NEAR LARCH MOUNTAIN — Through a thin but pervasive layer of smoke, Tyler Arbogast, division supervisor for the Oregon Department of Forestry, watches seven firefighters mop up the edge of the Nakia Creek Fire.
All are young, no older than 35, clad in yellow and green PPE. Some are armed with fire axes while others maneuver a hose, soaking the charred logs. They are a few of the more than 500 personnel assigned to this fire burning in the Yacolt Burn State Forest.
Arbogast, who oversees many of the firefighters and the fire, prepares for nearly everything, often running through worst-case scenarios, such as if someone suffers an injury.
“How am I going to get out of there? What is it going to take? What’s going to get him back to a hospital?,” he explained.
Firefighters and public safety are his top priorities.
“You always want to do your best to save somebody’s everything,” he said. “Whether that’s the big nice house, or somebody’s two trailers sitting there, it’s all they’ve got.”
With the double-edged sword of rain expected Friday, Arbogast is getting ahead by focusing on work that will be difficult to complete during the rain and preparing for how to safely continue working.
“We’re looking at roads and where we can get people safely,” he said. “… (and) getting in when things are good, making sure we get those corners tied up and that we don’t have to get in there later.”
Another difficulty is that the steep terrain coupled with many roads not being on maps makes access difficult.
“It’s a lot of us getting out on the ground and finding things and making our own tracks on maps,” he said.
Arbogast, who is often on the go, moving from fire to fire, will often look back at the cause of a fire. He views all human-caused fires as preventable.
“It’s kind of concerning that we’re putting our lives in danger because someone didn’t take the time to be careful,” he said.
