Firefighters from across nation arrive in C.O.

When thunderstorms sweep across the High Desert and fires start, it takes an army of people to stop the flames. Many firefighters from across the country get their first glimpse of the High Desert in Redmond, as charter planes fly firefighters in from all over the country.

Friday, two smoke-jumping Sherpa planes sat ready and waiting to head into battle.

We’re always waiting for that buzzer to go off,” said smokejumper Andrew Harris of McCall, Idaho.

In between calls, the group of men and women is constantly checking gear.

“We always have a lot of stuff to do when we are waiting for the cal — parachutes to rig, parachutes to check,” Harris said.

He’s one of many firefighters in Central Oregon from across the country, some coming from as far away as Texas.

“Transport planes bring them all the way from the Southeast and down from Alaska, and they all converge here when we have our fire season,” Smokejump and Air Tanker Manager Bill Selby said.

Oregon has seen one of its worst fire seasons in a decade. Selby says the smokejumpers are slightly above average with the number of jumps they have made this year.

Down the taxiway, a yellow and blue DC-7 sits, waiting for the call to action. Once it has been requested, it will take just six minutes to fill the 3,000-gallon tank full of retardant. Then it’s wheels up to anywhere in the state.

“What it (fire retardant) does is, it just kind of buys us some time ’til we can get some ground resources in there to put a line around the fire,” Selby said.

As fires continue to burn across the state and new ones emerge, more resources may be headed our way, many thankful for the unique air base we have.

“It’s a great place to jump out of,” Harris said. “I like it here a lot. It’s a lot like McCall — good people, a lot of fires. We’ve been really busy. It’s been a lot of fun.”