during the first 10 years since rapattack was launched, after more than 24,000 work- hours spent putting out over 1,000 fires, only two minor ‘chainsaw incidents have oc- curred. B.C.’s rapattack units have also led the way in developing several very useful firefighting Po methods. One of the most effec- tive is the. technique for off- - loading water from a helicopter “belly tank’, This technique allows helicopter crews to take over 1,300 litres of water in only 90 seconds from water sources on the ground, and then ferry it directly to the fire site, where it is dropped on the flames or transferred to a portable reser- voir. But the Forest Service needs more than helicopters in its air- borne attack on forest fires. Its major muscle in airborne fire- fighting comes from a fleet of 15 fixed-wing air tankers stationed rrace Review — Wednesday, May 3, 1989 21. _leads the world in fighting forest fires soe ee area a drop large quantities of retard- ant right where it’s meeded. There are also nine bird-dog planes to direct the tankers to their targets. Other aircraft may be called upon if required. Disciplined teamwork, along with state-of-the-art technology and firefighting methods make all the B.C. Forest Service fire- fighting units world leaders. Provincial firefighting crews are often called by other provinces and countries to help extinguish wildfires in distant jurisdictions. ee Mayor Jack Talstra has declared May as Motorcycle Safety Awareness Month in Terrace. The safety awareness campaign Is organized by the British Columbia Motorcycle Federation provincially and the Road Runners’ Motor- cycle Club locally. The event is designed to promote safe driving for everyon Above, Taistra get a feel for motorcyclin Runner president Sue Kaulbeck Is riding Sight” to. Vanderhoof on June 10 and 11, and Canada's motorcycle skills course at Northwest Community College. e using our streets and highways. g with B.C. Motorcycle zone seven regional director James Gilham. Road escort. Coming events for local bikers include the 10th annual “Ride for “Gearing Up” which will be held - Telephone cables are the lifeline of your community. If these cables are cut during excavation or construction | “projects, everyone pays in one way or another. - The public could be cut off from emergency services. he cable is high (particularly for fibre optics cable). ponsible for the damage will be charged with the repair and associated costs. ~- B.C.Tel can help you avoid this unnecessary expense. - Dial 611 before you dig, and we will provide you with the “ase location of buried telephone cables. . B.C. Tel is ready to serve you. . , DIAL 611 BEFORE YOU DIG. ee 1, 1989. degree and university. Kitimat Prince Rupert Terrace TEACHER TRAINING IN THE NORTHWEST The School Districts of Kitimat, Bulkley Valley, Prince Rupert and Terrace are interested in initiating a - teacher training programme for people with university degrees. Under the auspices of a British Columbia University and coordinated by Northwest Community College the intent is that participants take their teacher training programme in the Northwest. The pro- gramme will be offered once only and begin September Interested applicants please write, by May 15, to your local Superintendent of Schools and indicate your Superintendent of Schools School District #80 (Kitimat) 1515 Kingfisher Avenue Kitimat, B.C. V8C 185 Bulkley Valley Superintendent of Schools School District #54 (Bulkley Valley) P.O. Box 758 Smithers, B.C. VOU 2NO0 Superintendent of Schools _ School District #52 (Prince Rupert). | 634 - 6th Avenue East oe Prince Rupert, V8s 1X1 Superintendent of Schools School District 488 (Terrace) 3211 Kenney Street Terrace, B.C. V8G 3E9 .