0 ... Gabriel Morrishelp from the Forest Service, due to lack of personnel and resources.
Apparently, there were major forest fires all over the West that sum-
mer, and ours was one of the small ones by comparison.
Just then—while I was feeling a great wave of helplessness amidst
the circle where I was sitting—a man came running out of the woods
nearby, yelling, “Come on! We’re starting a bucket brigade right now,
and we need as many people to help out as possible!”
At the same time, a man on a horse was trying to argue with him,
“No, it’s too dangerous...we can’t go back in there, the fire could
overtake us at any minute.”
“It’s okay,” said the other guy. “I’ve been back in there already, and
the fire is somehow dying down on its own. But we need people to
help put it out, before it starts to blaze again.”
I immediately jumped up, ready to take some action, tired of sit-
ting around helplessly all afternoon. I ran off into the woods, along
with many other folks, in the direction he had indicated, to find out
how we could help out.
A bucket brigade was indeed forming at the creek. There was al-
ready a long line leading from the creek up the hill in the general di-
rection of the fire. I took my place in it and began alternately handing
heavy, full buckets of water up the line, and then tossing the empty
ones back down the hill towards the creek.
As more and more people joined the brigade at the bottom, we
were all moved farther up the hill until I could see wisps of smoke
coming through the trees. I wet my bandanna once again and tied it
back around my face and throat as I moved deeper into the woods,
eventually coming to charred trees and ground, and shoots of smoke
coming out of the dirt.
The scene in the forest nearest the fire was a madhouse. People were
scattered all over the place carrying the full buckets of water right up
to the charred and smoking trees, a few of which were still on fire, to
varying degrees. The previously raging flames had clearly died down
a great deal. Apparently the wind had suddenly changed directions,
forcing the fire back onto itself, so that most of its available fuel had