Fire, fire!

We have been slashing and burning because everything has been so dry and we want to get rid of the dead stuff right around our cabin so that if a forest fire were to happen, there would be a clear perimeter to help protect us.  Or at least slow it down some. 

Well, in trying to prevent a forest fire, we had a mini forest fire.  I had a clear path all the way around the brush and set the blaze.  Burning on a hill is hard enough as it is.  When the dead calm air lets out a small sigh, it can grab a leaf or a spark and jump the line.  We went from controlled burn to fire fighting in under five minutes.  Shovels, rakes, and chainsaws were put to fast use to keep it contained.  And we did.  We kept it contained.  But man, was it hairy for a while.  It burned fast and it burned HOT.  The plus was that it spread away from the cabins.  That's about the only plus for the spread.  But we got it quickly contained and just let it burn itself out.

Looking at it this morning, you can see the ashes of the burn pile that was created, clear ground, and ashes from where it jumped and spread.  Thankfully, it did not spread to the point where we couldn't get it back under control.  I hate to think of what would have happened if we couldn't.

After all was said and done, Husband had a severe case of heat stroke.  He had already had a couple of seizures earlier in the day yesterday.  This didn't really help him any.  I got him cooled down, and filled the tub in the camper for him with cool water for him to bathe and cool down more.  Most of last night after "FIRE!" is pretty much a blur to him.

It is hairy at times being not only our own electric company and water company, but we are also our own fire department.  Yes, there is the volunteer fire department, but for them to jump in, life and homes would have to be involved or several acres would have to be burning. 

Yes, we still have more burning to do.  But, since we now have a rather large ash area, we will pile all the brush into the ash.  It greatly reduces the jump hazard we dealt with yesterday and since everything underneath is already burned, there is a very minimal risk of ground spread fire.

That said, we still won't leave a fire unattended.  Can you imagine if we had stepped away from the fire yesterday?  There are people who burn that will light the fire and walk away just letting it burn.  I don't know how they can do that.  Yikes!