It may be fall almost, but when it comes to fires we aren't out of the woods just yet in the Black Hills. "As far as fire conditions, we're at all time record extreme right now," said Wildland Fire Director Jay Esperance.
Drought conditions continue and Esperance says there are so many things that could start a fire. "Anything, It's just so dry out here, anything that can create a spark, your lawn mower hitting a rock, heavy equipment, a grater could start a fire, welding could start a fire, so any human activity could start a fire," said Esperance.
Firefighters, like the men of the Black Hat Fire Crew, are ready to head to a fire all the time. "We just stop what we're doing pack up our tools jump in the trucks and away we go," said crew member George Gazzola.
For now they are thinning the forest to protect nearby towns just in case a fire starts in the area, but any second they could be called to a fire. "Until the snow hits the ground we're going to be on our toes and ready for a fire," said Esperance.
The fire trucks are fully loaded. "Tools, water, Gatorade, MRE's, line bags, tents, sleeping pads, pretty much anything to keeps us out up to 72 hours on our own," said Crew Boss Robert Nordlee.
"We have everything we need for a two week assignment in the vehicles at all times," said Gazzola. "I have two weeks' worth of cloths, all my necessary equipment for the fire, my line gear that I need, my shelter, my helmet, hard hat."
Record high fire danger means firefighters could be in it for the long haul. "There's no end in sight right now," said Gazzola.
"2007 was probably about the last time I saw it to this point and even then, this is continuing longer than that season did," said Nordlee.
Fire danger is so extreme in the Black Hills that the state has also called in out-of-state crews that are also on call and prepared to fight fires at any time.
This graph shows average fire danger. The blue line is 2012 (from SD Wildland Fire Suppression)
