| Show I I I e esT sT l r rf ire f fAil 1 orld r w y J a Every Means Human Ski 1 r r Can Devise Being Used r Keep a Western t Pe Forest r- r t Fr wa i From Al K Being 3 n Swept by KI ii Flames n t I F vf a r I y 4 A l C C w a ah v h y 3 r Cx y p 9 1 j I I Aeroplanes are continually patrolling the porno rs of the forest where whre wh re fires are most Their course is guided t by directions signaled from lookouts in towers on the mountain tops one of whom shown above is using an r ingenious range finder to figure out the exact location of ofa a suspicious auspicious wisp of smoke she has seen i through her powerful powerful glasses l Jf rUCH UC anxiety and even alarm is Is r felt on account of a situation wholly without precedent has arisen on the Ol Olympic plC Peninsula in 10 inthe inthe the State of Washington It isa is a threat say the authorities of the most stupendous stupendous I dous dons conflagration ever known in this country i iThe i The danger exists as a consequence of a disaster which overtook the forests 0 of that region on January 29 1921 when hen a tornado swept through the peninsula blowing ing down timber estimated at board feet It was the greatest catastrophe ever v recorded in m the annals of forestry ort ort or t lumbering The tornado literally cut a aswath aswath aswath swath through the primeval forest thirty mIles wide and seventy-five seventy miles long longi l mowing down the trees like so much wheat heat Not even the mightiest trees could stand against It it Torn up by the roots they lay in a tangled ass n-ass over OHr OHran an area of 2250 square miles No wind ind to equal it has ever been known With a velocity of miles an hour it wrecked the North Head station of the Weather Bureau and destroyed j j the recording instruments The observer in charge estimated that in the few min mm- minutes rain utes utes that followed it increased to at least miles mlles an hour Over great areas practically every tree was thrown down and all roads and traIls were completely obliterated Inthe In Inthe Inthe the Hoh River district 75 per cent of the timber felland fell and the mammoth trees bor- bor bordering bordering bor bordering dering the Hoh and were mown down like grain third One-third of the forest growth in Clallam Clallam lam lam and Jefferson counties was flattened 25 25 per cent of the leveled trees so twisted and splintered as to be valueless for or lumber The famous Olympic way High High High- Highway way running along the coast two forty forty mlles miles was ruined the giant trees that bordered it being blown down by hundreds hun hun- hun From that highway formerly highway ono one of the most beautiful roads in Amer Amer- America ica one ica-one one ca-one one can for now see miles across desolated storm desolated areas I where primeval stands of magnificent timber timber formerly gave so dense a shade as to shut out the sunlight So So much for the Immediate los loss in- in inflIcted inflicted in inflicted in few minutes a by nature In irone one of her most ferocious moods But what next next What was to be done in such sucha suea a case ease And wherein lay and still lies the danger The problem was and is to-day to one of o the most sellON imaginable Obviously trees that have be been torn up by the roots root cannot be made to stand st nd up again A forest forest leveled to the ground isa is a fares destroyed To re-create re it is impossible In the mean time the trees dry out They become like so BO much tinder If fire a starts In the fallen forest a conflagration J can hardly be prevented There Thera is the danger If fire were to gain headway in the devastated de area it lt would surely spread d to adjoining parts of the Olympic Penin- Penin Peninsula sula where the tho timber untouched bythe by bythe the tornado stands stand uninjured The Th e I Olympic National Forest alone has 15 15 board feet exposed to this peril penland and in addition very cry extensive forested lands of state and private ownership ov are endangered The problem from the outset was a douse one to one to salvage salvae as much of the tImber as possible for coni conversion into lumber and to prevent fire Appeal was made to the red Federal era I gO government for help and Congress 1 responded with an appropriation of The State of Washington has given an equal sum Much more money will be needed for it has bas not been possible as yet o 3 Improve the situation nuch though a n great gleat deal has bas been done in the way of establish ing measures of precaution against fire fre The heaviest damage was along the Hoh and Clearwater livers rivers where here te Le teState eState t-eState State of Washington is the principal land owner There the timber lies reo re- remote re remote mote from any means of and being largely spruce and hemlock which ate ale subject to rapid decay it will not last more than three to lb fh e a year ear on the ground m ground in condition that is lS to be available for lumber The forests of the Olympic Peninsula are in 10 the so-called so fog belt andon and on that account have hitherto been regard regard- regarded regarded regarded ed edas as the safest fire risk in the PacIfic Northwest or indeed in the United States In a few tew hours this condition was as changed to one of great hazard There are however no thunderstorms in 10 that region and hence ere ti-ere rere is practically practically no danger from lightning If Ifa afire a afire fire starts in the devastated area it lt Will Willbe willbe willbe be through human agency So far as fire is concerned therefore the problem is rather one of prevention than of control If It it lt were to get a faIr start impossible control would be almost ble To put out or control a fire that gained any headway in the mass of tan tan- tangled tangled tan tangled trees scattered tree tops and lv lv- lv-ing lv ing trees would be a super super- human superhuman task It would hardly be practicable practicable cable to cut out a fore fire around nd a small burning area before the firo faro reached such vigor a as to rise into the tree tops A lighted match cigar or cigarette dropped on a road or trail might start a conflagration not only disastrous to the forests but incidentally involving horrible loss of life among settlers in isolated parts of the timbered region The great blow down as foresters call it by remarkable luck cost cost not a single human life though there were ero some narrow escapes Settlers were vero cut off for a while from all communication communication tion with ith the outside world and many o oi them killed their horses and cattle be- be beCaUse because be cause they could get no feed teed for th the animals Labyrinths of fallen timber blocked roads and trails and travel wasso was wasso so difficult that it took five d ds dys s for or a aman aman i iman man to bring first news of the dIsaster to Port Angeles A mail mall carriers carrier's automobile was demolished de- de demolished demolished by a falling tree and the two occupants of the vehicle escaped by b crawling n mile mlle underneath tree trunks 1 The driver of a truck lost his hia machine and ran through tumbling trees to safety safe safe- safety safety ty Later he returned to find his truck buried under branches and debris Much wild life lifo perished in the storm including many hundreds of elk which were ere eIther cither killed outright or trapped trees to die slowly Iy of starvation starvation tion It is a sparsely populated region but there are aro a good many settlers to as may well ell be imagined the blow n Tas Sias a first-class first calamity Dependent upon trails they could not get out of or 01 orinto into the devastated de area One of the first measures adopted by the Fedel al Forest Sel Service vice operating co with the state authorities and the lumber com corn companies paniCS was v as to open up the area to in- in ingress in ingress gress and egress The task was as enormous Some of the more roads more particularly in the northern part have been reopened re reopened To reopen the trails halls costs costs to a mile In order to establish a fire lookout station on Peak a trail had to be made up the mountain at an expense of per mile Another lookout sta- sta station station sta station tion has been set s t up on the summit of Mount Octopus In the mean time forced logging is being done by the lumber companies to save as much as possible of the spruce and hemlock Sixty per cent of the trees destroyed were hemlock The firs wIll last indefinitely as they lie This sal sal- sal sal v waging aging work involves much fire risk and andr andris andis is conduct conducted d under closest supervision burning O Oil burning or electric equipment is used exclusively in m logging and transportation transportation tion No person Is permitted to enter the tho devastated de area without registering his name nanie and receiving an identification card Smoking anY anywhere here within tho area is forbidden Travelers are allowed to camp and build fires only in certain places undera under a system of permits For this purpose camp sites have havo been developed eloped at Lake Crescent Beaver Forks and SOlder Snider Range Station At every such camp IS ISa isa isa a fire warden arden whose hose sole duty is to pre pre- prevent prevent pre prevent vent th the accidental starting of fires To make a survey of the fhe stricken region re region re- re region gion would in former days have bee been i the most difficult operation conceivable but not long after the storm a fairly satis antis satISfactory satisfactory factory map of it lt was vas obtained by the Use of airplanes Having thus ascer aster ascertained tamed the exact extent and character of the damage it was as possible to tackle tackle I the job effectively Repairing and new construction of roads trails and telephone lines are still gOing on as rapidly as possible whIle patrolmen are constantly traversing the devastated area on the watch atch for fire Each Dach patrolman carries a portable tele tele- telephone telephone telephone phone enabling him to communicate with headquarters without delay in case of emergency There is in fact an intensive sive ive patrol ct f all roads and trails and close track Is Is kept of the movements of every individual who enters the tho area A special watch is kept by motorcycle pa- pa pa I I J j c l r I s wC 34 r N 4 t rr y f f fj yZ w a k kai r F ai yr S j a ar y G GU U 1 b x 44 F 1 F n V q r re y Sr Sri W e a r ry L a t i i MS 3 n k f l lY l- l lI y f A S Se Sa Se e Y H h q N NKa Ka F I Ix v J a e R RC C x p o art e vs zv bl a b bs bi s i it t K y cf Ella y I d y x tY k x Fi t I Y yI yIA A aM i c r ny tw a any y C u y s n Y s i f e eIre Ire Irez z F yr x s ti F 7 r t tj tS j S z w wF F o oa a yr x v-M v Fla St xa S1 4 i iy y 4 3 r 7 F aid t d dF e r rt xi 3 A at s sY Y w V Vs so z a aJ aS J S w S N Y y yc c g s Y a 4 4 y t C pL s rb a e Va VaC fry q 3 S 'S 9 4 Yr Yra err a GId t M l rYA Ea FC ax t kt Mw b ar r 9 F r b fir p k YG raar 1 x r ba a 1 On the left a j 3 t 1 of dev dev- Abo a what la piece looks exact exact- left ly like aC a a C by a forest volcanic volcanic sa sary ry ryle le 1 tw e sa 3 a ac t c t W s eh fire and a x below eruption but what ill ie really h i r 9 a kr f ft t yta f a t tao 4 R n i 4 CC fighting athe a athe the dense fire in the cloud of i s Y Sierra Moun smoke tent sent 6 t 4 idt w r rE E r I k trans from a out by a fire ab railroad train that is sweep sweep- constructed ing over u 4 especially hundreds of w for this pur- pur thousands of acres of pose poso valuable woodland yg 6 t 4 4 dy a y rb t I N JP S a 4 0 s x m r br 9 y r f ya A ri riX X r Y 2 a S St t x p S t tS r N el S h r rry ry a rip t b bt bI I t aLai Lai i a yf f s d troIs upon the activities s of automobile tourists along the tho Olympic Highway Located at intervals along that high high- highway highway way ay ate ale water supply stations BIg motor trucks carrying fire-fighting fire tools pumps and 1000 feet of hose draw be- be behind behind behind hind them trailers with t two 0 gallon GOO ater water ater tanks Smaller trucks serve for forthe forthe the transportation of fire-fighting fire crews crew and supplier The These Thc e crews are ure trained fighters fire fighters but every e ery lumberjack i lS is re-idy re at a moments moment's notice to quit log Jog logging ging work and act as a fire fighting aux aux- auxiliary whenever the call is sent out I The heavy tru trucks ks with Ith water tank trailers lers and pumps are held at stra egic points along the rO roads and picked fire fire- firefighting fire fighting fighting crews cles are kept in places hero rIsk of fire is deemed greatest g In the mean time the outlooks on the mountain mountaintops mountaintops tops keep continual watch atch for smoke If smoke were ere to be bo seen tho the watcher atcher would ascertain its exact direction by means of an nn ingenious optical instrument and communicate the information to headquarters The watcher on another mountain top descrying th the sama smoke moke would do the same thing At f 1 tars teis the he two directions thus glyen would be quickly plotted on a n map and the tho point where here the lines crossed would be bethe bothe the location of the fire Headquarters being in tion by telephone or telegraph with all parts of the forest orders would be immediate immediate- imme late immediately ly sent to burry bUllY fire-fighting fire crews andL and L CI and water v ater tank trucks to the place of danger Up to date the system system has been eX tive effective But tho situation is Y Yi one of con con on- on stant peril penland and is regarded as the serious that most i has eVer 4 confronted t the tho lumber industry of the Northwest North North vest l |
