WAUPACA COUNTY POST
April 8, 2004
Waupaca County Observes 50th Year of Forest Protection
By Robert Cloud, Post Editor
Fifty years ago in April, at the height of Wisconsin’s wildland fire season, Waupaca County acquired its first forest ranger.
Sid Miller, who had been in charge of the Hartman Creek fish hatchery, was reassigned to the forest protection division in 1954. His transfer was an early step in efforts to control wildland fires in this area.
Forestry in Wisconsin has its origins in wildland fires. In the 1840s, loggers coming into Wisconsin viewed the thick forests as a commercial resource ripe for harvesting. In the mid-19th century, lumbering accounted for one-fourth of all wages paid in Wisconsin. As a consequence, thousands of acres of what had been near solid forest were aggressively logged, leaving behind stumps, sawdust, litter bark and branches that became fuel for massive fires.
The Department of Natural Resources estimated that 2,500 fires occurred annually between 1870 and 1930, destroying nearly 500,000 acres a year.
The worst of these fires started outside Peshtigo in fall 1871, killing at least 1,200 people and destroying more than 1.25 acres.
Wildland fires continued to be a threat throughout Wisconsin. IN 887, Marshfield burned to the ground as the result of a forest fire. In 1894, a fire swept through 100,000 acres, destroyed Phillips and killed 13 people.
In 1895, the state Legislature added the duties of fire warden to the positions of all town supervisors and road superintendents. Fire wardens posted fire warnings, prohibited burning during dry months and organized firefighting crews.
In 1903, Wisconsin established the State Forestry Department and hired Edward M. Griffith as the state forester. He took office on Jan. 1, 1904, and set in motion Wisconsin’s heritage of protecting its forests.
Since then, although basic firefighting methods have remained the same, new technology, better equipment and improved communications have help forest rangers suppress and control wildland fires.
“How we fight the fire hasn’t changed as much as the technology,” according to Lucas Schmidt, the forest ranger who works out of Hartman Creek State Park.
Schmidt points to aircraft patrol as one of the key elements in modern wildland firefighting.
A small plan flies out of Oshkosh nearly every day, patrolling six counties, including Waupaca County. The pilot was the first person to spot the fire that destroyed 572 acres at Crystal Lake on the Waushara-Marquette county line on April 14, 2003.
“The pilot is looking for fires. He is also looking for people burning debris,” Schmidt said. “If he sees smoke, he flies over it, checks it out, calls it in and the ranger visits the site.”
When rangers respond to daytime burning, they have the authority to issue citations. Those burning without a permit may be fined $181, while those who leave a fire unattended face a $500 fine and 30 days in jail.
Schmidt noted that daytime burning of debris is against the law. It is also the leading cause of wildland fires.
“Campfires are not the leading cause of wildland fires, debris burning is,” Schmidt said. “If people would burn when they are supposed to, the likelihood of their fire escaping would greatly decrease.”
Schmidt said the worst time to burn debris is during the day, due to humidity levels and wind. Of the 70 wildland fires in Waupaca County in 2003, only three started after 6 p.m.
On his computer, Schmidt pulls up a sequence of aerial photos taken of a fire that occurred on Cobb Town Road on April 11, 2003. The initial photo shows a debris fire that has just started to get out of control, burning a circle of grass in an empty field.
The second photo, shot six minutes later, shows thick smoke and knee-high flames that have consumed a three-acre arc. The first firefighters have arrived at the scene. This was their third fire that day.
The third aerial photo, taken 12 minutes after the initial shot, shows flames that are 10 feet high. The wind has shifted and the fire is now headed directly toward a home.
“One of the great assets of the plane is that the pilot can see the big picture. He can see where it is headed,” Schmidt said. “On the ground, with all the smoke, I can’t see where the fire is going or if it has shifted due to the wind.”
Wisconsin was the first state to use aircraft to locate fires. On June 22, 1915, Jack Vilas flew state forester Griffith over northern Wisconsin in a Curtis Flying Boat. At an altitude of 1,600 feet they spotted a forest fire approximately six miles from Trout Lake.
“Planes can help us find where fires are the hottest, where the fire is going and if there are homes in the area,” Schmidt said. “They can also help control a fire.”
Planes can carry about 500 gallons of water and drop it directly over a fire. At the Crystal Lake fire last year, two planes were called in to make 12 drops.
Since the first days of firefighting in Wisconsin, fire wardens and forest rangers have relied on firebreaks to contain a blaze. They break up the soil around a fire to create a mineral barrier to eliminate the leaves, debris or vegetation that provide fuel for the fire. A century ago, when the Wisconsin Forestry Department was established, wardens and rangers faced down a fire with axes and shovels. Their success depended on large numbers of volunteers, who were not always available in rural townships.
Today, Schmidt and other forest rangers rely on large bulldozers to create firebreaks. In Waupaca County, a John Deere 450 bulldozer plows a 6-foot-wide, 1-foot-deep swath around the fire.
Advances in communications also play a role in how rangers tackle wildland fires. Cell phones and radios allow the rangers to keep in contact with the volunteer firefighters at the scene, the pilot and the plow operator simultaneously.
Another key tool in fighting wildland fires is prevention. DNR foresters visit the schools with Smokey Bear, set up display booths with information and contact the media to warn the public about the dangers of fire.