“On October 8, 1871, the most devastating forest fire in American history swept through (Estep)northeast Wisconsin, claiming 1,200 lives.” Forest fires affect various states in the U.S. every year. If a forest fire occurs, it’s usually in dry and hot places. Forest fires are very rapid, like tornados, but the Peshtigo fire was very deadly and severe…
On August 5, 1949, a wildfire overran 16 smokejumpers and firefighters in Mann Gulch on the Helena National Forest in Montana. The fire was most likely started by lightning from a thunderstorm. It was noticed promptly by rangers, who dispatched 16 smokejumpers, under the command of Wagner Dodge. Thought to be much smaller than it actually was, the fire quickly grew large and out of control, covering 3000 acres in 10 minutes during its blow up stage. Upon approaching Mann Gulch, the crew noticed the fire had already crossed onto their side of the gulch. Seeing the extreme danger in this, the order to retreat back up the slope was given and the men moved up the hill. Dodge later gave the order for the men to drop their pack…
Can you think of something more dangerous than fire? It seems that all other kinds of disasters are no less hazardous, but fire… Fire is merciless; it takes away everything standing in its way, including people’s lives. Let us take a look at one of the most devastating wildfires in California’s History, The Yosemite Rim Fire. This massive fire started on August 17, 2013, Took nearly a full 9 weeks of fire fighters fighting to get the fire fully contained. Nearly costing $127.35 million just in the fight against this devastating wildfire.The size of the Yosemite Rim Fire was nearly 257,314 acres. A total of eleven homes, three commercial structures, and 98 outbuildings were destroyed in the fire. Just Think about it, a Wild fire about the size of Chicago had burned for nearly 9 weeks.…
Half an hour later, at -3,200 feet, an unearthly netherworld looms into view: the long, narrow summit of an undersea volcano. Pisces' powerful searchlights sweep across the summit, illuminating two pit craters up to 1,200 feet deep inside the caldera. The sub touches down at Pele's Vents, named after the Hawaiian volcano goddess. The water shimmers eerily where warm, toxic fluids stream out into the cold ocean. Sulfur-yellow chimneys up to a foot tall encase the vents and spongy carpets of tangerine orange drape the rocks.…
Rockfalls are occur more often in the summer months because of this widening trend. So far there has been 25,000 tons of rocks that have fallen from the slopes in Yosemite. That is enough rock to fill three olympic sized swimming pools. With fifteen percent of all rockfalls occurring on the hottest days of the year, this…
To the locals of Southern California early autumn marks the beginning of the Santa Ana winds. The Santa Ana winds are extremely dry and powerful winds, that are funneled through canyons from inland valleys to the coast of Southern California. The two essays “Brush Fire” by Linda Thomas and “The Santa Ana” by Joan Didion are different perspectives of the Santa Ana winds. Thomas views the Santa Ana winds as a necessity of nature, while Didion views them as a malevolent force of nature.…
There is a fine line between holding on to something sacred to you and becoming obsessive over it. Nostalgia can be a beautiful thing. Afterall, it triggers a sense of happiness and bliss within the individual reminiscing on the past event or thing. Though in some cases nostalgia can be quite crippling to one's life. It can prevent an individual from being able to move on from the past as a result of the euphoric feeling it gives off. In the documentary, The Rock-afire Explosion, a man by the name of Chris Thrash is heavily focused on throughout the film because of his obsession over everything that involves the The Rock-afire Explosion. The Rock-afire explosion was an animatronic band that performed throughout the ‘80s for children at an…
The Great Yellowstone Fires of 1988 and the controversy about the treatment of wildfires in the United States…
In May 1980, following an earthquake Mount St. Helens erupted, triggering a massive landslide, which sent a plume of ash up into the sky so far that it scattered ash across a dozen states (Taylor, 2015.) When the volcano erupted, the north face of the volcano blew out spewing an avalanche of rock and debris up into the atmosphere. In addition to the previously mentioned effects of Mount St. Helens erupting, the blast also caused massive destruction to…
Throughout history, many artists have tried their best to capture the mood of their time period. In 1865, Albert Bierstadt created an incredible art piece named “Looking Down Yosemite Valley”, which illustrates the glorious mountain landscape of the California valley. He was so inspired by what he had seen, he decided to reimagine it by using oil on paperboard. While painting, he chose to make the skies light blue and the plantlife brighter than usual. In addition, he painted the valley mountains larger than everything else in the oil painting to emphasize the valley’s size. Bierstadt showed an unbelievable understanding of light and reflection, which brought the entire piece together. Furthermore, this inspired people to move to California to be able to experience the inspiration for Bierstadt’s artwork and have a better life.…
On June 30, 2013 a wildfire began that proved to be the most deadly wildfire in over 50 years. The wildfire was started by a strike of lightning just outside the city of Yarnell, AZ. The Prescott Fire Department 's elite group of firefighters, who were called Granite Mountain Hotshots, were called in to contain the fire. While attempting to contain the fire around Yarnell, the winds changed directions, and picked up speed. This caused the fire to circle around the firefighters, cutting off their escape route. Nineteen of the twenty firefighters were killed June 30, 2013.…
Yosemite National Park is without a doubt, one of America’s most beautiful and well-known parks. Due to the diversity of attractions the park offers, including high Sierra Peaks, the highest highway pass in California called the Tioga Pass, the Yosemite Valley, the Merced River, acres of high altitude backcountry, waterfalls, and some of the largest living things on earth in the sequoia groves tourists from all over the world visit. The most famous section in the park is Yosemite Valley, where El Capitan, Half Dome, Yosemite Falls, and other places to explore nature’s beauty lie.…
“The text authors claim that the midterm elections of 1866 were “more crucial than some presidential elections.” Do you agree? Why or why not?”…
Many believe the creation of Yosemite National Park to be formed for about 10,000 years (1989). Yosemite is a beautiful creation with wonderful geological sites, such as Half-Dome, Yosemite Valley, and all of its waterfalls. The creation of Yosemite and its beautiful landscape, as well as the earth, is differed in the eyes of evolutionists and creationists since Charles Darwin proposed the theory (Pappas, 2014). Some people think the creation of Yosemite is an effect of the Ice Age, and others believe it is an effect of the global flood God commanded.…
The term "wildland fire fighting" has been defined by the (1) NFPA as: The activities of fire suppression and property conservation in woodlands, forests, grasslands, brush, prairies, and other such vegetation, or any combination of vegetation, that is involved in a fire situation but is not within buildings or structures.…