Life in a Fire Camp

Life in a Fire Camp. . , Imagine, the battle against this immense fire was launched from this small Ranger Station! More than 2,300 people came from all over the country to work on the fire lines. Many of them lived in “fire camps” scattered around the Lowman area. , Fire Camps are self-contained towns quickly placed within safe proximity to a fire. These “mini-communities” must support the entire fire team, from firefighting crews to operators of sophisticated, computerized communication systems. These camps provide hot meals, mobile showers, toilets, laundry facilities, and tents that provide shelter and a place for much needed sleep. In addition, fire camps serve as depots for maintaining and dispatching fire engines, bulldozers, transport buses and helicopters. , When the fire was hottest, three lead planes, 10 helicopters and 10 air tankers dropped 125,000 gallons of retardant in just one day! Each night, planes specially equipped to take infra-red photographs recorded hot spots and mapped fire lines. , How much does it cost? Total fire suppression costs for the Lowman Fire during the summer of 1989 reached $11 million.