[Vhfcn-l] Monday musings early this week

[Gary Thewlis]

Funny, I've met a lot of pin-up girls, but I've never been able to pin one
down.

Groucho Marx

 

To harken to evil conversation is the road to wickedness.. (Pravis
Assuescere Sermonibus Est Via Ad Rem Ipsam)

Anonymous

 

Sometimes I want to go back in time and punch myself in the face. 

Unknown

 

Bad decisions make good stories.

Ellis Vidler

 

The road to success is dotted with many tempting parking spaces.

Will Rogers

 

If at first you don't succeed, you are running about average.

MH Alderson

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Most Americans know how to stop, drop, and roll. Some even know how to
employ a fire suppression blanket and how to properly operate a fire
extinguisher. But for the vast majority of people, fire is something you
brag about being able to make out of two sticks, or something you cook
dinner on top of, or just something you sprint away from-certainly not
something you want to have to fight to put out. The people who do run toward
an unexpected blaze have been well trained in strategies that can suppress
the flames of a wildfire. Below are 10 of the techniques firefighters use to
put fires out quickly, completely, and safely.

 

1. A Control Line

 

One of the most important components of wildfire suppression, control lines
are simply the boundaries-natural or humanmade-that firefighters employ to
control how and where a fire spreads. A rocky ridge or river can serve as a
natural control line, or firefighters can establish an artificial one by,
for example, clearing out an extended line of brush. Within this overarching
definition, a fire line is when the barrier is scraped down "to mineral
soil," a scratch line is a preliminary line built in a hurry, and a wet line
is when the area has had flame retardant or water applied. And when you hear
on the news that a fire is "X percent contained," this is generally what
they're talking about-that some percentage of the fire's perimeter has a
control line. But because fires can sometimes jump the barrier, even a 100
percent contained fire can start up again.

 

2. A Burnout

 

When establishing control lines, digging a small ditch and pulling up some
plants isn't always enough. To create a sturdy, fuel-free barrier,
firefighters may use small torches to burn the brush just inside a control
line. A burnout is one of several ways to bolster a control line and further
prevent a blaze from escaping the established boundaries.

 

3. A Backburn

 

A backburn is similar to a burnout, but requires a slightly more
sophisticated technique. Once a control line is established, firefighters
may set a controlled blaze downwind of the main fire, just on the inside of
the control line; they then push the new blaze back toward the main fire,
burning up all the fuel that lies between the fire and the control line.

 

4. Flanking

 

For a wildfire small enough to be snuffed out using a direct attack,
firefighters may begin their assault on the blaze from behind. Starting from
already burned earth, the firefighters will typically work their way around
the edge of the fire to spray the flames as they make their way around the
entire perimeter of the blaze.

 

5. Hot Spotting

 

Hot spotting is the term used to describe the extra attention given to the
most active and dangerous portions of a wildfire. The crews fighting the
fire size up the parts of the blaze most likely to spread and try to devise
the best strategy for keeping these areas in check. Hot spotting may also
involve diverting extra human power to the task of stamping out embers and
spot fires that blow or erupt from the hottest part of the inferno.

 

6. Knocking Down

 

Whereas hot spotting refers to the assessment of a fire's condition,
knocking down is all about action. The knock down strategy is employed when
firefighters decide that a certain hotspot needs to be suppressed
immediately. To diminish the section of a fire deemed to have grown too hot,
too active, or too large, fighters directly apply some combination of dirt,
water, or retardant to that section.

 

7. Cold Trailing

 

While a fire is being attacked from the front or side, other firefighters
may be involved in cold trailing, the task of combing through already
scorched ground in the wake of a moving wildfire. The point is to make sure
no hot or glowing embers remain, since leftover coals can be blown around
and flame up again.

 

8. Aerial Attack

 

If significant exposed water sources are nearby, planes and helicopters can
scoop up buckets of water and carry them to be dropped atop the inferno. The
water is often mixed with a foam retardant before being dropped [PDF]. The
foamed water acts as a more effective barrier to the spread of fire and also
insulates fuel that has not yet burned.

 

9. Fireline Explosives

 

When setting control lines or fire lines, firefighters may even use
explosives to break up dense brush and fallen trees. Explosives can also be
used to fell trees whose spread might help a fire jump across a control
line. During a large or fast-moving fire, explosives are employed mainly for
efficiency purposes, as they can save precious time when crews need to
contain a fire quickly.

 

10. A Mop-Up

 

It's called a mop-up when firefighters go back and clean up along a
completed control line. Mop-up consists of dousing any embers and spot fires
that have made their way across control lines. It also involves protecting
still-vulnerable fuels using a burnout (if they're permanently situated) or
by simply moving them.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

George Washington trivia

 

Believe it or not, Washington had to borrow money to attend his own
inauguration.

 

George Washington was one of the tallest and largest presidents in our
country's history at 6'3" and more than 200 lbs with size 13 boots.

 

His previous occupations include Surveyor, soldier, and planter.

 

In Philadelphia, Washington delivered the shortest inaugural address of all
time. He had only one tooth at the time and his dentures often gave him pain
when he wore them. It was only 133 words long and took a mere 90 seconds to
deliver. It went as follows:

 

Fellow Citizens,

 

I am again called upon by the voice of my country to execute the functions
of its Chief Magistrate. When the occasion proper for it shall arrive, I
shall endeavor to express the high sense I entertain of this distinguished
honor, and of the confidence which has been reposed in me by the people of
united America.

 

Previous to the execution of any official act of the President the
Constitution requires an oath of office. This oath I am now about to take,
and in your presence: That if it shall be found during my administration of
the Government, I have in any instance violated willingly or knowingly the
injunctions thereof, I may (besides incurring constitutional punishment) be
subject to the upbraidings of all who are now witnesses of the present
solemn ceremony.

 

As president, he was the only one who never actually lived in Washington
D.C.

 

Although it was considered fashionable to wear a powdered wig late in the
1700's, Washington refused to and instead powdered his own red-brown hair.