Keeping Watch

Keeping Watch. Fire Lookout Stations. , During spring and early summer, the main fire season here, a staffed fire lookout station keeps watch over the Santa Catalina Mountains. The trail in front of you leads to the U.S. Forest Service Lemmon Rock Station which has a panoramic view from east to west. Fire lookouts use their knowledge of the topography, maps and the Osborne fire finder to determine the exact location of a fire. This information is relayed to fire managers, who deicde how to respond to the fire. Some lightning-caused fires may be managed for multiple resource objectives when they do not threaten structures or critical wildlife habitat., At 2:45 pm on June 17, 2003, a fire lookout spotted smoke in the forest below the Lemmon Rock Station. He radioed in the first information, "1/10 of an acre, no flame." His next report came minutes later. The smoke originated from a dead tree engulfed in flames that could act like a torch, a phenomenon called crowning. Crown fires spread rapidly in the tops of trees. The dead tree on fire was only three miles from the community of Summerhaven., Despite firefighting efforts, this fire grew to be one of the largest fires recorded in Arizona, the 2003 Aspen Fire. Hot, dry conditions and drought-stressed forest vegetation contributed to the rapid spread of the fire. The fire burned for almost a month, eventually burning 84,750 acres and destroying over 300 structures. Many buildings in the community of Summerhaven burned to the ground. Finally, monsoon rains arrived on July 11th, helping to extinguish the fire. On July 14, 2003, President George W. Bush declared the Santa Catalina Mountains a disaster area. The final cost of the firefighting efforts exceeded $16 million. Fortunately, no human lives were lost during the fire. Investigation into the fire determined that the Aspen Fire was human caused., Osborne Fire Finder , Since 1915, the Osborne Firefinder has been used by firefighters. It is accurate, requires no power to operate, and can be portable. The device uses an area map on a horizontal table with two sighting devices to pinpoint the fire location., [Captions:] Firefighters battle the Aspen Fire All photos courtesy Arizona Daily Star , George Bush and USFS Chief Dale Bosworth overlook the Aspen Burn , Lemmon Rock Lookout , Smoke Rises from the Aspen Fire