Peeking out from under the wing of another firefighting aircraft, four scoopers sit at the U.S. Forest Service’s Santa Maria Air Tanker Base ready to respond if needed Friday. Credit: Janene Scully / ...
As fire season looms, the U.S. Forest Service is amping up its readiness with major improvements for air tankers that take the battle to wildfires, dropping fire retardant on the blazes below.
Late Pacific Northwest summers have become synonymous with wildfire haze that blankets our region. While 2023 provided a respite from recent trends, we have become all too familiar with the challenges ...