High above Black Hills, fire lookout searches for smoke - KOTA Territory News

High above Black Hills, fire lookout searches for smoke

Firefighters continue to battle blazes throughout the region, even with better weather taking some of the pressure off.

But how do they find out when and where a fire starts?

Sometimes the call comes from a concerned citizen, but sometimes, it comes from on high.

Eighty-two steps and almost 60 feet up, Karen Maloy stands and watches from the Warren Peak fire lookout tower outside of Sundance, Wyo.
 
"For the northern Hills, I'm the tallest," she said.
 
She looks for smoke.
 
"And [watches] the weather," added Maloy, "because 99 percent of our fires are lightning-caused."
 
Maloy, who, by the way, is afraid of heights, mans one of just five fire lookout towers still active in the Black Hills National Forest.
 
"It's kind of easy in a way, because white smoke stands out real clear against the Black Hills," Maloy said, never stopping combing the Hills with her trained eyes.
 
But then comes the slightly harder part.
 
"Once you see it, you got to find out, know where it's at, call dispatch so they can start sending people to it," she said.
 
Now in her seventh season at the top of the cramped tower (where she actually lives for the summer), Maloy says it's kind of like camping.
 
"I don't even miss the Internet or TV because I have all this for my views," she said, smiling and gesturing to the wide-open landscape.
 
The only drawback? The bathroom is 82 steps away at the bottom of the tower.

Maloy said lookout towers are becoming rarer as agencies cut back budgets and more people move to rural areas where they can see the smoke for themselves.