“When residents see the SuperTanker responding, it’s like the cavalry is here. “The North Bay has come to love the SuperTanker,” state Sen. The 231-foot-long SuperTanker, which can race to a wildfire at 600 mph and dive low to release a deluge of pink retardant, is the only one of its kind in the world.Ī fire-ravaged landscape reveals the River fire, left, and the Ranch fire smoke plume, right, Friday, Aug. Global SuperTanker Services, LLP, the Colorado Springs-based company that owns the aircraft, did not respond to an emailed request for comment. Reese is a 25-year Cal Fire veteran who served as chief of tactical air operations. “This week the investors that own Global SuperTanker just informed me that they have made the difficult decision to cease operations of the company, effective this week,” company president Dan Reese said in an email sent to state and federal officials, the website reported. The investor group that owns Tanker 944, which has flown more than 200 missions over California since 2017, is shutting down the aircraft, according to Fire Aviation, an industry website. “I’m thinking it’s going to be the worst fire season we’ve ever had, with low water and no tanker,” Terri Howell said. After returning home, firefighters told them if it hadn't been for the Boeing 747 super tanker, the home would have burned to the ground. Fearing the worst, they evacuated their home. “We put everything we have in there,” she said.įirefighters told them a drop from a converted Boeing 747 four-engine jetliner packing 18,000 gallons of retardant had halted the fiery tide.Ĭount the Howells among the many people, including one state lawmaker, dismayed by news that Cal Fire’s largest firefighting asset - a red and white 747 SuperTanker known by the number 944 on its tail - is no longer available as California braces for wildfire season after two of the driest winters in history.įlames from the the River fire swept down a hillside above Terri and Kevin Howell's home in Scotts Valley in 2018. “I couldn’t believe it,” said Terri Howell, who had taken along a cat, two dogs and two pregnant goats as the couple evacuated in a hurry from the home they had purchased four years earlier.Įven though they just had it painted at considerable expense, the Howells appreciated the fresh coat of pink fire retardant adorning the house upon their return. Since the lightning strikes that started on Saturday, August 15, there have been more than 900 new wildfires, which have now burned almost 1.5 million acres.Roaring across Lake County in the late summer of 2018, the River fire was stopped about 100 yards from Terri and Kevin Howell’s retirement home in rural Scotts Valley.
On the ground, over 15,600 firefighters are battling the 19 major fires and lightning complexes burning in California as of September 1, according to Cal Fire.
Helicopters release water to extinguish fires in Pope Valley, California. Once hooked to a harness or basket, the target and crew-member are carried a short distance to safety Cal Fire’s helicopter crews are trained to carry out “short-haul” rescues, which often involve a crew-member being lowered from a hovering helicopter. The helicopters have also proven valuable when moving or evacuating firefighters and civilians.
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